Easel or table and chair for 2 year old?

[Jane101]

Hi everybody,

My son has just turned 2, and is starting to get interested in painting and drawing (for short periods of time only). At the moment we use the kitchen floor, but I'm not sure if it'd be a good idea to get an easel. Or would a child size chair and little table be better? Personally, if I was doing craft work I'd want a nice comfy chair, not standing up at an easel or sitting on a hard wooden chair, but maybe 2 year olds are different. What do you all think, and have you any recommendations for either, plus places to buy them on line?

dd was bought an easel for her second birthday, and now nearly three, she hasn't used it much. I think at that age it is easier for them to sit at a table where the paints etc are all on the same level. Also better for other crafts. Having said that, she does like the chalk board side of it. (she has the ELC plastic easel). We have an Ikea kiddies table and two chairs which I think were £18 for the set which I painted but for ease of wiping perhaps I would go for plastic.

If you want one, Ikea does them cheaply. Also cute tables into which you insert a roll of paper so they can draw & paint for hours without running out of paper. Also cute little chairs, all cheap. If you are near a branch & can bear the thought of the queues etc.

We've had an easel since dd1 was about 3, and frankly it's hardly ever used. Dd1 loves drawing, etc, but is quite happy (and prefers, I think) sitting at a normal table. Definately one of those things that you think you should have, but once you get one you realise that you didn't need it after all.
It's the kind of thing that you ned to have the space to have up all the time.

We've got both - and I'd say the table and chairs (got two !!) are definitely more useful and versatile as we also use them for tea-parties for people, bears and whoever else we can find ! My dd sits at the table a lot, sometimes prefers to eat in her playroom etc... and we use the table as a shop counter, operating table, changing table etc.....

Definitely go for IKEA too - our table was £18 and the chairs £10 each (called Gulliver) and is very hard wearing and better quality than many I've seen for over £100 elsewhere.

We've got the same Ikea table & chair set as Thumper I think. Great value although obviously you get what you pay for. I keep meaning to paint the top in easily wipable gloss paint but haven't got round it.

I think the table & chairs are more versatile than an easel, much as I like and covet the Ikea easel. DSs use theirs for for painting, crafts, writing and eating at.

As for the hard wooden chair, a 2 year old won't be sitting in it that long Unless yours has a far greater attention span than mine did...

Have you got a kitchen table/adults table you can use? We cover our kitchen table with a very old paintsplattered cloth and dd1 has used that since she was 2 or before. I think an easel is boring to stand at for any length of time, also its not very flexible once they get into doing stickers, glue, playdoh etc. I second the votes for Ikea tables and chairs if you want a seperate table.

We've just bought a nice bench seat for 2 with storage in the seat and work table for a child from www.marksandspencer.com. Came to £50 but we're really pleased with them and 2 children can work/eat side by side.

Thank you all for replying. I think I'm going off the idea of an easel, we don't really need another thing taking up space in the house. Soupdragon - you're right, 5 minutes painting is about all my ds is interested in - it takes longer to get out the paints and clean up afterwards, but I feel I should encourage him.

Another vote for the table and chairs. DS has got the Ikea set and I've painted the table top and chair seats in blue (left over from garden bench so hardwearing and waterproof) and vanished the table legs and chair legs/back and they look great. The remnants of DH's last year's desk pad sits nicely on the top too.

Hi Jane 101 - no time to read all entries in this thread but many seem to think an easel is not much used - I bought my ds a table easel (usually used by adults) rather than a child's easel. She can use this on the floor or on a table and has had quite a lot of use out of it to date. Also if the artistic urge ever hits me (chance and time would be a fine thing) then I could use it too.

Hi Soly. I hadn't thought of that. I haven't bothered buying an easel so far, but we've been using the fridge - with fridge magnets to hold the paper in place. This seems to work pretty well although probably wouldn't be a good idea if you're particularly houseproud.