but for real my cervical spine is getting jacked up from excessive desk work (looking down at books and a laptop too much.) It’s made it hard to draw in my sketchbook or work in my journal, and that sucks because drawing in my sketchbook and writing in my journal are the two things that help keep me from losing my mind.
So, i looked for ergonomic options for bookstands.
I found a simple laptop/tablet stand and combined it with an old unused paint palette and some skeleton binder clips.
the laptop stand is generic but it’s light and has a tight and stable build, and it was fun to finally give the paint palette something to do.
I just drop it right on there and then clip my notebook or sketchbook to the wood.
I have a clipboard that works too, I currently just prefer the size of the palette. i’m sure when i return to my 9 x 12 sketchbook this clipboard is going to be what makes this configuration work. When i try it out with the larger sketchbook, I’ll try to report back.
it has made such a difference already! It’s not perfect but holy shit it’s so much better than I was without it. It still tips if I put excess pressure on it but I’m gonna find a way to weigh the bottom of the stand. A moot suggested that a C clamp could be a solid problem solver, and it sure could! My desk has a drawer in the way so i can’t use the clamp solution, but this is a solid solution and I recommend it to anyone needing some stability.
To be able to draw without pain is very important to me so I thought I’d share just in case someone could benefit from using something like this :)
I found my best option for a stand at Jeff’s Gross Online Web Shop, but im sure you can find something that suits your needs in your region that isn’t from Jeff’s Gross Online Web Shop. A lot of vendors don’t ship stuff to Quebec for reasons I don’t entirely understand, so my options are weirdly limited sometimes. (For instance, a tabletop shelf from Muji absolutely 100% cannot be shipped to QC. why? …?? dang idk.)
If you want the specific model i got, the link is here. I’m not an affiliate or ambassador or evangelist or whatever, so i dont get paid for telling you this is where i found it.
while looking for the link i stumbled upon a model that also has a 360 degree pivot as well, which is what i absolutely would have gotten if i knew it was an option, so i just wanna put that out there as well.
a day may come where these links no longer work and the stands are no longer available
anyway there are lots of ways to create ergonomic solutions, as every human is a different shape with a different build, so there’s no real right way to do this. I’ve seen folks transform a computer monitor arm by mounting a book stand on it, or someone who modifies a box easel to lift everything up. There’s also lap trays and craft arms for stitch work that can be modified as well.