Melaine
11-18-2009, 12:30 PM
So I thought I would let everyone know what I think. I couldn't find a whole lot of info before we received, so I wanted to give you guys the scoop.
We got the red Easels. In retrospect, I would get natural. We have already had a couple small scratches in the red (I believe I have heard the same thing about the painted LTs). The ledge at the bottom of the Easel comes off and reattaches to switch from chalk to white board so I feel that more scratches are probably going to happen. Wish I had gotten natural but I couldn't resist the red. FYI, also, the red is pretty but it is bright, a little brighter than I pictured (not cherry, but fire engine).
The assembly was very quick and easy. Even DH didn't complain and he hates putting stuff together.
TWO Easels WILL fit on one Learning Tower. I couldn't find this info anywhere and was a little peeved that Little Partners never returned my email to answer this question. They easily hang on the side and there is also a hook to secure them on the bottom. They fit well and stay tight.
Both sides of the easel are magnetic and there is a SUPER strong magnetic strip for hanging paper to use it that way. I didn't see that info mentioned in the item descriptions, and it works great.
Wall mounting hardware is included. Frankly, I don't think DH would ever let me hang something so heavy on our walls but at least it is an option.
The chalkboard works great. No seasoning needed whatsoever.
The height of the Easel is kind of short. My kids can stand at it now (they are tall for their age), but it will be a little short for them in the next couple years. I think a little stool will work fine though, and I still prefer this over a stand-alone easel since it is using the existing LT footprint.
Also, keep in mind that the Easel is perpendicular to the floor. There is no "tilt" like a traditional Easel. Not sure how much difference this makes to my kids who haven't ever had an Easel.
It is a little bit of a pain to switch the shelf beneath the Easel from one side to the next. You have to wiggle it out and reinsert on the other side. I wish that they included some kind of cup in the holes, but DH mentioned they might be designed for pre-filled paint cups?
Having one Easel on the LT all the time might work fine, but with two it makes it really heavy. All that means, is that I take them off while we are using the LT for other things. Plus the ledge poking out would keep it from coming close to the counter. Again, only one could be kept on the opposite side and might work fine.
Overall, I really like it. For us, it works much better than a full-size easel which would really take up too much space. I think they are well made and very nice looking. I don't think that the Easel is as much of a design and manufacturing wonder as the LT itself, but I would probably give it a strong four out of five stars. :thumbsup: HTHS!
We got the red Easels. In retrospect, I would get natural. We have already had a couple small scratches in the red (I believe I have heard the same thing about the painted LTs). The ledge at the bottom of the Easel comes off and reattaches to switch from chalk to white board so I feel that more scratches are probably going to happen. Wish I had gotten natural but I couldn't resist the red. FYI, also, the red is pretty but it is bright, a little brighter than I pictured (not cherry, but fire engine).
The assembly was very quick and easy. Even DH didn't complain and he hates putting stuff together.
TWO Easels WILL fit on one Learning Tower. I couldn't find this info anywhere and was a little peeved that Little Partners never returned my email to answer this question. They easily hang on the side and there is also a hook to secure them on the bottom. They fit well and stay tight.
Both sides of the easel are magnetic and there is a SUPER strong magnetic strip for hanging paper to use it that way. I didn't see that info mentioned in the item descriptions, and it works great.
Wall mounting hardware is included. Frankly, I don't think DH would ever let me hang something so heavy on our walls but at least it is an option.
The chalkboard works great. No seasoning needed whatsoever.
The height of the Easel is kind of short. My kids can stand at it now (they are tall for their age), but it will be a little short for them in the next couple years. I think a little stool will work fine though, and I still prefer this over a stand-alone easel since it is using the existing LT footprint.
Also, keep in mind that the Easel is perpendicular to the floor. There is no "tilt" like a traditional Easel. Not sure how much difference this makes to my kids who haven't ever had an Easel.
It is a little bit of a pain to switch the shelf beneath the Easel from one side to the next. You have to wiggle it out and reinsert on the other side. I wish that they included some kind of cup in the holes, but DH mentioned they might be designed for pre-filled paint cups?
Having one Easel on the LT all the time might work fine, but with two it makes it really heavy. All that means, is that I take them off while we are using the LT for other things. Plus the ledge poking out would keep it from coming close to the counter. Again, only one could be kept on the opposite side and might work fine.
Overall, I really like it. For us, it works much better than a full-size easel which would really take up too much space. I think they are well made and very nice looking. I don't think that the Easel is as much of a design and manufacturing wonder as the LT itself, but I would probably give it a strong four out of five stars. :thumbsup: HTHS!