Hang on – don’t hit the ‘back’ button just yet! You’re still at Art-Paints, and I’m still reviewing art supplies and products.
I know, this piece of equipment is a little off the beaten path, but it’s one of the most cherished possessions in my studio. It certainly ranks among the most costly.
If you’ve been painting for any length of time, chances are you’ve amassed a fair amount of painting ‘stuff.’ Rather than storing all that detritus in countless bins, boxes and drawers, it’s far better to have your painting equipment in one convenient location.
A Place For Everything And Everything
Artist tabourets have been around for a long, long time. Today you can find these handy storage units for under $40.00 and over $1600.00. Regardless of how much you spend, having everything together in a convenient, nearby location is much more conducive to painting than wasting time scouring the house for your supplies.
The Problem With Most Tabourets
Before I purchased my tabouret, I gave it a lot of thought. I knew I didn’t want to buy an inexpensive, plastic container that wouldn’t last a long time. I also wanted to be as efficient as possible, as my space is somewhat limited.
As I researched the different types of tabourets, I concluded that the designers of many of these pieces aren’t actual artists. They don’t get what a working artist really needs.
Most artists have loads of itty-bitty things like tubes of paint, pastels, colored pencils, brushes and drawing equipment. Deep drawers are certainly a waste of space for these thin items.
If you’re like me and have been painting for decades, you’ve probably dipped your toes into several different types of painting mediums. Myself, I’ve painted in watercolor, oils, acrylics, gouache, egg tempera and dabbled with chalk, oil pastels, colored pencils and colored markers.
I have a whole lot of art supplies, and I want them all together. Most of the less costly tabourets only have a few drawers and those are deep and ineffective. Even costly tabourets don’t have the storage capacity I need. So, what’s an artist to do?
Think Outside The Box
I came up with the ideal solution for my storage problem; a rolling tool cabinet is just perfect for an artist’s vast assortment of stuff. It has lots of shallow drawers so that you can segregate your various paints in different sections. The cabinet has successively deeper drawers, so you have room for larger containers, palettes and plenty of space for papers, canvas and Masonite boards.
The top of the cabinet gives you a nice additional work area when you’re actively painting. I use the surface for holding a jar with the brushes I’m currently using, a roll of paper towels, a water container when I’m painting with water mediums, a place to lay my palette and probably my current beverage of choice.
Excel 27-Inch Steel Roller Cabinet Item Model #: TB2050BBSB-Red
This is a heavy piece of equipment. It weighs around 130 pounds. However, the 5″x1″ casters make it easy to move around. Two of the wheels are fixed, and two wheels swivel and have locks.
Since this is a tool chest, it’s made to hold heavy weights. The chest has double walls, and the lower drawers have double ball bearing slides to hold heavier loads. The drawers have a 75-pound weight capacity.
All seven drawers have ball bearing slides and have oil and moisture-resistant liners. The top four drawers are two inches deep, and the bottom three are deeper for all your larger supplies and paper products.
The drawers have a catch and hold system that prevents the drawers from accidentally opening and features a security lock that comes with two keys.
The chest is 27.1″ L x 18″ D x 34.8″ H. If you don’t want to use the casters, the height of the unit is 29″. The top has an oil and moisture resistant top mat, and the unit has a powder coated paint finish for scratch resistance and protection from chemical interactions. There is a side drawer handle to aid in moving and the drawer pulls are aluminum and extend the entire width of the drawers.
A tool cabinet isn’t the least costly way to go when it comes to a storage solution for all your art supplies. However, a steel roller cabinet will last a lifetime, and it’s certainly in line with the price you’ll pay for an average, good tabouret. You’ll definitely have plenty of storage space for all your paraphernalia, and I’m sure you’ll thank me for such a great idea!
