The Attaché Board

Our goal is to provide tools to help artists produce works of art unencumbered by the equipment around them. If their tools work properly, it should seem as if they don't even exist.

About Us

My name is Sandy Byers and I am a professional artist, living and working in the Pacific Northwest. Larry, my husband, is an inventor and natural engineer. Together, we have built a tool we are proud to introduce to the artist community. We are convinced it will make your studio life more efficient.

Comments, questions and suggestions are always welcome. Feel free to email us.

About the Attaché Board:

Each part of each Attaché Board is hand-crafted to become a quality tool that you can proudly add to your studio.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What makes the design of Attaché Board so special?

The Attaché Board was designed specifically for pastelists.

The Points: Pastel papers are delicate and some pastel pigments contain ferrites, making them magnetic. Each Point that holds the paper is finely engineered and hand tooled in such a way that it won't damage the paper and won't allow the magnets to come in contact with the paper. 

 

Because of the ferrous nature of the pigments in pastels, if the magnets in the Point  (or any other magnets) were to be on top of the work surface, the pastel dust would be overly attracted to the magnet. After working with the Point, you will notice the pastel dust clinging to the magnets (away from the paper); proof that the design is working in your favor.

So, now that I've just said that the Attaché Board was initially created for use with pastels, I must also share that I am a multi-media artist, and as such, I have found numerous ways to use my board. It's the accessories that enable the Attaché Board to easily be used for all types of media such as oils, acrylics, charcoal, pencil, colored pencil, mixed media, or any other media where an artist would typically use an upright easel. I have even used mine to work out my collage projects!

Can I use the Attaché Board with canvas?

Absolutely! The Boardclip is adjustable and is designed to hold panels that are 1/4" up to 1.5" thick. The larger the panel, the more Boardclips you need, so be sure your working surface (i.e., canvas or board) is secure before you start working). See the photo page for ideas of how to mount canvas.

What's the largest piece of paper/board/canvas I can use?

The largest recommended size is 18 x 24 and that still allows some space for reference material. You can, however, get creative, and allow some of the work to hang off the sides of your Attache Board if you are trying to work on a large Diptych or Triptych. Click here to see an example of one such way to do that.

How can I clean my board?

You can clean the metal part of your Attaché Board with a damp soapy sponge but please realize this is a working tool and, just like your easel, the paint and stain from your medium is not going to completely wipe off the surface.

The wood parts should be lightly wiped with a damp cloth or paper towel.

To empty the box, simply remove it from the box board, remove the screen (you can use a pencil to easily lift the screen) and either toss the dust or gather it for making your own pastels. (you can read how on Sandy Byer's website by clicking here.)

Which easels will work with the Attaché Board?

Most easels will work with the Attaché Board, HOWEVER, lightweight easels, singlemast easels and some A-frame easels will likely need to be weighted on the bottom in order to stablize them. The Attaché Board weighs 17 lbs so it really is best to have a sturdy easel to work on.

http://www.mabefeasel.com/products/MABEF-M07-Artist-Studio-Easel.html

http://www.mabefeasel.com/products/MABEF-M06-Deluxe-Artist-Studio-Easel.html

http://www.mabefeasel.com/products/MABEF-M04-Master-Artist-Studio-Easel.html