Elevating the Figure

I have been wanting to build a new model stand for a while. The one I had in the studio did the trick, but it was too small, a bit rickety, and was just not fancy enough- it's main fault being that I did not build it. I wanted the new one to be a bit bigger for reclining poses- so I got to work.
I am a bit of a pack rat. I have a room in the basement that is basically an old furniture grave yard (this room is right around the corner from the stone, glass, and tile room and the old frame room). Part of my collection of junk were some wonderful old carved legs, just the right height for a model stand. I am guessing they are from a pool table. I found them in a house that a friend bought at a police auction. The previous owner had just walked out one day and it was left full of junk. The thick wood top I found on a drive home one day sitting in the garbage. One great reason to drive a van. The drawers are from a very old priest's wardrobe I got out of an abandoned convent that I was looking into renting for studio space. This wardrobe had 7  huge drawers- 53 by 35. I had them all stored up in the rafters of my garage. They were very old and in bad shape, so I had to bust them apart and use the parts to make new drawers which ended up being 24" wide and 32" deep. A great size for storing drawings. Everything had to be sanded down and refinished. The sides and back of the basic box of the stand are made with 2x4's. I sanded and filled them and did my best to fancy them up with face frames and  trim.

Is that not an awesome drawer?

Below is the model stand before I stained and clear coated it. I believe the top is poplar, 2x4s are pine and the legs are some sort of mahogany. I had to stain it in layers and use a tinted polyurethane to get an even color. 

The only thing I had to buy for this model stand was a sheet of plywood  for the bottom platform and large bolts to attach the legs to it. Everything else was reclaimed wood. It is a very Green model stand.
I am looking forward to putting it to use this Tuesday.
The basic dimensions of this stand, if you are interested in building your own is 35" deep, and 58" long. It is 20" tall, a great height for portrait, as the seated model will be at eye level.
Just looking at this beauty makes you want to disrobe and pose on it's finely finished surface.  Feel free to stop by the studio and do so.