Review on MEEDEN Solid Wood Drafting Table with Adjustable Height and Tiltable Tabletop - Ideal for Artists, Designers, Writers, and Craftsmen by Jolett Schneider

This is a beautiful piece of furniture. As others have said, it's hard to get together without a stranger, but I made it, and I'm a slightly older woman. I was actually happy with the build as the instructions were fairly straightforward and the parts fit exactly as intended. All parts have been sorted and labeled, making viewing the images a lot easier. However, I wouldn't do it without a cordless drill, because it's real wood and tightening the screws by hand would be too much for me. I bought it because I want to draw and draw while standing. A regular easel is more upright than I need for my current work. I used my kitchen countertop, which wasn't a good idea considering I often mix my own paints with toxic pigments. I was able to adjust the height of this drafting table to match the height of my kitchen table and tilt it at a slight angle to be easier on my neck than leaning over a flat surface. The problem is solved! So what's the biggest disappointment? It is very difficult to adjust the height of the table and the angle of the drawing surface. Somehow I figured I could turn a knob or something to adjust once it was assembled. There is no such happiness. If I want to increase the height of the table I need to be able to lift the table top and keep it at the right height by tightening the handles on either side. This surface is heavy and wide - it is impossible, at least for one person. If a strong person holds up the table top, another person could tighten the knobs. But even then, you have to be sure to keep the surface level, otherwise your surface will tilt left to right - not at the angle the artist wants. A similar problem arises when you try to lower the surface when you don't want it to be at the lowest level (in which case, loosen the handles and drop the side pieces to the floor). It's possible to adjust the height if the table is upside down, but you don't really feel like turning a 40-pound table upside down to adjust its height. And even then, there's a dilemma: to be sure you've raised or lowered it by the same amount left and right. the need to change it (or at least the desire to change it enough that I would go through it all again). I'll let you in on my secret if you try to do it yourself like I did. I took 6 reams of printer paper that I had on hand and placed 3 on each side of the table. I raised the table top by pushing it under the sides with my foot so that each stack supported one side of the table at the same height. Then I tightened the handles and pulled out the stack of papers. You can use 1 or 2 stacks (or other strong pair of items of the same height) to get different heights. Adjusting the table angle has similar dilemmas, but I got lucky and was happy with the first angle I tried. I won't mess with it. Given the significant difficulty in setting up this adjustable table, I should rightly give it less than 5 stars. It seems like a company that can design such a beautiful desk and make it easy for an incompetent person like me to come up with a better height and angle adjustment system. However, I cannot give less than 5 stars. I just love the table too much.