Crafting a Cardboard Stand
Lay down a flat piece of cardboard to use for your stand. Flatten out some cardboard and lay it on a smooth surface. If you don’t have any cardboard on hand, see if you can find any shoeboxes or delivery boxes around your home. If possible, layer a second sheet of cardboard beneath the initial piece to serve as a cutting board. The second piece of cardboard helps prevent the surface from being scratched an X-Acto knife or box cutter later on. Try to use corrugated cardboard, as a thin material won’t be sturdy enough to hold up your tablet.
Trace your iPad twice on the flattened cardboard. Lay your tablet screen-side-down onto the cardboard. Using a marker or pen, trace around the edge of the iPad to provide an exact drawing of your tablet’s dimensions. Do two separate tracings on this cardboard, both identical in size and shape. Make sure that you have enough cardboard on hand for two large rectangles. A delivery box is particularly handy for this kind of project.
Cut out the two pieces with an X-Acto knife. Take an X-Acto knife or box cutter and slice it directly down your tracing lines. Work in quick, firm strokes so you cut through the cardboard completely. Use your free hand to hold the cardboard in place, but be careful to keep it a safe distance away from your cutting hand. If your cardboard is especially thick, you might have to go over the lines more than once.
Slice a third piece that’s about 0.5 in (1.3 cm) wide. Measure about 0.5 in (1.3 cm) above the top edge of your iPad tracing. Use the box cutter or X-Acto knife to slice out this extra strip of cardboard. To make your measurements more exact, try marking the strip’s dimensions in permanent marker before cutting. This will be the last piece of cardboard that you need to cut out.
Bend the thin piece into an “L” shape. Take the thin strip of cardboard and fold it lengthwise, allowing it to form a right angle. As you fold the cardboard, apply a bit of extra pressure to help it keep its new shape. This will serve as the bottom ledge for the iPad to sit on.
Remove a small square of cardboard so the camera is uncovered. Hold a piece of cardboard up to your iPad and find the camera. Sketch a small rectangle on the cardboard to represent the camera’s approximate location. After you’ve set aside your tablet, lay the marked cardboard sheet flat, and cut away this small section of cardboard with your cutting tool. If you don’t plan on using your iPad stand for photography or videography purposes, feel free to disregard this.
Tape the bottoms of the two large cardboard pieces together. Take a long strip of duct tape and apply it to the outer edges of the two large cardboard sheets. Once the tape is in place, take an additional strip and stick it along the inner edge of the two cardboard pieces. These strips of tape will be directly on top of and beneath one another. Aim for the tape strips to be slightly longer than the width of your iPad. If you want your case to be extra fun, try using a roll of duct tape with a fun pattern or design!
Fold one piece of cardboard in half unevenly along the shorter edge and tape it in place. Fold one piece of large cardboard, leaving ⅓ of the sheet flat and the other ⅔ of the sheet angled. Continue folding the cardboard so it forms a triangle with the other piece of material. Use 2-3 strips of tape to secure the folded cardboard into place. This cardboard triangle serves as the stand.
Secure the thin, bent piece to the front and bottom of the stand. Take a smaller strip of tape and place it in the center of the thin cardboard piece. After attaching this strip to the rest of the constructed stand, use a longer length of duct tape to secure this piece along the bottom. Feel free to tape around the outer edges of the stand to make it look more uniform.
Using LEGO Pieces
Connect LEGO pieces together to make a useful stand. Take a variety of rectangular LEGO bricks and stack them on top of one another. Try to use a large, flat, rectangular LEGO as the base of the stand, then stack more bricks in 2 upright towers in the center of this rectangle. Attach at least two small LEGOS on the front edge of your stand to hold your tablet in place. Feel free to be creative with the LEGO pieces! Try using a round axle LEGO to provide more support to the stand. Additionally, consider placing mini LEGO tires on the ends of both upright towers.
Using a Coat Hanger
Bend up the bottom portion of a coat hanger to hold your iPad. Take some pliers and work the bottom metal wiring of a hanger out of its traditional shape. Adjust the wide triangle of wire into a long oval, leaving the hook portion unbent. Finally, use the pliers to curve up the bottom section of the hanger up by 1 to 1.5 inches (2.5 to 3.8 cm). Your hanger will somewhat resemble a shower rack. This stand works best for those who use their iPad in landscape orientation.
Using a Metal Bookend
Angle a metal bookend to keep your iPad upright. Take the upright, arced portion of a metal bookend and push it backward. Bend this bookend to the angle that you plan on using to view your tablet. To prevent the iPad from slipping when you lean it against the metal, stick two binder clips on the bottom, horizontal portion of the bookend. This is a great iPad stand to use in an office setting.
Using an Egg Carton
Use an empty egg carton to make an iPad stand quickly. To do so, take an empty styrofoam egg carton built for a dozen eggs (two rows of six eggs). Cut the lid off the top of the carton. Turn the base upside down and place it with the egg compartments facing up. Place the iPad in between the egg compartments. Your iPad should fit nicely between the egg compartments and stand up independently.
Using a Cutting Board
Use a cutting board as an iPad stand when you’re in the kitchen. Take a wooden cutting board with a single handle and position it vertically. Next, glue two small, identically shaped door stops to the back of the board to hold them into place. To form a shelf for the iPad, glue a Scrabble letter rack or other thin piece of wood to the bottom of the edge of the cutting board. Keep in mind that the cutting board will be in a vertical position, so glue the thin piece of wood to the opposite edge of the handle. Use wood glue to attach the additional pieces.
Using a Duct Tape Roll
Carve triangular grooves into an empty roll of duct tape. Take an empty roll of thick tape and place it sideways onto a flat surface. Using a box cutter, cut out two triangular grooves that are large enough to fit your tablet. Make sure that both grooves are parallel to one another. Try and use a roll that has some tape left on it, as an empty roll might not be sturdy enough to hold up your tablet.
Using Pencils
Tie 6 pencils together with rubber bands to use as a tripod. Aim to create a small pyramid out of sharpened pencils. Form a base triangle by banding the ends of 3 pencils together. Next, stick one pencil into each band, angling them toward one another to form a pyramid. Secure these last three pencils into place with a rubber band. Make sure that the eraser end of 1 pencil is physically propping up the iPad. The structure of this stand works best with tablets that are in portrait orientation.
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