In this video I take you through the final process of making what I’d call an essential bit of kit for plein air watercolour: a thin, strong, compact table/tray that fits straight onto my tripod. The whole point is to keep the setup light and practical when I’m out painting landscapes on our campervan trips with Tanya—no wobble, no bulk, and nothing that gets in the way when the weather turns. I build the tray from 6mm MDF, keeping it deliberately slim. I’ve noticed a lot of other trays add extra wooden supports underneath, which might feel reassuring, but it just makes the whole thing thicker and more cumbersome to carry and pack. I show the simple tools and materials you’ll need (a Stanley knife, tape measure, and Velcro tape), and how this tray ties in with the earlier parts of the setup—my tripod adapter boards and the paper holder boards. The takeaway is a tidy, modular system that holds all my watercolour equipment securely while staying as compact as possible for real-world plein air painting.