Stretching your own canvas give you more options for unusual sized pieces.
Painting with oils or acrylics is best done on a stretched canvas. There are previously made canvases that are available at any art or hobby store, but you are limited by what is available. Making your own custom canvases allows for more flexibility with the size you chose as well as the type and texture of the canvas. Stretching your own canvas is also more cost effective, especially if you buy your canvas in large quantities.
Instructions
Preparations
1. Choose the stretcher bars for your painting. Stretcher bars come in pre-cut sizes and have tongue and groove cuts on each end so they can be assembled without using nails.
2. Select your canvas for the painting; linen and cotton duck are the two most common choices. Linen is more expensive and is strong, stiffer and usually smoother than the cotton duck. Cotton duck is a more affordable option and is easier to stretch because it is more flexible. You also need to decide if you want primed or unprimed canvas. Primed canvas has already received one or two coats of gesso and is ready for painting as soon as it is stretched. Unprimed canvas will need to be primed once the canvas has been stretched.
3. Assemble the stretcher bars to make your frame. Make sure the frame is perfectly square. To determine if the frame is square measure from the top right corner to the bottom left corner at diagonal and then repeat from the top left corner to the bottom right corner. The measurement should be the exactly same. If they are not then tap with a rubber mallet on one corner to realign the frame and measure again.
4. Lay the canvas out on a flat surface, primed side down if you purchased primed canvas and lay the frame on top of the canvas. Mark out the dimensions of the frame on the canvas taking into account the depth of the stretcher bars to make sure you will have enough canvas to cover the edges. Cut the canvas piece out to the measured size.
Stretching the sides of the canvas
5. The staples along the side is an incomplete look and will require a permanent frame to be installed before displaying.
Lay the frame back in the center of the canvas. Start stretching the frame on the long side of the rectangle. Take the canvas from the center of the long side and wrap it up and around so that the edge of the canvas is lying on the back of the stretcher bar or frame. Staple in place. Stapling on the back of the frame instead of along the sides creates a cleaner look and is called a gallery wrap.
6. Go to the opposite side of the canvas, take a hold of the centerpiece of canvas, and pull it up and around so that the edge is lying on the back as well and staple. There will be a crease in the middle of the canvas now stretched between the two sides; this will be removed as you continue to stretch the canvas. Be sure to pull tight when stretching the canvas so that you have a taunt canvas when you are done.
7. Go to the middle of the short side, pull tight the canvas, stretch around the edge onto the back and staple. Repeat on the remaining side so that you now have one staple in each side holding the canvas in place.
8. Go back to the original side, pull the fabric tight, and place two more additional staples one on each side of the original staple. Repeat on the opposite and then on both ends. Continue this pattern until you are several inches away from the corner of the frame.
Stretching the corners of the canvas
9. Turn the canvas so the longer side is facing you. It looks best when the folds on the corners are consistent so stretch the sides on the longest side first.
10. Start with the right side, take the piece of canvas from the bottom, and tuck the fold under the side piece so that it is flush with the side of the frame and staple.
11. Take the edge of the side piece of the canvas and fold it at a 45-degree angle to the corner of the frame and staple.
12. Take the remaining piece of canvas fold at a 90-degree angle to cover the two other folds. This will create single line down the corner and a tightly stretched canvas.
13. Repeat process on the left bottom corner folding up from the bottom again and then folding at the 45 and then 90-degree angles. Doing the entire side at once will ensure that your corners have a consistent look.
14. Turn frame over and repeat the whole process on the other side. Make sure to fold the canvas in from the bottom.
