Having to do a big custom commission, I had to start to stretch my canvases. When you start painting on big surfaces, storing becomes an issue. If I don't make a sale, I can always untag the canvas; rolled it up and reuse the stretchers. And it's also far more economical.

Here is a few tricks to be known.

The canvas:

I am using a 65% cotton 35% linen fabric bought at a fabric store. I can go even cheaper with a printed fabric on sale. As long as you have a good quality cotton with the right weaving you are in business. If you can afford a fabric with linen, go for it. Linen is more resistant than cotton but more expansive.

I estimate that it cost up to 50% less than buying preprimed art store canvas if you use fabric bought from a depot.

The primer

I use acrylic gesso primer; even if I paint in oil. In a near future, I am planning on switching to ceiling primer. It does the same job with half the cost. If you have a printed fabric you might have to put more coats for a nice white surface.

The stretchers

They are the only supplies that I buy in art store. With a good miter saw you could do your own. To avoid framing, buy gallery frame stretchers. Don't forget to put crossties for big surfaces like 30” X 40”. They will strength the stretchers and prevent bending. Use 90 ° ruler to make sure you have straight corners. Double tag the corner on the back to make sure they won't move.

If you can, use a hand tagger. With the heavy duty electrical I cannot remove the tags easily and reuse the stretchers.

When cutting your canvas, give yourself a margin of 3 inches more than the sizes of your stretchers. With big enough margin, you won't need pliers to stretch your canvas.

Tag your canvas on the back of the stretchers. Don't put them parallel to the stretchers, but with a slight angle. When the canvas drys, it will prevent it from tearing.

When the canvas is tagged you will wet it with a spray bottle. Then, full the cotton with a hair blower set on hot.

If you have to do a tight rendered painting, you can sand between each gesso coat. For a more “modern” work don't bother. I put three coats on a raw canvas, up to 5 on a printed fabric.

Voilà!

Here is a good video resuming all the important points, like how to DOUBLE fold the canvas to have neat corners.

Happy painting.

How to stretch an unprimed canvas