Stretching Canvas
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Beth E Peterson
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 Stretching canvas...it seems a simple thing, and yet it appears to be one of those things which might soon be considered a 'lost art'. This article address to issues regarding stretching canvas: how do you stretch a canvas to prepare it for painting. (There is another article which gives information on how to stretch a painting on canvas that has been taken off its stretchers for some reason, whether rolled for shipping or for storage.) If you do a lot of painting on canvas, you may want to investigate stretching your own canvases. Not only does this give you a much greater choice in sizes and dimensions, but it may quite possibly reduce your costs. In addition, you can ensure that your canvases will be taut enough. When stretching your own canvas, begin by finding the grain of the canvas itself. You will want the grain of the fabric to go straight up and down...you don't want the fabric's grain to go diagonally across the stretcher. Next, join your stretcher strips together, making sure that the corners are at right angles. (A carpenter's square is very helpful here.) Lay the stretchers across the fabric, again so that the grain is parallel with the stretchers. Now it is time to fasten the canvas to the stretchers. Begin in the middle of each side with only one staple, using canvas pliers to pull the canvas as taut as possible while setting the second and fourth staples. So, if you are right handed, you will have the staple gun in your right hand while keeping the fabric stretched with the canvas pliers in your left hand. While stretching and stapling, keep the grain of the fabric as straight as possible between 1 and 2 and between 3 and 4.  After setting your first four staples, go back to side 1. Pulling the canvas taut side to side, and with your tension angled slightly outward towards the nearest corner, set two more staples to the left, then two staples to the right of the original staple. Repeat on side 2. Then repeat on sides 3 and 4. In this way, you will move around the outer rim of the canvas a number of times as you stretch and staple. The object is to get the canvas as taut as possible, with no wrinkles or bubbles. By pulling outwards towards the corners while at the same time pulling straight across, you will get the most even lay. (This is also why the fabric grain is important.) Do not set too many staples at a time, however. The further you move away from the opposite side's stapled area, the more likely you are to cause the fabric grain to warp. That's why I suggest setting only two or so staples at a time. Once you have reached the corners, you will have a flap of canvas remaining free at each corner. Fold it to one side and staple it down, either on the side of the stretched canvas or on the back. Now you are ready to prime your canvas. Generally, figure on three coats of gesso, taking the time to sand down each coat before applying the next. I suggest using unprimed canvas when stretching your own canvases. One, it is easier to handle, being less stiff and with the grain being more clearly visible. Secondly, when you apply the gesso it will tighten the fibers of the fabric just a bit more. By the same token, if a canvas has gotten a minor poke, you can often reduce or even get rid of the resulting bubble by using water to dampen the back of the canvas fabric where the bubble is. The water will help those fibers to tighten up again. |