Advice needed - should i make my own canvasses?

JaJa

Can one of you painters in the know tell me if it's more cost effective to buy ready made canvasses or to make up my own? didn't go to art college so have no clue about making wooden frames, stretching canvas etc (if they even do that in art college?!). At the moment I just buy the cheap ones ready-made from Evans.

How hard/easy is it to make your own, as in, do I need to be Handy Andy with a hammer and nails? and do i have to be good at measuring and sawing through things?? (see, i'm completely mystified by all this)

If you know of any good websites on how to stretch canvas either that would be great.

Many thks darlinks...!:)

Fajitas!

It's pretty easy to do, and much cheaper.

You'll need a hammer, nails, staple gun and wood. And of course canvas.

As far as I know, there's a place near Georges St. Arcade, a materials shop, that sells canvas.

It'll take a while to get it right, but like, practise makes perfect and all.

Measurements are gonna be down to common sense really

snorlax

where would this shop be near Fajitas and is the canvas dear?

Reef

You can buy canvases for so cheap nowadays that I don't think it's worth the hassle.

Fajitas!

Reef wrote:

You can buy canvases for so cheap nowadays that I don't think it's worth the hassle.

I can't remember the name of the shop or street...but basically... When you come out of Georges Arcade, as if you are heading towards Grafton St., cross the road and it's the materials shop on your right maybe 3/4 shops down?

Store bought canvas might be cheap and all, but the quality is sh*te. If you're making something for sale, or as a gift...or that has any value, I'd rather make my own

Haven't bought the canvas in there in a long time, since our college sells it now...

EDIT: Google maps suggests Castle Market being the street...

It's a pedestrianised one anyways!

JaJa

Thanks guys.

a couple more q's spring to mind (as a result of a laborious trawl through the various 'how to stretch a canvas' sites)....

"stretcher strips"... can these be bought pre-made, or must one manufacture ones own?

primer... rabbits bum glue plus gesso etc, or house paint as one site suggested??!

c'mon guys, share your knowledge.... puh-lease!:D

Monkey

You need a mitre saw to cut the corners at 45 degree angles. You should use screws not nails. Evans sells canvas. Use rabbits skin glue on the canvas then prime with white gesso if required but its not necessary.

Also its handy get a set of clamps for the corners so you can clamp the stretcher together while you drill in the screws.

Reef

Hi Fajitas. I find the Reeves canvas good quality and pretty cheap. Obviously it's not the best but you can buy large quantities cheaply. I'd rather spend my time painting then making up my own canvas, when I start selling my paintings for more, i'll then splash out on the best!

Fajitas!

I'm a big fan of quality over quantity

artieanna

Fajitas! wrote:

I'm a big fan of quality over quantity

Very true fajitas-
quality and quantity are guaranteed if you stretch your own canvas'. It's far cheaper to stretch your own and you choose the canvas quality and you can choose to stretch any size too, so you are not limited to shop sizes. I feel that it becomes part of the artistic process to stretch a number of canvas' before starting a series of paintings.

Making Rabbit glue is not necessary, just prime with 50-50 emulsion and pva glue mixed together.... perfect for oil and acrylic paints;) .........

ZenforHead

Prime with flake white, I would have said. it takes a week to dry is the only thing.
Our college provides all the raw materials and allows us to make our own for free!

scorplett

Fajitas! wrote:

I can't remember the name of the shop or street...but basically... When you come out of Georges Arcade, as if you are heading towards Grafton St., cross the road and it's the materials shop on your right maybe 3/4 shops down?

I believe that shop is next to harlequin and is called Murphy Sheehy & Co. Is on Castle Market street and materials is a bit misleading or confusing at best... its a fabric and trimmings shop.

I have found their canvas very good quality ( maybe too high quality) and very reasonably priced considering. However, I would recommend the bleached canvas as the unbleached is a sponge for any primer and will not take well to homemade frames. You will need proper stretcher bars that can take wedging AFTER priming.
I find these days that most of the bought canvases are a] quicker b]easier c]cheaper and d]cleaner & less demaning of space. I find that if you lightly sand most of the bought canvases and oil it, they respond very very well. Also, when you can buy a range of sizes for less than a tenner and buy one get one free in Tommys, you really cant go wrong.

Húrin

If you're only using small canvases, then you might as well buy them ready made. If you're painting big, make your own. Remember to bevel the wood (i.e. cut the edge at an angle) so that you don't have unwanted lines around the edge of your painting.

artieanna

ZenforHead wrote:

Our college provides all the raw materials and allows us to make our own for free!

:eek: thats rare lucky ye!!!