An original painting on canvas from the VanArtHub gallery at 1242 Davie Street in Vancouver.

Canvas · Vancouver

Canvas Print Stretching & Framing

A print on canvas that arrived rolled in a tube cannot hang until it is stretched over wooden bars. We cut the bars to your print, stretch it, and frame it if you want a frame.

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10% off custom framing at our shop, 1242 Davie Street. Get your code

A print on canvas often arrives rolled in a tube: a souvenir from a trip, an online order, or a print made from your own photograph. As a roll of cloth it cannot hang. We stretch it over wooden bars cut to its size, in our workshop at 1242 Davie Street, and we add a frame if you want one. The first thing we look at is the margin, because the margin decides what is possible.

How a canvas print is stretched

Stretcher bars are lengths of wood joined into a rectangle. We cut them to the size of your picture, lay the canvas over them, pull it evenly from the middle of each side toward the corners, and staple it at the back. The picture on a canvas print is a thin layer of ink on coated cloth. That layer can crack along a sharp fold, so a print that is cold or tightly rolled is left to reach room temperature before we unroll it. Our guide to stretching a rolled canvas describes the steps.

An original painting on canvas is pulled over wooden bars in the same way as a print. Unbothered is an oil on canvas from our gallery, 70 by 50 cm, showing a woman with blonde hair looking at the viewer while the people beside her face away.

Blonde woman in green top looks at viewer, others away. Oil on canvas paper by Phaedra.
Unbothered One-of-a-kind original$1,084.00 Free insured shipping. 14-day returns. See this original

The margin decides the options

The margin is the extra canvas around the picture. Measure it on all four sides before you come in.

What your print has What we can do
A wide blank margin The whole picture stays on the front. The blank canvas wraps around the sides and is stapled at the back. A frame covers the blank sides.
A wide margin printed with a copy of the picture's edge The printed margin covers the sides, and the print can hang with no frame.
A narrow margin We use thinner bars and staple on the sides. A frame then covers the staples.
No margin Part of the picture folds around the sides, or the canvas stays flat and is framed like a print on paper.

With no margin, folding the picture around the bars removes a strip from the front on every side. Look at what is near the edges of your print: a signature, a face or a horizon line close to the edge is a reason to choose the flat option. Our canvas stretching calculator tells you how much margin a given bar depth needs.

Floater frame or no frame

A stretched print with printed or clean sides can hang as it is. This is called a gallery wrap, and our guide to frameless and gallery wrap explains when it looks finished.

A floater frame is an open tray that the stretched canvas is fixed into from behind, with a narrow gap between the canvas and the frame. It hides blank sides and side staples, and it protects the corners, which are the first part of a canvas print to scuff. See floater frames for canvas.

A floater frame suits an original painting as well as a print, because the gap leaves the whole front in view. Radiance, an oil on canvas with swirls of yellow and green on a dark background, is 101.6 by 101.6 cm.

Roshan. Abstract painting: swirling yellow/green, dark shapes. Acrylic/Oil on Canvas.
Radiance One-of-a-kind original$2,801.00 Free insured shipping. 14-day returns. See this original

What changes the cost

The distance around the picture sets the length of bar we cut. Deeper bars cost more than thin ones. A large print needs a brace across the middle of the bars so the long sides stay straight. A frame, if you add one, is quoted with the stretching. We give you the figure at the counter once we have measured the print and its margin.

What to bring or send

Bring the print still rolled in its tube. Leave the margins untrimmed, even if they look untidy, because that cloth is what holds the print on the bars. If you live outside Vancouver, send two sizes, the size of the picture and the size of the whole canvas, with a photograph that shows one corner and its margin. Original paintings on canvas are handled by our canvas stretching service, which uses the same bars and the same method.

Walk in at 1242 Davie Street during opening hours with the tube. Enter your email on this page for a 10% code that covers canvas stretching as well as framing, and see custom framing for the rest of what we do.

How it works

  1. 1

    Bring it in, or send photographs

    Walk in to 1242 Davie Street during opening hours. If you are not in Vancouver, send the dimensions and a photograph and we will work from that.

  2. 2

    We look at the actual piece

    What it is made of, what condition it is in, and where it is going to hang all change the answer. You get a straight recommendation and a price for your piece, not a rate card.

  3. 3

    It is made by hand and fitted

    Cut to the piece, using conservation materials, and finished with hanging hardware rated for the actual weight.

Common questions

Can a canvas print with no white border be stretched?

A canvas print with no border can be stretched only by folding part of the picture around the sides of the bars. You lose a strip of the image from the front on all four edges, so the answer depends on what is near the edges. The other option is to keep the canvas flat and frame it like a print on paper. Bring it in untrimmed and we show you both.

Is a canvas print stretched the same way as an original painting?

A canvas print is stretched on wooden bars the same way as an original painting, with one difference in handling. The picture on a print is a thin layer of ink on coated cloth, and that layer can crack along a sharp fold or scuff at the corners. We let a cold, tightly rolled print warm to room temperature before we unroll it, and we fold the corners with care.

What is a mirrored edge on a canvas print?

A mirrored edge on a canvas print is a margin where the printer has copied the outer strip of the picture in reverse. When the canvas is stretched, that copied strip covers the sides of the bars, and the full picture stays on the front. A print with mirrored edges can hang with no frame. Ask for one when you order a print that you plan to stretch.

How much of the picture is lost when a canvas print is stretched?

No part of the picture is lost when a canvas print has a blank or mirrored margin wide enough to wrap the bars. With a narrow margin, we use thinner bars and staple on the sides, and a frame then covers the staples. Picture is lost only when there is no margin at all. Measure the margin on all four sides and we tell you which case yours is.

How should I store a rolled canvas print until I bring it in?

Store a rolled canvas print in its tube, in a dry room at normal indoor temperature, until you bring it in. Leave it rolled the way it arrived. Keep weight off the tube so the roll is not crushed, and leave the margins untrimmed, because the margin is the cloth that wraps around the bars when the print is stretched.

Can a canvas print go behind glass in an ordinary frame?

Yes, a canvas print can go behind glazing in a frame, kept flat like a print on paper. This suits a print with no margin for stretching. A mat or a spacer keeps the glazing off the ink. Most canvas prints are stretched on bars and left open, because the texture of the cloth is part of the look, so the flat option is mainly for prints that cannot be stretched.

Can you re-stretch a canvas print that came on thin, warped bars?

Yes, we re-stretch a canvas print that came on thin or warped bars. The canvas is taken off the old bars and stretched onto new bars cut to the piece, in a depth that stays flat at that size. The fold lines from the old bars need to land on the edges of the new ones, so we keep the same picture size unless you ask for a change.

Other things we frame

Where to find us

VanArtHub Gallery 1242 Davie Street
Vancouver, BC V6E 1N3
Canada
Monday10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Tuesday10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Wednesday10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Thursday10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Friday10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Saturday11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Sunday11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Get directions Call (604) 401-9499

In-shop offer · 1242 Davie Street, Vancouver

10% off your custom framing when you show this code at our shop

We frame, stretch canvas and reframe by hand, in our own workshop inside the gallery at 1242 Davie Street. Enter your email and your code appears right here. Show it at the counter and we take 10% off the job. The code does not expire.

How the offer works

Your code appears on this page as soon as you send the form.

Not sure what yours needs?

Send the measurements, what it is made of, and a photograph. We will tell you what it actually needs, including when the answer is that it needs less than you expected.

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