I would like to start using linen and prime my own canvas. I have a frame commercially made, with pre-stretched duck cotton canvas covered with acrylic ground and I would like to reuse the stretcher. What would be recommended as best practice? to stretch and size the linen over the commercial frame, or take off and toss the cotton canvas and just stretch and size the linen with rabbit skin glue following a traditional method?
so my question is, streching linen over an existing cotton canvas would help or hinder the longevity?
Kristin and Mattew thank you so much for answering. Mathew I just ordered some J66 unprimed linen from you guys. From your stock at Utrech Art what unprimed linen would you recommend for a frame 42″x70″? also what linen would be best for creating a panel the same size, I want a surface that will allow me to do detailed work while still mantaining structural inegrity.
Got it! Look like the one I got might work for the panel but for the frame I might need to order a new umprimed linen over 10z, now I need to figure out still which one over 10z is a good one to use with rabit skin glue and marble ground.
Matthew by the way my name is Jaime GLez, appreciate the help!
There is really nothing wrong with what you are proposing (stretching over already stretched/primed cotton canvas) so long as you do not over soak the linen so that the two might stick together unevenly. Just be sure you read up a bit on the pros and cons of sizing with RSG in our resources section. But all in all we feel that you are alright with going forward with what you proposed.
While I wouldn’t present it as definitively the “best practice”, personally I get best results when stretching fabric on the bias (diagonally against the weave), especially when using a fabric that might pucker at the tacks/staples. Also, there is at least one linen (Utrecht 79D) that does not give good results when sized with RSG, so make sure to check the package label for indications.
We try to refrain from recommending specific brands here, but in terms of weight, I would not use anything much lighter than 10 oz for a stretched canvas of those dimensions. For fabric-covered panels, many artists favor lighter weights, which are less prone to curl a panel from shrinkage.
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