Photo to Canvas

Yesterday I showed you the start of my Canvas Gallery Wall.  Today I will show you how I made those canvases.  There are a million tutorials online and especially on Pinterest for how to transfer an image to a canvas.  I kind of read them all and then just did what works for me.

I started with canvases that I got on clearance at my local craft store.  I just buy them up when they are on sale and stash them away.



As you read through this keep in mind that my theme is Black & White, so you could use other colors as you choose. 

I have my pictures printed on high quality photo paper (usually from Snapfish.com, or Sam’s Club) in black and white and in the sizes to match my canvases.  I trim off a quarter of an inch from each side of the image to ensure that it won’t go over the edges of my canvas.


I then will go spray paint the edges of my canvases black.  Why?  Mostly because I just like the way it looks with the black and white photos.  I suppose you could leave it white, or paint it any color you choose.


Once the spray paint is completely dry, I cover the canvas with Modge Podge.  Make sure to cover the canvas.  If you leave any dry places, you will end up with bubbles in your picture.


  Quickly lay your image down while the Modge Podge is still wet.  I rub my finger around the edge to make sure the edges and corners stick well.  Then you cover the entire image with Modge Podge again.  I use a foam brush because I like the final look, but you could use a bristle brush if you would like the look of subtle brush strokes over your image.  I also use a matte Modge Podge because I don’t want there to be a shine on my image once it dries.  I am trying my best to get it to look like the image is really part of the canvas…not just stuck on there.


Let the Modge Podge dry completely.  For some images I go spray paint a mist around the edges which helps to make the image look like it “melts” into the canvas and kind of makes the edges disappear.  For other images, I just leave the canvas alone.  Why?  Because I am the artist and I like the way it looks.  :0)

Joe’s Beautiful Grandparents

  Joe’s Birth Mother

I completed 5 images (3 16x20’s and 2 8x10’s) in 1 hour….drying time included.  I have a ton more to make and a ton more pictures to find and get printed before our gallery wall is complete, but I will say that this has really been a fun project to complete.  I love seeing all the old family pictures and hearing the stories behind them!

I wanted to add this picture of a final display (since our gallery wall is a work in progress).  These were my first canvases completed with this technique and I love the final look.