Types and Materials

• Transferring images onto canvas can be done a number of ways. An iron-on photo transfer will produce a clean transfer and is done with photo-transfer paper and an iron. Gel transfers may appear foggy, but are great to paint or draw on. They will need an acrylic medium and a photocopy of the image because printer ink will not transfer as well as copier ink.
  
  

Surfaces

• Determine a surface to use for the project. Un-primed and un-stretched, or "raw," cotton duct number 10 or 12 canvas will be the most versatile surface, since it can be cut and stretched to any size. Raw canvas has a thick grain that will give the transfer a nice texture. Apply two to three coats of gesso to the canvas before transferring. Iron-on photo transfers will work better on thin cotton fabric than on canvas; however, it will lack texture. Canvas and fabric should be four inches larger than the image so that it may be stretched over stretcher bars when finished. Transfers may work on pre-primed, pre-stretched canvas, but it will be harder to get good results.
  
  

Instructions

• Determine the size of the project and the image. Resize the digital image to fit and print the image onto photo transfer paper. Cut the image out of the paper and place it face down on the canvas or fabric. Apply heat using an iron set to high and remove the paper.
  
  Print the image onto regular printer or photo paper instead of transfer paper to make a gel transfer. Copy the print using a photocopy machine and cut off the excess paper. Coat the surface of the canvas with acrylic medium, which can be bought at any arts and crafts supply store, then place the photocopy face down onto the wet medium and press it flat. The acrylic medium will glue the ink to the canvas. Once the medium is dry, wet the back of the paper with a sponge or brush and rub away the paper. The image will become visible as the paper begins to pulp and fall off the canvas.
  
  

Stretching and Final Touches

• Raw canvas or fabric will need to be stretched onto stretcher bars after the transfer. Stretchers have ends that join together to make a rectangle. Put the canvas face down with the stretcher rectangle on the back and staple the edges of the canvas to the back of the stretcher. Fold and staple the corners last. The image can be painted on, or finished with a glaze medium, gloss medium or a tinted medium to give an added effect.