How to Apply Vinyl to a Canvas

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If you own a Silhouette you probably have played around with cutting vinyl, maybe you’ve even been inspired by some of my Silhouette projects.  Adhesive vinyl can be cut and manipulated in so many ways and applied to just about any surface.  The key to flawless vinyl application is knowing what type to use and how to prepare your surface.  I’m sharing a simple piece of art today and showing you exactly how to apply vinyl to canvas.  

I made this pretty blue and white canvas for my bathroom, I needed a little pop of color in an otherwise white and wood room.  There are a couple of ways to get letters onto a canvas.  You can stencil and paint them like this sign below, or you can use vinyl which is easier and leaves less room for error. 

Will vinyl stick to canvas?

Does vinyl stick to canvas? It does, but there’s a simple technique you need to master before cutting your vinyl.

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How to apply vinyl to canvas

The key is to paint the canvas first.  I started with a 9×12 white stretched canvas and used blue and white acrylic paint to create a watercolor look. 

I started by brushing solid blue near the bottom of the canvas, then added white into my color as I moved up.  This left an ombre effect on the canvas and it looks like water, especially with the rough edges.  Then I let the paint dry completely, overnight ideally, before moving onto the next step.

I used matte finish white adhesive vinyl and cut the words using my Silhouette. You can use any Silhouette vinyl or Cricut vinyl to do this project, but be sure you are using permanent adhesive vinyl.  Once the words were cut I weeded out the excess vinyl and used Con-tact paper to transfer the vinyl to a dry canvas.  

 The dry paint creates a textured surface for the vinyl to stick to.  For the best results, put a book or something solid under the canvas and use the Silhouette scraper to really burnish the letters onto the canvas before removing the contact paper. This is the best technique for putting vinyl on canvas.

When you are applying vinyl to canvas you want to make sure you have a textured surface that the vinyl will stick too. Painting the canvas first is how you to get vinyl to stick to canvas.

Check out this Facebook Live for a step by step tutorial on cutting, transferring and applying vinyl.  

Once you have gone over the letters really well with the scraper tool, peel back the Con-tact paper slowly and your vinyl will be stuck down securely.  Go over the vinyl one more time with the scraper tool just to be sure everything is stuck in place.  No need to seal this canvas, the vinyl will stay put.

Applying vinyl to canvas is an easy way to create art for your home. These pieces make great custom gifts too.

This was a fun project to get the kids involved in.  I had a few solid 5×7 solid canvas boards left over from another project so I let my youngest paint with me, she felt so grown up using a real brush and paint.  

I used this technique to make a simple sign for my oldest daughter’s room as well.  She wants so badly to visit Paris (don’t we all) but for now we are working on some Parisian decor. 

Now you know how to put vinyl on canvas.  I hope you’ll give this a try and create something beautiful. Let me know what you are creating in the comments!

Thanks for visiting!

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