Materials Needed:

• Gesso or other priming material
• Gesso is a generic name for the most common priming material. It is usually white and very thick but Liquitex and Winsor & Newton make a clear gesso if you want the natural color of the canvas to work on.

• Gesso brush
  • A brush used specifically to prime your canvas with gesso. A Nylon bristle brush is OK

• Plastic container
  • To hold your gesso.
    
    
• A Stirrer to mix the gesso with water

  • Gesso is normally watered down slightly to make it easier to brush onto your canvas

   

 

Preparing the gesso:

After stirring your gesso well, pore some into your plastic container.
You will be putting on two coats of gesso or more, some artists add 5 coats.. You will come to your own preference once you have had some experience painting on the surfaces you created.
Generally the more coats you apply,the smoother the finish . It is always better to do two coats of thin gesso than one thick coat.

Your gesso should be watered down to a little thinner than what comes in the jar, particularly the first coat. The gesso container's’ label tells you the maximum amount of water that can be added to the product.
Stir the gesso and water again well and then wipe the stirrer clean as gesso dries fast!

 

Applying the gesso to the canvas:      Wet the bristles of your gesso brush and squeeze dry. This helps to keep the gesso from sticking to the bristles too much. Make sure there isn’t a large excess amount of gesso on the brush for the first coat.
Brush the gesso on the canvas in long strokes, all in the same direction. The second coat will be brushed in the opposite direction.

When you have finished covering the canvas you can also gesso the sides where the staples are but make sure that whatever gesso was brushed onto the front of the canvas is smoothed over.

Cleaning up:     Wash your gesso brush straight away in soap and water. Lather the brush up, rubbing it into the palm of your hand to clean it and in between the bristles and down near the ferrule (the metal part of the brush) too.
When done, squeeze dry and re-shape the brush and leave it to dry.
If you have any gesso left on your plastic container, cover it with plastic wrap to use for the next coat.. Don’t put it back into the original gesso jar.

Drying time:     You need to allow the first coat of gesso to dry completely. The amount of time varies, temperature and the humidity level. Let the first coat dry for at least an hour or more lying flat on the ground, not vertically.

 

Coat number 2:    Lightly sand the dry first coat with fine sandpaper then wipe the canvas with a cloth to get rid of any sandpaper dust.
Now apply the second coat of gesso to the canvas. Remember, this time brushing in the direction opposite to the first coat.
Make sure both coats are heavy enough to cover the canvas completely. You can lightly sand the second coat after it dries for a smoother finish, wiping it with a cloth to remove any dust.

The finish:     Your canvas is now ready to use. You can continue adding some more layers of gesso if you wish but after the final coat of gesso is applied to the canvas allow it to dry overnight before painting on it to make sure that it is completely dry. When dry, you can stand the painting vertically.

Wash your brush straight away and don’t pour any leftover gesso down a drain.. If it hardens, you will have a clogged drain and be calling a plumber!

 

A Cautionary Note:   Acrylic gesso is popular with oil painters as well because it is easy to use, brushes washed out using soap and water and provides a light reflecting, non toxic surface to paint on. However some experts do question its use as a primer underneath oil paint on the larger flexible supports like stretched canvas.. Gesso remains flexible whereas the oil paints become brittle with age so separation may occur.