If you have one or several old worn pairs of jeans, I have a wonderful suggestion for you before throwing or giving them away. Jean material makes an excellent canvas material to stretch and use the same way you would use and treat traditional canvas when making your own canvas frames.
Materials needed:
- Old jeans.
- Spray White Gesso
- Canvas frame – or other (see step 2 suggestions).
- Staple gun (I used packing tape to stretch the material for my own project, but that is because I want to remove the material after I’m finished painting on it and place it onto another surface later to make a collage of painted and unpainted images — will share).
STEPS TO CREATE YOUR OWN CANVAS FROM BLUE JEANS:
- Cut up your blue jeans. You will be left with long, wide strips (cut out the stitched seams). Depending on the size of the jeans, you should be able to cover multiple small standard frame sizes: ranging from 5″x7″ to 8″x10″ (you can even go smaller if you wish, of course). Be sure to leave plenty of excess material so you have enough to wrap around your frame.
- Choose your frame on which to stretch your jeans. You could use unassembled canvas frames, or a scrap piece of flat wood. You could even use an old picture frame you don’t plan to use for anything else (will need to be wood-based so it can take the staples).
- Stretch your jeans. If stretching canvas over an open area like a canvas frame, you will need to pull the material taught (like a drum), but not so taught that the material rips. Be logical when it comes to stretching the material. Attach the canvas to the back of the frame, one side at a time. When you complete the first side, pull the material taught and attach the side at the opposite end. If you’re all done and not happy with the tension of the material, just take the staples out and try again. When you’re definitely finished and happy, trim off any excess material, leaving at least 1/4″ excess past the staples.
- Gesso your jeans! Spray your gesso! Since we are using blue jeans, you will need at least two coats of gesso to get a nice white surface on which to paint. Let one layer dry before applying the other. Repeat until you have a nice white, opaque surface.
- PAINT AWAY! You now have a surface on which to paint that will feel just as good as painting on real canvas! Have fun!
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- Cut up your jeans to make a nice flat material. Iron it out if it’s too wrinkly.
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- I wanted to remove the jean canvas after painting on it, to add to a mixed media project. So I TAPED the material down instead onto a stiff board, using strong packing tape.
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- After two good layers of gesso application, I’m ready to start painting on my surface!
15. July 2010 at 12:14 pm
Darn, why didn’t I think of that?! I have several pairs of jeans I was trying to figure out what to do with. Now you’ve given me a great start on some future projects. Good idea. Would’ve loved to see your finished project though? Think you can post an update when you get it done?
20. July 2010 at 10:29 am
Dang! I just threw away a pair of my husbands jeans yesterday. I had been saving them for months hoping to get creative. Unfortunately, the garbage hauler just drove off. I’d want to keep it the blue jean look though – I wonder how stamping or painting directly on the jeans would work.