I love doing messy canvas. This Flower Messy Canvas picture is a twist on the usual messy canvas. I used graphics instead of words. This makes the project a lot easier to weed and to stick.
But what is a Messy Canvas? A messy canvas is done the same way as a Subway sign in that you apply vinyl to canvas. See that project here. But instead of applying it to white canvas, the canvas is painted multiple colors before applying the vinyl.
Then the vinyl is used as a stencil, paint is applied over the canvas and the vinyl, then the vinyl is removed leaving the multicolored canvas below. The effect is very dramatic. I have lots of canvases to use up because Cordelia decided she doesn’t like to paint. She discovered this AFTER I bought a 10 pack of canvases, of course.
What You will need:
- an 8 X 10 canvas
- Vinyl at least that big
- Pick
- Light source
- Acyrlic craft paint
- Foam brush
- Stencil brush
- Download File
Picking Colors for your Flower Messy Canvas
The colors you pick decide the tone of the messy canvas. Since the theme is flowers I chose bright pastels. Instead of fonts, I used different flower pictures or graphics. The color of vinyl doesn’t matter because it is removed eventually anyway. And messy canvas is a great way to use up vinyl that you aren’t sure if it is permanent or removeable without wasting it on the wrong type of project.
Prepping the canvas
With a foam brush paint the canvas several different colors. Put small swatches of color all over the canvas randomly. There is no pattern and you don’t even have to clean your brush in between colors. Just make sure the whole canvas is covered. Let the canvas dry overnight.
Be careful that there are no ridges of paint. If you take a dry brush and brush over the canvas after you are done painting it this will smooth out any ridges. When dry it should look like this Halloween one. I forgot to take a picture of the pastel one before I finished it.
Applying the vinyl
Design and cut the vinyl as normal. Then weed and apply the vinyl to the canvas. If you need instruction on weeding, there are instructions here. After you apply the vinyl, lightly iron it with a warm regular iron, using a piece of paper between the iron and the vinyl. This seals the edges and makes it so that the paint edges are cleaner.
Applying the Top Coat
Finishing the Flower Messy Canvas
