There are three different ways to use a needlepoint chart to create a stitched needlepoint piece. You can paint the chart (before stitching it), stitch the chart (without painting it), or you can mark out the chart. All are great options! You’ll learn how to paint the chart on to blank canvas below. To learn how to stitch the chart on to blank canvas, click here. To learn how to mark the chart click here.

Painting the chart onto the canvas before stitching is the most popular option as most needlepointers prefer stitching a painted canvas. 

Pros and Cons: while painting the canvas involves an extra step before stitching, stitching on a painted canvas is wonderful, relaxing, and the most popular way of needlepointing. I personally find the painting process to be meditative and very enjoyable!

Supplies

Let’s begin with an in depth overview of the supplies you’ll need to complete your project.

Canvas

Zweigart mono canvas is the industry standard canvas for needlepoint. This canvas is 100% cotton, comes in multiple mesh sizes, and can be found at many online and local needlepoint stores. It is typically sold by the yard which means you will need to cut the canvas down to the right size for your particular design. Shop canvas here. 

Canvas Grain

It is widely practiced that needlepoint canvas has a grain and is directional. Zweigart canvas has an orange stripe running up the side - the side of the canvas with the orange stripe is called a selvedge. Cut your canvas so that the selvedge is on the left or the right side of the design. Tip: whenever I cut a piece of canvas that doesn’t have the selvedge attached I’ll mark one of the sides with a marker. That way I keep track of the grain.

NOTE: While stitching with the grain is the industry practice, Zweigart themselves say, "as our canvas has the same number in weft and warp you can stitch in each direction." I haven't personally experimented stitching each direction on the canvas but believe that if you use a frame and have even tension you will have no issue stitching either direction! 

Canvas Mesh Size

Canvas comes in different “counts” or “mesh” sizes. Typical American mesh sizes are 10, 13, and 18.

The mesh size is determined by the amount of threads (and therefore stitches) per inch on the canvas. On 10-count canvas there are 10 threads per inch and therefore 10 stitches per inch. On 18-count canvas there are 18 threads per inch and therefore 18 stitches per inch. More stitches per inch equals a smaller design and smaller stitches. Fewer stitches per inch equals a bigger design and bigger stitches.

Paint Brushes 

I like to use craft and hobby to student grade acrylic paint brushes. Needlepoint canvas is abrasive and harsh on brushes. The bristles on your brushes will quickly become damaged - Avoid expensive brushes as they won’t work any better than inexpensive ones! The brush should be nice enough that the tip and ferrule (the metal part) don’t fall apart while in use but inexpensive enough that you don’t mind tossing the brush after painting five or so canvases. Shop brushes here. 

For 18 count canvas my favorite and most used brush, perfect for painting rows, outlining, and details is a Round size 12/0 to 10/0 or Spotter size 5/0.  For filling is small areas I like to have a slightly larger round or flat brush such as a Shader size 2/0. For filling in larger areas I like to have two Blender or Shader brushes with a 1/4 inch and either a 3/8th to 1/2 inch wide brush. 

For 13 count canvas I will use the same and sometimes slightly larger brushes. For instance I may substitute the Shader size 2/0 for a Shader size 2 which is slightly larger. The only brush that can’t be interchanged is the smallest 18 count Round size 12/0 - 10/0. I find it to be just a bit too small to work effectively on 13 count canvas! Use a larger round such as size 3/0 instead. 

Use this information as a starting point! As you paint you will find which brushes are your favorites and the ones you personally love to use.

Paint

Craft and hobby to student grade acrylic paints are perfect for painting a needlepoint canvas. There’s nothing fancy about them! My personal favorite brands are Americana, Folk Art, and Ceramcoat to name a few. They come in little bottles in hundreds of pre-mixed colors and cost from 1 - 3 dollars each! While these are my go to brands many others work well.  You do not need to prep the canvas before painting it with acrylic paints. 

Paint Consistency

Painting a canvas is easier if your paint is the right consistency. While it doesn’t have to be exact I find that when my acrylics are slightly runny (almost like a runny yogurt consistency) they go onto the canvas more easily and evenly than if the paint is thick. Similarly, if the paint is too runny you won’t achieve adequate coverage - this will create a watercolor effect that you want to avoid. Some paints come out of the bottle the right consistency while some are thicker and need water added.  

To add water to your acrylics simply spray it a few times with a spray bottle and mix in with your brush. Or dip your brush into your water jar, get it nice and wet, then mix the wet brush into the paint. This will add quite a bit of water! Repeat if necessary. 

Tip: Your paint will start to dry out as it sits on your palette, simply mist it with a spray bottle every once in a while. 

Other Supplies 

You’ll use these items throughout the painting process!

• Ruler
• Paper towels
• Jar of water
• Artist tape
• Paper plate or paint palette 
• Mini spray bottle (to keep your acrylic paints from drying out while they sit on the palette). 

Prepping Your Project

Follow the instructions to get your project ready to paint.

1. Cutting Your Canvas To Size

Since canvas is sold in large pieces, you'll need to cut the canvas into a correctly dimensioned piece. 

If your charted pattern has a border around the design, the cut canvas size will be listed in the pattern's guide. Simply cut the canvas following the grain of the canvas to create a straight edge.

If your charted pattern does not have a border around the edge of the design (or if you want to change the border of the chart) use the steps below to find the right canvas dimensions for your project.

How To Find Your Canvas Size

• Measure the charted design horizontally (sizes are listed with the chart). 
• Measure the charted design vertically (sizes are listed with the chart).
• Add the background. You’ll stitch a background around and behind the charted design. Decide how much background you’d like around the outside of the design. You’ll typically lose two to three rows of background stitching in the finishing process so plan accordingly. If the piece will be turned into a classic four inch round ornament simply add enough background so the whole piece is 4 inches across. Add more background if you want to turn your needlepoint piece into a pillow or larger framed artwork. 
• You'll also need to add “waste canvas.” Add an extra 2 inches all the way around the design. The waste canvas will eventually be sewn and cut off during the finishing process.  
• Add the above measurements and cut the canvas. 

2. Anatomy Of The Canvas

Understanding the canvas is important before starting to paint - this should be easy if you’re already a needlepointer! The needlepoint canvas is made up of intersections. Look closely at the weave of the canvas. Notice where one thread crosses over another. That is called an intersection (see Ill). 

When painting the canvas you are actually painting individual intersections - each intersection should be intentionally painted a specific color. This is called “Stitch Painting.” Instead of painting a smooth line onto the canvas without any thought of the intersections (called freeform painting), by intentionally painting intersections you are essentially painting on a grid (see Ill). Stitch painting makes the canvas clear and easy to stitch. 

You can paint a straight line of intersections by simply following the grain of the canvas horizontally or vertically. Intersections also run diagonally so you can paint a perfect diagonal line by following the diagonal of the intersections (see Ill). 

How To Paint A Canvas

Follow these instructions to get set up and begin painting! 

Setting Up The Canvas

1. Simply cut your canvas to size following the grain of the canvas, then tape it down on all four sides to a hard surface with a piece of paper underneath to catch paint.   

Note: Cut and tape the canvas so the selvedge is on the left or right of the design (see "Canvas Grain" section). 

You are ready to start painting!

Where to begin painting

I find it easiest to begin painting in either the center or a corner of the chart. By beginning in the center, the design will be centered on the canvas without having to measure and position the design.

You can easily start painting in any corner of the chart by measuring two inches in from both sides of the corner of the canvas, marking that intersection, and beginning to paint at that point (keep in mind that if you’ve added any background you’ll need to take that measurement into account).  Note: The two inches of canvas make up the waste canvas.

Painting Techniques

How To Paint An Intersection

1. Pour the first paint color onto the palette. 

2. Swish your brush in the water jar for several seconds.

3. Load the tip of your brush with paint.

4. Come down on top of the intersection pushing your brush down just enough so that the paint sinks evenly around the intersection but not so hard that it pushes paint onto the adjacent intersections. 

Tip: Don’t leave your brush in the water jar too long. This will degrade the brush faster and ruin the tip if the paint brush is pointed.

Painting Rows

Painting rows means to paint the shape or area row by row. Rows can be horizontal vertical or on the diagonal. 

1. Referencing the chart begin by counting the intersections in the first row of the shape you are painting. Paint the first row the correct amount of intersections (example: the shape I’m painting in the illustrations is a leaf. I’m going to paint these rows vertically. The first row has three intersections). 

2. Place the second row correctly in relation to the first row. Count and paint the second row the correct amount of intersections (example: The second row is one intersection up from the first intersection in the first row. The second row is four intersections). 

3. Continue counting and positioning the next row off of the last row until you’ve painted the entire shape. 

Outlining

When outlining you begin by painting just the edge intersections around a shape. Along the outline of the shape the intersections create rows that are either horizontal or vertical. Paint the outline by painting rows - When you’ve painted a row simply move over one intersection on the diagonal and start the next row. All these rows connect to create the entire outline. Note that sometimes a row will consist of a single intersection. 

1. Begin by counting the intersections in the first row (Note: the first row is determined by personal preference - simply chose where you want to start!). Paint the first row the correct amount of intersections (example: the first row is horizontal and four intersections). 

2. Place the second row correctly in relation to the first row one intersection on the diagonal. Count and paint the second row the correct amount of intersections (example: the second row is one intersection down and to the right. It is a single intersection). 

3. Continue counting and positioning the next row off of the last row you painted until the entire outline is complete. 

4. Using a larger brush fill in the outlined shape with paint. 

Painting Details On Already Painted Areas

Sometimes it’s easier to paint a large area first and then go back and paint the details after the fact.  When painting details over an already painted area you will need to prime the detail area first. Paint is not always perfectly opaque and sometimes when layering colors you can see the base color through the top color. You will need to paint the details in white paint before you go back and apply the correct color (When layering, always allow paint to dry before painting a second color on top).  

There are some exceptions however! You do not need to prime with white if you are painting a darker version of the same color on top (for example; a dark blue on top of a light blue). Or if you are painting a very dark paint on top of another paint (for example; you never have to prime before painting black on top of any color!). Reds and yellows are particularly notorious for looking bad if they are not primed first. 

Note: This is also how you fix mistakes! Paint white on top of the mistake before repainting the correct color. 

Resources

If these instructions seem overwhelming remember that canvas painting is actually very simple and highly intuitive! Feel free to simply jump in and learn as you go - you’ll get the hang of it quickly! 

For a class that walks you through the canvas painting process from beginning to end take the Online Needlepoint Canvas Painting Class HERE.

For videos and tutorials on how to paint canvases and follow charts visit the tutorials page on HERE

Many of our patterns include instructions on how to read and translate your specific chart to your canvas and suggest threads and paint colors. Some patterns come with a stitch guide or stitch suggestions. See your individual e-pattern for these details! If you need help - reach out to us HERE! I’d love to hear from you.

Happy painting!

Xo Abby