{"id":1388364,"date":"2018-09-13T21:39:58","date_gmt":"2018-09-13T20:39:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jacksonsart.com\/blog\/?p=1388364"},"modified":"2026-09-21T16:13:09","modified_gmt":"2026-09-21T15:13:09","slug":"everything-you-need-to-know-about-stretcher-bars","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jacksonsart.com\/blog\/2018\/09\/13\/everything-you-need-to-know-about-stretcher-bars\/","title":{"rendered":"Everything You Need to Know About Stretcher Bars"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you’ve decided you want to stretch your own canvas, you’ll need to select your materials. The bars you stretch the canvas on are just as important as the canvas for determining the final product. You may wish narrow bars so that the painting is easier to frame or deep bars so that it looks good unframed. If you are planning a very large canvas then you will want to consider the tension that all that tight canvas will exert on the bars – your canvas could be pulled out of shape – so stronger bars (thicker or with aluminium) would be appropriate. Here are some things to consider when choosing your stretcher bars<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

What are Stretcher Bars?<\/h2>\n

All stretcher bars differ from plain timber in that they are shaped to have a flat back and a slanted front that has a higher edge along the outside of each bar length. This may be accomplished with bars that slope downward toward the centre of the frame or by adding a raised lip around the edge. You staple on the flat, back side and the canvas is stretched so that it floats over the slanted front and only touches the outer rim. This is to prevent a ridge of paint forming when the canvas comes in contact with the bar when the brush pushes the canvas towards the bar as you paint. <\/p>\n

Characteristics of Each Type of Stretcher Bar<\/h2>\n

The Jackson’s Professional and Jackson’s Museum wooden stretcher bar ranges are the bars that most artists use. The Alu-Pro range of bars is for those artists who wish to invest in the highest quality bars.<\/p>\n

Jackson’s wooden stretcher bars are either triple-laminated and finger-jointed, or solid wood.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Jackson’s Museum Range are triple-laminated and finger-jointed. <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Jackson\u2019s Professional range are solid wood.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

For very large sizes you will need to choose thicker bars for strength, so the thinner bars aren’t available in the largest sizes.<\/p>\n

The ‘depth’ refers to the profile, the measurement of how far the canvas will protrude from the wall when hung as a painting.
\nThese bars can be purchased in pairs for stretching your own canvas and they are also used in our ready-made canvases<\/a> and bespoke canvases<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Jackson’s Professional Range<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Wooden in 3 depths – 18 mm, 21 mm, 43 mm<\/p>\n