Name: Victor
Message: I have looked through your website and wanted to know if you could use dye on CANVAS, either before or after painting process? What particular of dye you would recommend using?

If you are talking about 100% cotton or 100% linen canvas, yes, it is possible to dye it. Cotton, linen, and hemp are best dyed with fiber reactive dyes, such as Procion MX, Cibacron F, or Drimarene K dye. (See "Sources for Supplies" for a number of good mail-order sources for fiber reactive dye.) Do not try to dye polyester or acrylic canvas, only canvas made of 100% natural fibers.

Canvas is tightly woven and tends to repel dye. Pre-scour it by washing it in hot water (140 degrees F or 60 degrees C), with , for each pound of fabric, half a teaspoon of soda ash (sodium carbonate) and half a teaspoon of Synthrapol (a special dyer's detergent, available form dye suppliers). You may also find it helpful to add a drop of Synthrapol to the dye bath, to help reduce surface tension.

I cannot recommend dyeing artist's canvas before painting with oils, however. When painting with oils, it is usual to prepare the surface by pre-painting it with a substance that will protect the canvas from any interaction with the oil paints. The traditional substance for this purpose was rabbit skin glue, but it is usual these days to use acrylic gesso or latex house paint, for this purpose. In any case, this base preparation will simply cover up any dye that may be on the canvas. Artists' acrylic paints would be a better choice than oils because there is less concern about an interaction between paint and fabric.

If you paint only small parts of the canvas with acrylics, it would in theory be possible to dye the canvas with fiber reactive dyes. The dye should wash off of the paint in the extensive rinsing process after the dyeing, and not affect the color of the paint. There is normally no problem in dyeing shirts that have been screen-printed, for example.