How to Frame Paint by Numbers: 5 Ways to Display Your Canvas

Quick answer: There are five practical ways to display a finished paint by numbers canvas: stretch it over wooden bars, slide it into a ready-made frame, mount it behind glass with a mat, glue it flat to a board for a frameless look, or simply stand it on an easel. Stretching over wooden stretcher bars is the most popular choice because it looks like a gallery canvas and costs very little. Whichever route you choose, seal the painting first and hang it with the center of the picture about 57 inches from the floor.

A finished canvas rolled up in a drawer is a small tragedy. The painting took you weeks; framing it takes an afternoon at most, and it is the step that turns your work into something guests notice on the wall. Below are the five methods, what each one costs in effort, and exactly how to do the two most common ones.

Before you frame anything: two quick checks

Is it sealed? Varnish first, frame second. A sealed surface resists dust and stops the colors fading, and it is far easier to varnish a canvas while it is still flat. Our step-by-step sealing guide takes about fifteen minutes of actual work.

Are the creases out? Most kits arrive rolled or folded, and those lines can still show. Lay the canvas face down on a clean towel and press the back with a warm — not hot — iron, keeping a second cloth between the iron and the canvas and never letting it rest in one spot. Alternatively, leave the canvas under a stack of heavy books for two or three days. Do this before sealing, not after.

Method 1: Stretch it over wooden bars

This is the classic gallery look: the canvas wraps around a wooden frame, the sides are clean, and nothing sits between your painting and the room. It is also the cheapest way to make a kit look expensive.

What you need

• A set of wooden stretcher bars matching your canvas size
• A staple gun, or small tacks and a light hammer
• Clean hands and a large flat table

Step by step

1. Assemble the bars. The four pieces slot together at the corners. Push them together firmly and check with a ruler that the corners sit square — a frame that is slightly out of square will show as a crooked painting on the wall.
2. Lay the canvas face down on a clean towel, then place the assembled frame on top of it, centered. You should have an even border of blank canvas on all four sides.
3. Start in the middle of one long side. Fold the canvas over the bar, pull it firm (not tight enough to distort the picture) and put in one staple.
4. Go to the opposite side and do the same, pulling against the first staple. Then the two remaining sides. Always work opposite to opposite — going around in a circle is what causes ripples.
5. Work outward from the center of each side, alternating sides, spacing staples every two inches or so until you are about two inches from each corner.
6. Fold the corners last. Pull the corner straight back over the bar, then fold the two flaps neatly on top of each other like wrapping a parcel, and staple through the fold.
7. Turn it over and check. Small ripples usually pull out if you remove a staple or two on that side and re-tension. Attach a sawtooth hanger or picture wire to the back and it is ready.

Allow about 45 minutes for your first one, and half that for every canvas after.

Method 2: Slide it into a ready-made frame

If a staple gun is not for you, this is the easy route. An aluminum or wooden frame designed for canvas art takes the finished piece with almost no effort: lay the canvas in, fold the blank border to the back, and close the frame.

Our aluminum DIY frame comes in several sizes and colors and assembles without tools, which makes it a good choice if you plan to swap paintings on the same wall through the year. Slim black or silver suits modern rooms; a warm wood tone suits traditional ones and flatters landscapes and florals.

The one thing to get right is size. Measure your canvas rather than trusting the box, and buy the frame to match the canvas, not the picture area.

Method 3: Behind glass, with a mat

Glass gives the most formal, finished result and suits smaller canvases and mini paintings especially well. A mat — the cardboard border between the picture and the frame — adds a surprising amount of quality for a few dollars, because it gives the eye somewhere to rest before it reaches the frame.

Two cautions. First, the glass should not press directly against the paint; the mat provides that gap, so do not skip it. Second, standard glass does not block ultraviolet light, so a framed piece in a sunny room still benefits from being sealed, or from UV glass if you want to be thorough.

This method works beautifully with a set of small canvases hung together as a group — three or six mini paintings in identical frames make a striking wall arrangement.

Method 4: The frameless board look

For a modern, minimal result, mount the canvas flat on a rigid board and hang it with no frame at all. Cut a piece of foam board or thin plywood to the exact size of the picture area, apply a thin, even layer of acid-free adhesive, lay the canvas down from the center outward to push out air bubbles, and weight it flat overnight. Trim the border with a sharp knife against a metal ruler.

It is inexpensive and looks clean on a modern wall. The trade-off is that it is permanent, so practice on a spare canvas if you have one.

Method 5: Display it on an easel

Not every painting needs a nail in the wall. A small tabletop or folding easel lets you stand a canvas on a sideboard, a mantelpiece or a hall table, and change it whenever you like. It is the friendliest option for renters, for anyone who does not want to drill, and for seasonal pieces you only want out for a few weeks — a winter scene in December, a floral in spring.

A folding easel also earns its keep while you are still painting, since working at a slight angle is much kinder to your neck and shoulders than leaning over a flat table.

What size frame do I need?

Measure the canvas yourself with a tape measure before ordering anything. Two numbers matter: the full canvas including the blank border, and the printed picture area inside it.

• For stretcher bars, match the bars to the picture area. The blank border is what wraps around the wood.
• For a ready-made frame or glass, match the frame to the picture area as well, and trim or fold the border behind it.

Many paint by numbers canvases come in 40 × 50 cm, which is roughly 16 × 20 inches, so frames in that size are easy to find. Square formats such as 40 × 40 cm and larger panoramic kits exist too — check the size given on your own kit's product page rather than assuming.

Hanging it properly

• Height. Hang so the center of the picture sits about 57 inches from the floor. That is standard gallery eye level, and it is almost always lower than instinct suggests.
• Above furniture. Leave six to eight inches between the top of a sofa or sideboard and the bottom of the frame so the two read as one arrangement.
• Light. Avoid a wall in direct afternoon sun, and avoid bathrooms and unheated rooms where humidity swings will loosen a stretched canvas over time.
• Groups. Hanging several canvases together? Keep a consistent two-inch gap between frames and align the group on a shared center line rather than by the top edges.
• Weight. A stretched canvas is light, but a large framed piece with glass is not. Use a proper wall anchor rather than a picture hook in plasterboard.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to frame a paint by numbers canvas?

No, but an unstretched canvas will curl at the edges and look like an unfinished project no matter how good the painting is. Even the simplest stretcher bars change that completely.

Should I frame before or after sealing?

Seal first, then frame — a flat canvas is much easier to varnish evenly. The exception is if you are stretching it yourself: stretch first, let it settle a day, then varnish, so the cured varnish layer does not crack at the fold.

Can I stretch a canvas without a staple gun?

Yes. Small upholstery tacks and a light hammer work, though they take longer. Strong double-sided tape can hold a small canvas on the back of the bars in a pinch, but it will not stay tight for years.

My canvas has creases from being rolled. Will framing hide them?

Stretching pulls out most light creases as the canvas tensions. For stubborn fold lines, iron the back on low heat through a cloth, or press the canvas flat under books for a few days before you start.

What if my canvas is a little too small for the frame?

A mat solves it. Choose a frame slightly larger than the canvas and let the mat cover the gap — it looks deliberate and usually better than an exact fit.

Can I hang a paint by numbers canvas in a bathroom or kitchen?

A sealed canvas will survive a kitchen, though grease will settle on it over time. Bathrooms are harder: repeated humidity slackens a stretched canvas and can lift paint at the edges. If you love the idea, frame it behind glass.

Give your next painting a home too

Once the first canvas is on the wall, the second one goes faster. Everything mentioned here — stretcher bars, aluminum frames, easels and brushes — is in our accessories collection, and there are hundreds of new subjects waiting in best sellers, flowers and famous artists. Or make the next one personal with a custom kit from your own photograph.