I have seen a lot of comments about engraved designing on canvas washing away. I am making this post to go over options for protecting your design from washing away. This post is not as much about setting as it is about preventing wash away. Therefore, the photos just show three settings in the format of speed/power. All engravings were 270 LPI and 1 pass.
These are the items referenced in the post:
Waterproofer: Amazon.com: New Waterproofing Spray Fabric Protector Spray for Marine Canvas Boat Tops, Vinyl Seats and Tent Water Proof: Health & Personal Care
Spray shellac: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08MWXMMJ1/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
First, the fabric used is this post is 12 oz canvas. Here is a photo of a baseline comparing the fabric pre washing (on left) and post washing (on right) with no pre or post engraving treatment:
Waterproofing
A good amount of the engraving washed away. So the first option to explore is using water proofer post engraving but pre washing. Here is a photo showing a comparison where left is post washing with no treatment and right is the results after the following operations:
- Engrave
- Spray waterproofer
- Wash
Another option is using shellac pre engraving. Here is a comparison of post engraving but pre washing with nothing on the left and shellac on the right:
Shellac did not burn as deep but is does strengthen the fabric a lot and so there is more to be explored with higher settings on canvas that has been pre treated with shellac. Here is a photo comparing post washing with shellac:
I also have a bright pad and figured some photos that show the state of the fabric (by seeing how much light shines through) might be useful in determining the overall effect on the fabric:
Hopefully this information is helpful for anyone wanting to do canvas engraving.
