Online canvas printing services with home delivery have proved very popular in recent years. Whether you were looking for a splash of color in the home during the pandemic, or are recently married and want a beautiful printed memory to adorn your walls, canvas prints can deliver.
However, with so many competing services around, choosing which to use can be confusing. Is Canvas Vows worth the money when compared to some of the other services available?
That’s exactly what we are going to look into today. What follows is an in-depth look at Canvas Vows and my recent experience ordering a print through them. Should you use them for canvas printing in 2021?
Table of Contents
Canvas Vows Review Summary
Great for personalized canvas printing with superior text options- Good range of canvas sizes
- Relatively fast turnaround time
- Unique in offering a 5-panel canvas layout
- Uses cotton-polyester blended canvas and high-quality latex inks
- Provides print preview online
- Offers different framing choices
- Full-bleed canvas prints available
- Allows customers to request image editing
- Provides border options for framed prints
Limited finish options- Canvas prints lack the painted effect
- CanvasChamp have more offers (and will price match)
Canvas Vows differs from the crowd in that there are so many different designs available that incorporate words with your images. This includes lyrics, inspirational quotes, even sound waves. This makes it possible to create a wonderful canvas with a special message. The ordering process is good, however, they do not offer frame and finish options to the extent of some competing services. That being said, the prices are competitive and ultimately I was very pleased with the results.
Who are Canvas Vows?
CanvasVows is a canvas printing company that specializes in producing high-quality canvas prints whose designs range from family photos, pet photos, landscapes, modern art, abstract art, pencil sketches, sound wave art, and inspirational quotes and song lyrics.
It also produces word-based canvas prints such as name signs and printed sacred vows made during weddings or engagements, hence its name CanvasVows. Its canvas prints are well-designed to enhance the interior décor of a room or house.
Some Background
This company was started by a family based in Phoenix, Arizona, and this makes it a family-owned printing company. This company is part of business brands owned by the family, with the other brands being Push Pin Map Art, Canvas HVN, Sincerely Silver, Forever Anniversary, and Gracefully Made Jewelry.
The family has been operating these businesses for more than a decade. Its business principles are to provide high-quality printing services, and customer service committed to addressing the needs of its customers.
This digital printing company specializes in word-based art where decorated text is combined with an image or soundwave art or sheet music in the same canvas print.
Likewise, the quote or text message can also be printed on an image background, e.g a biblical verse can be printed on a background of sun rays shining through pockets of spaces in dark clouds.
Its dedication to producing high-quality canvas prints is shown by its offer to do touchups to the digital images uploaded by the customer.
This allows the image to be edited to fit the taste of the customer, as well as allows the experts in CanvasVows to remove blemishes and imperfections in the image before it can be processed as an image to be printed on canvas.
CanvasVows has been featured in the Knot, Wayfair, Brides, Houzz.
Designs available on Canvas Vows
The main canvas designs made by CanvasVows are:
Family
This design is used to display photos of the family, children, or just husband and wife. It can also display photos of family reunions or family events.
Wedding
This design is used to display wedding photos taken during the wedding, as well as photos of wedding anniversaries.
Pets
This design is used to display photos of pets with their owners, or sometimes pets alone.
Text
This design is used to display text printed on the canvas. The main types of text designs are:
Quote Design
This is a special type of text design used to display inspirational quotes. Quote, canvas designs do not have a set word limit, but one must be cognizant of the fact that more words lead to a decrease in the text font.
Vows
This is a special type of text design that displays a vow made by one person to another, e.g a husband to a wife. It can also display marriage vows.
Lyrics
This is a special type of text design that only displays song lyrics. Lyrics are usually devoid of any punctuation, though one can request for punctuated lyrics. By default, CanvasVows generates non-punctuated lyrics.
Word Art
This special type of design displays text written in decorated fonts.
Name Signs or Name Signage
This special type of text design is used to display the name of a person. It can use decorated fonts or standard bold and regular fonts. Also, calligraphy can be used when writing the name.
- Related Content: 8 Things to Consider when Buying Canvas Prints Online
Text with Image
This design is used to display text interspersed with images, and the images can either be a background image onto which the text is written or a statement image on whose sides are texts or captions.
The main types of text with image designs are:
Soundwave Art
This is a special type of text with image design where the soundwave produced by a song is printed alongside the name of the song (and sometimes the name of the singer).
To begin with, the soundwave must be produced from the song, and this is done using a special audio recording software like Audacity which allows one to visualize the audio waveforms.
Once the software produces the song waveform, one can take a screenshot of this waveform, and then send the image to CanvasVows for printing. Likewise, CanvasVows has its own set of soundwave arts that one can choose from.
Inspiration
This is a special type of design used to display inspirational quotes alongside a photo, or with a photo background.
Sheet Music
This design is used to display the sheet music of a particular song. Usually, the sheet music is a pure image without text, but at times, the customer can request for the name of the song to be included in the sheet music, hence making this print a text with an image canvas design.
CanvasVows has its own library of sheet music, from which one can choose sheet music that matches his/her song preferences.
Sketch
This design is used to display sketches, including pencil sketches that have been transformed into digital images.
Flag
This design is used to display flags, mostly flags of nations or state flags.
Map
This design is used to show a map of a place, and this map can also feature pinned locations.
Abstract Art and Modern Art
The other 2 canvas designs made by CanvasVows are abstract art and modern art, both of which are suitable for modern minimalist interior décor.
The Ordering Process
Choose a Canvas Layout
The location on the wall where the canvas print is to be hanged determines the best canvas layout to use. The available wall space should also be considered as this determines the optimal canvas size, which in turn influences the layout of the print e.g a large wall space above the sofa allows one to have a large rectangular canvas layout.
CanvasVows provides 2 types of canvas layout.
- Single canvas – As expected, only a single canvas print is hanged on the wall, and this layout is best for a canvas print that one desires to serve as an art statement. It is also suitable if the wall space is small.
- Multi-panel layout – This layout allows one to fit 2 or more canvas prints on the same wall space. This layout includes the diptych and triptych.
Furthermore, CanvasVows provides a unique 5-panel layout where a single image, or set of related images, are printed across 5 canvases which are then hanged next to each other on the wall.
Canvas layout influences a key attribute of the canvas print – its shape.
Choose a Canvas Shape
The main shapes of canvas prints made by CanvasVows are:
- Rectangular – The length of the canvas print is longer than its width. It is well-suited for a single canvas layout.
- Square – The length of the canvas print is the same as its width. It is suitable for the multi-panel layout of diptych and triptych images.
Canvas Size
CanvasVows offers 2 sets of canvas sizes: custom sizes and standard sizes. This means that it allows the customer to set a custom size of his/her canvas print, as well as offers standard canvas sizes for customers who do not want to set a custom print size.
- Small – This is suitable for placing on a small wall space, or for creating a collage of prints using a multi-panel layout. The 2 mains sizes in this category are the rectangular print that measures 10inches by 20inches (or simply 10×20), and the square print that is 16inches by 16inches (16×16). The frameless 10×20 print is suitable for canvas art that easily draws the attention of the audience. It is also suitable for displaying wedding photos and family portraits.
- Medium – This is suitable for placing on a medium-sized wall space, or for creating a collage of prints using a multi-panel layout. The 5 medium-sized prints made by CanvasVows are all rectangular prints, and their sizes are 16×20, 16×24, 16×30, 12×36, and 16×48.
- Large – These are also rectangular prints, and each of these 3 sizes is suitable for a standalone canvas print that can serve as an art statement. The three sizes are 24×30, 24×36, and 20×40.
- Oversized – There are 3 print sizes that are classed as oversized by CanvasVows, and these sizes are 30×36, 36×48, and 30×60. As is evident, they are all rectangular prints. This makes each of these oversized prints suitable for a standalone photo on a gallery wall. It can also be placed atop signature furniture such as a sofa or the headboard of a king-sized bed.
Printing
After the digital image has been edited and optimized for the canvas layout and size, it is printed by a digital printer onto a stretched canvas.
The result is the canvas art that can be fitted onto a backing board to create a frameless canvas print.
The methods of printing used by CanvasVows are dye sublimation and dye-diffusion printing. The printer used allows for auto-adjustment of image color contrast, hue saturation, and color brightness.
The choice of dye used, along with the type of canvas used, determines how much the canvas print evokes the feel of an oil or acrylic painting.
The main type of canvas used by CanvasVows is a composite of cotton and polyester fibers, with cotton fibers making up about 35% of the canvas fabric and polyester fibers make up the rest.
This canvas fabric is normally processed so that it has a satin finish before an image is printed on it. This fabric has minimal glare which allows it to produce low-glare canvas prints.
Additionally, this fabric is durable and strong enough to be used in outdoor signage and murals. Even so, a canvas art with a purely matte finish cannot be produced as this print finish is only produced on canvas made of cotton fibers.
Likewise, an iridescent or super glossy print finish cannot be produced on the canvas fabric because it has cotton fibers that absorb some of the ink hence reducing the image glare.
As expected, the canvas fabric used does not permit the printed image to evoke the painted effect normally associated with cotton canvas. It is therefore obvious that the main types of the print finish produced by CanvasVows are semi-gloss and low glare finishes.
Another advantage of the polyester-cotton canvas is that it is compatible with the EcoSol Latex inks used for printing. This high-grade solvent ink is resistant to ultraviolet (UV) rays.
CanvasVows normally uses HP digital printers, hence the choice of ink in HP latex inks.
Finish
The finish of the canvas print influences its aesthetic quality. Because of the use of cotton-polyester canvas and latex inks, CanvasVows offers two types of finishes, which are:
Low Glare Finish
This is created using a combination of dark and light colors in the print so as to create a high contrast print on a cotton-imbued canvas.
This finish is suitable for family and wedding photos because it allows for image resolution to be lowered when printing it on a large canvas, while its low glare ensures that the audience’s appreciation of the print is not affected by the reflection of light on the canvas.
Semi-Gloss Finish
In this print, a little amount of the ambient light is reflected on the canvas so as to simulate an oil-painting effect on the canvas print. It is suitable for images whose color vividness needs to be reproduced in the print.
Framing
During printing, the image can be printed onto a framed canvas. The gallery-wrapping technique is used to create the frameless canvas, which is the main type of canvas produced by the company. This technique also allows for full-bleed prints to be made.
CanvasVows uses high-quality wood to build its frames. The frame thickness can either be 0.75 inches or 1.5 inches.
The 0.75-inch thick frame is the standard frame, while the thicker 1.5-inch frame is used for large canvas prints, or if one wants the canvas art to stand out in the wall.
The frame has its own color which is not necessarily the same as that of the canvas print or wall onto which the frame is hanged.
Likewise, the frame can be stylized so as to give it an emotional character and an ornate quality.
Framing also requires one to choose a border option, except for the full-bleed canvas print which has an image wrap border. The customer can choose to have a mirror wrap or colored borders.
In the frameless canvas print, the focus is entirely on the canvas art, and this explains why the matte finish is not produced by CanvasVows.
Usually, frameless prints are made on polyester fabric that gives the canvas art a low-to-average degree of glossy glare, i.e semi-gloss finish; hence the choice of a blended cotton-polyester fabric as the general substrate for creating these prints by CanvasVows.
For framed canvas print, the canvas art can have either a low glare finish or semi-gloss finish.
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Turnaround Time
The turnaround time is determined by the time it takes for design processing and printing the canvas, along with the shipping time.
For non-personalized orders, the design processing and printing time can be as short as 2 days, while for customized canvas prints, this time can be about 4 days.
Regarding shipping, there are 3 shipping options:
- Ground shipping – This is the slowest shipping option that takes about 2-5 business days for the print to reach the customer once it has left the company workshop. It is also the cheapest shipping option.
- Priority shipping – This option has a shipping time of 1-3 business days, which makes it suitable for priority orders. It is slightly cheaper than the Express option.
- Express Shipping – This is the fastest shipping option which takes 1 or 2 business days for the print to reach the customer once it has left the company workshop.
Once the shipping label has been created for a finished canvas print, it is emailed to the customer, along with tracking information.
This helps the customer to know when the product left the workshop and where it is in the journey to reach them
My experience ordering prints with Canvas Vows
CanvasVows allows you to print from your submitted digital images. However, the real bonus for me was how easy it is to add image effects and text before the project is printed. The level of personalization you have at your disposal really is impressive.
In fact, you can even send preferred fonts for the text and text with image designs. The customer can request personalized information to be added to the canvas either directly on the item sales page, or by sending a direct request to the customer support department.
Its customer support department is quite helpful and can help the customer to switch the font in an image, or change the color scheme of the canvas design, (I didn’t require this myself, but after researching to see how other customers had faired using Canvas Vows one person left positive feedback on this subject).
Additionally, CanvasVows provides a preview of the canvas print. I found this especially helpful as it meant I knew exactly how the finished result would look before purchasing.
Canvas Vows Vs The Competition (CanvasHQ, Great Big Canvas & Canvas Champ, etc)
BEST FOR CUSTOM ORDERS CANVASHQ | LARGEST CHOICE OF ART GREAT BIG CANVAS | BEST OVERALL VALUE CANVAS CHAMP | CANVAS VOWS | CANVAS HVN | PHOTO CANVAS LAND | |
 |  |  |  |  |  | |
CUSTOM IMAGES & WALL ART | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
AVERAGE PRINTING TIME | 2-3 Business Days | 1-2 Business Days | 1-2 Business Days | 1-2 Business Days | 1-2 Business Days | 2-5 Business Days |
FINISH OPTIONS | 5 (Matte, Semi-Gloss, Glossy, Iridescent Vintage) | Protective Coating (non custom) | 3 (Semi-Gloss, Matte, & Glossy) | No | No | Protective Coating (non custom) |
FRAMING/ BORDER OPTIONS | Canvas Wrap, Border Color & Frames | Canvas Wrap, Border Color & Frames | Canvas Wrap, Border Color & Frames | Canvas Wrap & Border Color | Canvas Wrap & Border Color | Canvas Wrap & Border Color |
OFFERS / PRICE MATCHING | Regular 25-30% Promo Codes | Regular 30% Promo Codes | Big Sales (50% + off) Price Match Any Order | No | Free U.S Shipping | No |
SEND AS GIFT | Yes | No (Can Purchase Gift Cards) | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
ORDER TRACKING | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No |
SHIPS OUTSIDE US? | No | Yes: US, Canada, UK, Australia, NZ | Yes (Contact Them for Details) | No | No | U.S & Canada Only |
RETURN POLICY | 100% Satisfaction Guarantee | Damage, Defect or Loss | 90 Days Damage, Defect or Loss | 100% Satisfaction Guarantee | 100% Satisfaction Guarantee | Case by Case Basis |
A recent V50 review of Great Big Canvas lauded the sheer amount of artwork available on the website. With over 700,000 images and counting the range of choice is clearly impressive.
And while Canvas Vows has a lot of choice, it does not compete with Great Big Canvas (GBC) in this regard. One of the reasons for this is that GBC encourages artists and photographers to send their images for addition to the library. They can then earn royalties if their image is used.
CanvasHQ also scores highly because of the level of customization they offer. They are a market leader when it comes to the range of materials, finishing, and framing available with their service.
They are great for printing your own personal images and also have a “send as a gift” option, (see more CanvasHQ here.)
CanvasChamp is highly popular because of the huge discounts and price matching that they offer. The quality of the prints along with their collection of art and range of customization is also highly competitive.
So how does Canvas Vows look in light of the competition? As I have stated elsewhere, I feel that Canvas Vows has managed to differentiate itself from other services with the word printing options they offer.
If you want to write a long personal message and have that printed with an image over a large canvas (or even 5 canvases if you opt for their 5-panel option), they provide the means to do that. For personalized canvas printing, they are definitely with checking out.
- Related Content: A Short Introduction to Canvas Printing Technologies
The Pros and Cons of CanvasVows
The pros and cons of CanvasVows are listed below.
- Great for personalized canvas printing with superior text options
- Good range of canvas sizes
- Relatively fast turnaround time
- Unique in offering a 5-panel canvas layout
- Uses cotton-polyester blended canvas and high-quality latex inks
- Provides print preview online
- Offers different framing choices
- Full-bleed canvas prints available
- Allows customers to request image editing
- Provides border options for framed prints
- Limited finish options
- Canvas prints lack the painted effect
- CanvasChamp have more offers (and will price match)
Bottom Line
Canvas Vows differs from the crowd in that there are so many different designs available that incorporate words with your images.
This includes lyrics, inspirational quotes, even sound waves. This makes it possible to create a wonderful canvas with a special message.
The ordering process is good, however, they do not offer frame and finish options to the extent of some competing services. That being said, the prices are good and ultimately I was very pleased with the results.
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