I bought a set of stretcher bars off Amazon. I've used them to stretch Cross Stitch projects. Worked well with this canvas although I need to redo it because I didn't have a staple gun at the time so I used tacks and its not as smooth as I would like it.
"Frank A. Edmonds 9 pairs" from Amazon.com"Frank A. Edmonds 9 pairs" from Amazon.com
Get some stretcher bars and thumb tacks. It will be much easier to keep the tension right. When tacking your work to the stretcher bars start in the middle and pull your work out. Tack top - bottom and side to side using equal tension like making a drum
Put some masking tape along the edges so your yarn doesn't snag on the canvas.
Sort your yarn and count to make sure you have the correct number of threads, sometimes they miss some (its rare) Cut your yarn in 1/2 as they always give you lengths that are too long to comfortably use. Cut a small snippet of your yarn and attach it to the color key. This really helps if there isn't a distinct difference in colors...like it looks like you have some yellows and greens that are close in shades. Lightly tie each color into a bundle or make a "yarn holder" from some cardboard. (cut some cardboard into strips and then make some cuts that you can put your yarn into to keep your colors organized. l_l_l_l_l_l_l
Tack a small piece of felt in one of the corners to store your needle when you aren't using it so you don't lose it.
Get a small pair of sewing scissors, put them on a long string that you can wear around your neck so you can easily find them when you need them.
Try to work the darker colors first so you don't see them behind the lighter colors. Don't leave long strings behind your work, meaning IF you will use the same color but its like 3 or 4 inches away from the section you just finished, don't just reach across. Finish that section off then restart in the new area. This helps from having the color "bleed through"
Try to start in the middle and work out,
Keep the back of your work as neat as possible. This helps to eliminate snagging your work.
Make sure you work all your stitches in the same direction. Double check when you turn your work. It is easy when you are new to find you worked stitches like this //////\\\\ because you turned your work
Always wash your hands so your stuff stays clean.
I keep my work in a canvas bag when I'm not working on it so nothing gets misplaced