I was looking for a twist on just the usual hearts this year for Valentine’s Day, so I picked another symbol for love, the ampersand. I especially love this Ampersand Valentine Art project because once Valentine’s Day is over, it can live in our office all year round. I recruited my sweet friend to help me with the thumbtacks. It really doesn’t look like it, but I used over 700 tacks! Over a glass of wine (or a couple, who’s counting), this made for a very fun and therapeutic project (minus the sore thumbs.)
Supplies:
Printer – I’m not good at free-handing, so I printed a template and traced around the edges Scissors Pencil Tape 12 x 12 canvas Thumbtacks (You may think you have enough, but trust me you don’t, get about 3x the amount you think you need.) Hammer
I used Powerpoint to make a 12 x 12 template and printed the template so it spanned between two 8.5 x 11 pages. I then taped them together and cut around all of the edges.
I taped the template to the canvas and lightly traced around all of the edges.
This is where the fun began! We started by outlining most of the shape with the tacks and then filling in each area. The only areas that gave us any trouble were right near the edges of the canvas. You will likely need to hammer the tacks into the wood around the edges.
Although we used so many thumbtacks, the whole project took under two hours. I really love the way this turned out, and the sore thumbs were totally worth it!
Happy early Valentine’s Day with this Ampersand Valentine Art! I’m dying to see all of your pretty projects!
Becky is the voice behind Life in Velvet, an organised, intentional living blog focused on practical food, calm homes, thoughtful projects, and everyday systems that make real life feel easier. A mum of 3 living in the UK, Becky writes from lived experience, sharing what works, what doesn’t, and the decisions that make family life run more smoothly.
With a background in marketing and content writing, and over a decade of blogging experience, she brings a thoughtful, structured approach to everything from baking and home projects to routines and decision-making. Life in Velvet is where planning meets creativity, with ideas designed for real homes and real life.