The event was formulated around creation, encouraging students to make art – in this case, t-shirt designs.

The candy strewn all over the countertops, calling for students to take, was enticing, but the tables in the far back of the activities gallery boasted paint palettes with fabric paint. 

There were stations for students to make custom cards – not Valentines necessarily, but a space for students to express anything they may feel regarding Valentine's Day, which is widely regarded as a "corporate holiday." 

The student employees attended to the t-shirt rows and stacks behind them, where students could choose their size and color, lavender and mint. Once the shirt had been selected, paint was spread on it over a stencil.

The attendees then moved a wide foam brush back and forth over the fabric, until the paint was thick enough for the letters to appear in a clearly defined outline.

The attendees were then stationed at a different set of tables nearby, where they could hold a hair dryer over the design to dry the paint.

The main attraction besides the card-making being the shirts, the tables dedicated to decorating the garments had seats for everyone, as well as permanent markers for those who wanted to add customizations to their shirts.

At one such table was history junior Haley Kurak. Kurak was adding stars of varying sizes to her shirt with pink marker, complete with shading.

“I was really interested in this Valentine’s Event because they marketed it as kind of like a tongue and cheek ‘anti-Valentine’s’ event, which really catered to me because I don’t have time for romance, and I like art," Kurak said.

The Museum event not only allowed room for creativity, but encouraged it. The museum events always have no price tag or pay for entry, and this night’s festivities were no exception.

“It was just nice to do something free on a Thursday night – kind of fun and different, change it up,” Kurak said. 

Psychology sophomore Clara Childress was concentrating on her shirt design, using her phone as a reference. “I came here tonight because my friend told me about this event, and I said, ‘why not?' And so, my shirt design – I’m having a lot of fun with it, just going with the flow – kind of going for some hearts, with a bit of inspo from y2k goth aesthetic.” 

Some students opted to customize the entire blank canvas around the shirt’s graphic, while others added smaller decorations or individualized, unrelated designs.

Human resources and labor relations and psychology sophomore Alya Kayat attended with one of her friends.

“We found out about this event – I think it came in my e-mail – and I just registered me and my friend. And now we’re just doing designs on the shirts,” Kayat said.

Kayat's friend, computer science sophomore Lauren Pratt, had been working intently on her design for quite some time, and the result itself look stenciled, like the letters on all the attendee’s shirts.

“I found out about this event from my friend. We just came here together.” Pratt had very intricate red flowers on her mint shirt, complete with green stems. 

Not everyone at the event was against Valentine’s Day, despite the name of the event. Attendees were neutral or even positive about the holiday, and couples arrived together.

“I like Valentine’s Day,” Kayat said. “Even if you don’t have someone – two years ago I didn’t have anyone, and me and my friends would still get each other cute stuff. I think that aspect is cute.”