"Those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind."

Or I have two more.

"It's not having what you want, it's wanting what you've got." yea I know it's a Sheryl Crow song, but I like the line.

or "Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle."

"Your love may be heaven sent,
but your love don't pay the rent.
Money, that's what I want!"

or

"If I go there will be trouble
If I stay it will be double."

"Isn't much that I feel I need
A solid soul and the blood I bleed"

"Oh body swayed to music
Oh brightening glance
How can we know the dancer from the dance"

"are we human? or are we dancers?"

"Celebrate we will, for life is short but sweet for certain"
- DMB

Love this idea! Where is a good place to get the vinyl letters???

I did this immediately after seeing this house tour a few months ago. I used the phrase "I have always known it was you" from some print I saw quite a bit in other house tours. It only took me about 2 hours. I get compliments on it all the time but I never take credit. I show people the photo of Amanda's everytime.

"the revolution will be delicious"

"a revolution without dancing is a revolution not worth having"

I'd like to do this with lyrics from an Old 97's song, since I met my husband at one of their concerts. Maybe "I'd be lying if I said I didn't have designs on you."

"The octopus was full of judgement."

"Press your space face close to mine, love"

Great post. Great idea. Even better? Find an old, crummy sheet of plywood that is all greyed from the weather to further the vintage look.

"All that we see or seem, is but a dream within a dream" - Poe

Oh, there are so many! For non-sappy, I love this lyric by Tom Petty:

You belong among the wildflowers
You belong in a boat out at sea
You belong with your love on your arm
You belong somewhere you feel free

"If you work really hard and you're kind, amazing things will happen."

Love Stinks! -J. Geils Band

Any of the witty quotes from Mae West -

For the bedroom: "The best way to hold a man is in your arms", or "Sex is emotion in motion."
For everywhere else: "You only live once. But if you do it right, once is enough" or "An ounce of performance is worth pounds of promises."

Same idea - In our bedroom I have "Kiss Me" painted in graffati-art on a large canvas. I get so many comments on it.

"Sensation", a poem by Arthur Rimbaud:

Par les soirs bleus d'été, j'irai dans les sentiers,
Picoté par les blés, fouler l'herbe menue,
Rêveur, j'en sentirai la fraîcheur à mes pieds.
Je laisserai le vent baigner ma tête nue.
Je ne parlerai pas, je ne penserai rien,
Mais l'amour infini me montera dans l'âme,
Et j'irai loin, bien loin, comme un bohémien,
Par la nature, heureux comme avec une femme.

sine nomine, you totally made me laugh out loud at work. I'm busted.

And tequila red-- I love that song! That would maybe be one of the few unnausiating lovey quotes that could go in my bedroom. That and "Do you wanna mess around?"

Gagewhitney....when Conan said that on his last show I thought it was PERFECT!

"Live Hard Die Young"

I actually DID steal this project- short term anyway. It was perfect for "roughing up" my bedroom a bit to blend with the trashed wood floors (we're refinishing them in a couple months).

http://cozylittlecave.blogspot.com/2009/12/hard-days-night.html

Thanks for the compliments! I bought the vinyl letters from Office Max.

"it's a beautiful day
don't let it get away"
- beautiful day lyrics from U2

There is a time for many words, and there is also a time for sleep.
-homer's odyssey

"...for all time."

it's sappy but it's from *our* song (dcfc's passenger seat) and would be perfect for a medium-sized above-the-bed art piece. but as a renter i would probably opt for canvas and 3m stickies instead of plywood and screws.

i just might have to do this now!

"We'll be high as kings,
without the things,
like jewels and gold."

from Jewels and Gold by Angus and Julia Stone. And then, when the uber-sexy Angus comes over he'll see his lyrics on my headboard and understand how much of a groupie I am.

Or

"Dizzy with wonder
I shake my head to clear the view
With a hunger to know
I come to this place to be close to you"

Dizzy with Wonder - Anja Garbarek.

Or

"You in the sea
On a decline
Breaking the waves
Watching the lights go down
Letting the cables sleep."

Letting the Cables Sleep - Bush

I have a white house with grey and orange accents, I might quote Jimi Hendrix:

Orange is young, full of daring
But very unsteady for the first go round

Am I the only one who loves words so much, I would have all my walls written up?!

wonder if someone can help me grasp this a bit more (LOVING the idea... a MUST DO!!!!)

the vinyl letters... they're stickers that stick to the plywood, or i have to use the painters tape?? concerned the painters tape wont hold it down firm enough to not allow paint behind- am i not grasping something??

"i carry your heart with me (i carry it in my heart)"
-e.e. cummings
Always a classic.

amanda--what color spray paint did you use? looks like black of some sort but love to get the exact "name/#"
thanks!

I think I will paint the board first and then spray a different color on top.....but what colors and what quote....

I love the Beetles quote: but I do like money ;) so I feel like I would be lying lol.

Very cool, I love the impact this has. Thanks so much for sharing the how-to, I'll be linking in today's Daily DIY.

Jamiefreitas...I use the painters tape like a ruler to align the vinyl letters to keep them straight. Stick the vinyl letters to the plywood aligned with the painters tape. Once the letters are all down, you can remove the painters tape. The letters will stay stuck to the plywood. Hope that makes sense.

"We Can Do It!"

We did this project slightly differently a while ago, in an effort to imitate some art by Christopher Wool. (Cats in bag, anyone?) So we did black spray paint letters on a white canvas.

Roar. Roar. Roar. No one understands you she-bear!

-homer simpson

'We are dogs unleashed,
Out of control,
Full of dreams nobody knows' - Tokio Hotel.

I never, ever claimed to have a refined taste in music. :P

I love Dorothy Parker, so for me it would have to be:

You can lead a horticulture, but you can't make her think.

i did a smaller scale version of this for my hubby's birthday a while back. i wanted something sweet, but not overly girly.

top contenders:

you're my wonderwall - oasis
you are my sunshine - ?
don't stop believing - journey
nothing else matters - metallica
hello, i love you - the doors
pour some sugar on me - def leppard
besame mucho - the beatles
all you need is love - the beatles

see more here http://gimmeakisss.blogspot.com/2009/08/making-birthday-art.html

"They're sharing a drink they call loneliness, but it's better than drinking alone."

A great line, but probably not one that would entice a cheery morning!

I can't grasp the notion of time.
When I hear the earth will melt into the sun, in five (or was it two) billion years, all I can think is:

"Will that be on a Monday?"

"All of this time I was searching
Searching for my home
And I discovered
Home is where I am..."

-Heartless Bastards

That wasn't Homer , Satram. That was Cledus the hillbilly. lol hilarious either way.

Life is a journey, not a destination -- Aerosmith

And taste it, however it seems good to you, make it so. -- Sabina Welserin, anno 1553

"I live for my dream, and a pocketful of gold."
- Led Zeppelin

"Don't stop now; you're doing great."

From a recent episode of Family Guy:

"I'm in the mood for some coitus, get over here!"

For the bedroom, obviously. :)

On a more serious note, the e.e. cummings quotation from above is beautiful.

sine nomine: YES!!!! Hahaha, I love Unhappy Hipsters.

"Just paint what you feel, doesn't matter if it's right or wrong" - Sky Blue Sky ~ Wilco

"I am an opera singer. I stand on painted tape. It tells me where I'm going. And where to throw my cape." - Opera Singer ~ CAKE

"Do it again." Do It Again ~ Chemical Brothers

"Carol Brown took a bus out of town but I'm hoping that you'll stick around." - Carol Brown ~ Flight of the Conchords

"When on your way out / Be sure that you say goodbye / then lock the door tight" - Haiku by Everdred from Earthbound

"wherever you go, there you are". btw, that little runner made of drink umbrella shades on their dresser is super cute.

As you wish...

Kpaige13, even better, that super cute runner is made of fabric yo-yos, which are not hard to make using needle and thread, a round object, and fabric:
http://www.ehow.com/how_2084232_yo-yo-quilt.html :)

Dance a little stranger....
Show me where you've been

OR

Breathe out
So I can breathe you in

I don't think those are drink umbrellas. I think they are called "yo-yos" The are made of fabric and can be made into any thing from place mats to blankets. I think they were popular in the 60's or 70's. Lots of colors and frugal.

Personally I wonder what is behind the little door. : )

I love the sign. I might try to make one even.

From Amelie:

"Without you, today's emotions would be the scurf of yesterday's"

I've been trying to find the perfect quote for a few years for something like this for years, but i love the technique used here.

On a side note- that yo-yo runner is AWESOME! A few months ago I started making yo-yos like mad from fabric scraps. My 2 kittens found my growing pile and they loved them as toys so much that I just gave them all the ones I had, since I didn't have a use for them yet...Now I want to make new ones so I can make something like this! I love it.

"Sweetness, I was only joking"

"Too much of a good thing is terrific." - that great American philosopher, Mae West

also,
"it was the best of times,
it was the blurst of times."

Yep, the runner is made from vintage yoyos. I think someone started a quilt topper make in the day and gave up. I was very happy to stumble upon it at the antique shop.

"Last night I told a stranger all about you"

@evansal3 - awesome, can't go wrong with alan moore...

i'd have to go bukowski for this:
Some people
never go crazy,
What truly horrible lives
they must live

or To Dorothy by Marvin Bell (either the first two or last two lines):
You are not beautiful, exactly.
You are beautiful, inexactly.
You let a weed grow by the mulberry
And a mulberry grow by the house.
So close, in the personal quiet
Of a windy night, it brushes the wall
And sweeps away the day till we sleep.

A child said it, and it seemed true:
"Things that are lost are all equal."
But it isn't true. If I lost you,
The air wouldn't move, nor the tree grow.
Someone would pull the weed, my flower.
The quiet wouldn't be yours. If I lost you,
I'd have to ask the grass to let me sleep.

As pretentious as it may seem I used to write lines from my poems on my walls. I think of letters as art...

How about the Picasso quote: "Anything you can imagine is real..."

or

"Feel your way."

(both of which have appeared on my walls at one time or another)1

@gagewhitney - Nice West Wing reference! I'm actually watching reruns as I type!

LOVE IT. Of course, I'm addicted to wall quotes and everything and anything that allows me to post my favorite quotes/lyrics around the house. Ironically, my favorite song from "The Last Kiss Soundtrack" came on right as I was reading this, and here's another perfect quote:

"Mess up my bed with me. Kick off the covers, I'm waiting" -
"Paperweight" by Joshua Radin and Schulyer Fisk

So many great suggestions!

Tongue-in-cheek for a home office: "I'm not a businessman; I'm a business, man. So let me handle my business. Damn." (Jay Z)

To wake up to: "I got a Baptist choir singin' in my soul." (Sons of Bill)

"Soulshine: It's better than sunshine. It's better than moonshine. Damn sure better than rain." (Allman Brothers)

I think this might be my weekend project (if I don't get snowed in)!

"I will be your one more time if you will be my one last chance"

"Love is the province of the brave"

both great lyrics by TV on the Radio! Can't wait to do this DIY!

Love is a horse with a broken leg trying to stand while 45,000 people watch

Being apart creates a hole; Being a part creates a whole.

This is my simple religion. There is no need for temples; no need for complicated philosophy. Our own brain, our own heart is our temple; the philosophy is kindness.

Dalai Lama

"i do it for the joy it brings
because i'm a joyful girl
because the world owes me nothing
and we owe each other the world"

ani difranco

@ Black Francine - HA! That would be perfect.

"What might have been and what has been
Point to one end, which is always present."

T. S. Eliot--Four Quartets

Always loved this line. And now I have a place to use it! Thanks for this great project.

"I am enough, I have enough, I do enough."

"The only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars..." - Jack Kerouac

"Nothing succeeds like excess" or something else from Oscar Wilde would be fun . . .

But this makes me think of a couple of posters I've seen in house tours here. There was a "For Like Ever" poster that I liked but it only came in pink and I thought that might be a hell of a lot more pink than I could live with. I remember another that said something like "I have everything I need."

"Limitless undying love which shines around me like a million suns - it calls me on and on across the universe"
from: Across the Universe by the Beatles, written by John Lennon
~
Yours is the light by which my spirit comes
Yours is the darkness of my soul's return
You are my sun
my moon
and all my stars

e.e cummings

My husband made this for me for Christmas. It's a lyric from a song called "As" by Stevie Wonder. (Pardon the picture quality!)

http://www.twitpic.com/11g5vf/full

"Dream on, dream on, dream on
Dream until your dreams come true." Aerosmith

Seems like it would be good for a bed!

Any of these verses from Wolf Like Me by TV On The Radio.

Dream me oh dreamer
down to the floor
open my hands and let them
weave onto yours

Feel me, completer
down to my core
open my heart and let it
bleed onto yours

Feeding on fever
down all fours
show you what all that
howl is for

"Animals strike curious poses,
They feel the heat, the heat between me and you"

Placed above the bed of course.

"If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense."
from Alice and Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

Or

"Remember, You are unique... just like everyone else"

I'd rather have a bottle in front of me than a frontal lobotomy.

Where are those orange curtains from? I love them!

Many a small thing has been made large by the right kind of advertising. --Mark Twain

"Love is friendship set on fire." - Jeremy Taylor

A quote I often texted to my husband when we were dating and I worked it into the slideshow at our wedding with "Burning for You" by Blue Oyster Cult playing in the background. This would be an excellent project for our bedroom!

We have a large wall next to our bookshelf that practically requires this quote:

"A home without books is a body without soul." - Marcus Tullius Cicero

"We'll float on, good news is on the way"

One of my favorite song lyrics, from Modest Mouse.

I love this poem by William Carlos Williams and would love to hang this in my living room or kitchen:
so much depends
upon
a red wheel
barrow
glazed with rain
water
beside the white
chickens.

so, am I lame? lol

"A dream that is not interpreted is like a letter that is unread" - Talmud

or

"As wishes may inspire dreams, so dreams may inspire wishes" (Anonymous quote)

Candy is dandy
but liquor is quicker

-Ogden Nash

So many great suggestions! I love this idea and found a piece of plywood already. I'm thinking a movie quote might be cool too.
"Teacher says every time a bell rings, an angel gets its wings." It's a Wonderful Life
"You should be kissed and often, and by someone who knows how. " Rhett Butler
or great politicians. My favorite Harry S. Truman quote
"Always be sincere, even if you don't mean it."

I could go on forever!
So fun. Thanks for the suggestions.

DaisyMar, I think the curtains are made from an Amy Butler fabric

I think sine nomine wins so far! I am not a fan of lettering in homes any more than I am phrases on t-shirts. But if I were going to do this, some of my favorites are:

"On ne voit bien qu'avec le cœur. L'essentiel est invisible pour les yeux.

It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
- Antoine de Saint Exupery, The Little Prince

Beauty is truth, truth beauty. That is all ye know on earth and all ye need to know. - Keats

Per aspera ad astra./ Through difficulties to the stars.

When you walk through a storm hold your head up high, and don't be afraid of the dark. - carousel

"If you want to sing out, sing out and if you want to be free, be free." - cat stevens

For a kids room:

Les grandes personnes ne comprennent jamais rien toutes seules, et c'est fatigant, pour les enfants, de toujours et toujours leur donner des explications.

Grown-ups never understand anything by themselves, and it is tiresome for children to be always and forever explaining things to them.
- The Little Prince

That´s a GREAT idea. I might make something like that for my painting project. Maybe the quote: "Don´t think out the box. Throw the box away" ?

http://www.1euroexperiment.com

But what would be a great quote for both morning and bedtime? It's tough. I appreciate most the e.e. cummings and animal collective quotes, though.

Not all who wander are lost..........

I was captured by this sign immediately; I think it is great. I love the "deep value statement" made through simple and instantly recognisable words. It fits the spirit of the room as well. Amanda I might copy you very closely! (promise to give you the credit of course to any friends who may appreciate it)

Did this project yesterday. It worked beautifully. I put it above my bed, kind of like headboard art. The quote was "Dreams are necessary to life" Anias Nin

Amanda, love this idea and will be doing a similar project for my bedroom with the Mae West quote: Too much of a good thing is wonderful.

Quick question, though: Where did you buy the vinyl letters? Thanks so much1

"Happiness isn't happiness without a violin-playing goat." - Notting Hill

"And the tree was happy." - The Giving Tree

"Let it be." - Beatles

"Lay me down in sheets of linen, you had a busy day today..." - Elton John

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." - Harry Potter (or "Mischief managed.")

"We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars." - Oscar Wilde

"Wide awake and so alive." - Matt Nathanson

Etc, etc, etc. !!!

"Your love is better than ice cream, better than anything else that I've tried." - Sarah Mclachlan

"Picture yourself on a boat on the river. With tangerine trees and marmalade skies.." - Beatles

Okay, I'm done now :)

If you are short on time check out http://subway-sign.com
Their signs are affordable and customization and shipping is free.

Take it Easy.
Don't let the sound
of your own wheels
drive you crazy.

The Eagles "Take it Easy"

Mine is the heart the you call home

mine would probably be the quote a friend made up for me to say.

'it isn't mine if it isn't broken'

true of so many aspects in my life, it's like my own personal motto now.

or the tv on the radio quote from above. love them!

I can't wait to try this...thanks for the inspiration!

by the sea
by the sea
by the beautiful sea

" If you were an alien girl I'd kiss your alien lips.
And if you want to vacate this planet I don't mind a one-way ticket
If you were an alien girl
I'd call you my martian man. "

I have always wanted to have a wall filled with cool different clocks and put up the line from a song "Does anyone ever really know what time it is?"

I like the quote from The Little Prince that someone mentioned above.

Where do you buy the vinyl letters?

No, you're not! I keep finding all these ideas that involve text. I'm trying to narrow it down. I found this flickr account that has photos of letters free for download. They are photos taken from all different places, from signs to scrabble tiles. Check it out.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lwr/collections/72157594587080023/