Filed under: Your Home, Design, etc, News & Trends, Furniture
Get an instant pick-me-up with inspiring word decor.The other night I was eating dinner with some friends when John Mayer's "Say What you Need to Say" came on. It got me thinking: These days everyone says what they need to say, and they even say things that they don't need to say at all. Twitter, statement tees and Facebook walls have allowed us to easily express our moods and what's on our minds.
And it hasn't stopped with the internet and t-shirts -- like most trends, it has made its way into home decor.
Hang a message made from paper or fabric letters above the bed and be reminded of it morning and night. Photo: Courtesy of papernstitch
When the recession hit, we saw the emergence of the "Keep Calm and Carry On" posters; the message seemed to encapsulate the kind of thing we all needed to hear as the stock market and housing prices fell. And the messages have become sunnier since.
There are other creative ways to decorate with words. Check out a few of our favorites:
Because they are in several languages, anyone can understand what you're trying to say with these two posters by Made by Girl. Photo: Courtesy of Made By Girl
Affordable Prints & Posters
There are countless small presses creating witty, hand-printed posters that you're bound to find something that suits your personality. We love this clean, graphic poster (above left) that says "hi" in several languages. Wouldn't this be perfect for an entryway?
Some other sources for fab posters: Keep Calm Gallery, Vllg. and Etsy, specifically Lisa Barbero, All Good Things, and Tucker Reese.
Why cover part of the wall when you can cover the whole room? Blik customized this wall decal for their client, Allison Thomas.
Personalized Wall Decals
The popularity of wall decals has increased exponentially since they first came on the scene a few years ago. Besides beautiful imagery, wall decals now come in the form of quotes and letters. A few companies even offer the option to create custom decals, so you can say whatever you want, however you want to say it!
Blik created the custom wall decal shown above, which looks more like wallpaper, and sites like Wall Candy Arts, Vinyl Silhouettes and Hu2 will do the same.
Wouldn't it be great to wake up and have a cup of coffee in this kitchen? We love the over-sized letters used to form the word "cup." Courtesy of James Merrell through Lushlee
Spell It Out
The trend of propping letters up on a mantle or mixing them in with a variety of other objects is nothing new, but it doesn't seem to be going out of style any time soon. (Wouldn't you love to drink a cup of coffee in the kitchen above? We would.)
These days letters come in a variety of materials -- metals, wood, vinyl and and paper -- so it's easy to come up with a very personalized statement. We love these options from Anthropologie, Wall Candy Arts, Woodland Manufacturing and Happy Monkey Designs.
Design Sponge shot Jen Bilik's of Knock Knock's home in Los Angeles. She used to live off 14th street in NYC, and looking at the subway sign every day in LA makes her remember her old stomping ground. Photo: Courtesy of Design Sponge
Hanging a subway sign on the wall is a great way to express your love of all things urban. It can also be nostalgic. Jen Bilik's of Knock Knock used to live near 14th Street in NYC, so she looks to the sign in her California home (shown above) as a reminder of her times in the Big Apple.
Ebay is a fantastic resource for finding authentic signs, but we thought that the reproductions from Subwaysigns.com, Amazon and Underground Signs were as good as the real thing.
We're also loving these decorating ideas:
- Got an Extra Room? Here's what to do with it.- Decorate a Room Inspired by Fashion
- Get Inspired by Staying in Someone Else's Home For a Week
Head over to DIY Life for some great advice on how to buy shower doors!