Heed a higher calling with ceiling colour
Q: We bought our home almost eight years ago and have been chipping away at renovations pretty much ever since. All major projects like the kitchen and bathrooms are complete and now I’m ready to concentrate on actual decor. When we first moved in, we painted the entire house white to freshen it up, but now I’m ready to introduce some colour. I’m starting in the living room and wonder your opinion on painting ceilings a colour other than white? I feel ceilings provide an opportunity to add some character to a room, but my husband isn’t necessarily on board. What do you think?
A: I completely agree with you; painting ceilings white is a missed opportunity to add decorative character to the rooms in your house. However, I do not suggest you start with trying to convince your husband of adding colour to the ceilings of multiple rooms.
I love wrapping small rooms entirely in colour, and a powder room provides you the perfect opportunity. Remember, a dark ceiling in the powder room tends to make it appear taller. (I also like to wallpaper ceilings, though if your husband is having a hard time conceding to painted ceilings, I can’t imagine him greenlighting a wallpapered one.) To demonstrate to your husband the sophistication of a coloured ceiling, you may want to start with a small room and get him on board that way.
Alternatively, skip the demo and go straight for the living room.
If your room has a lot of natural light, consider painting the ceiling a bold colour and keep the walls light in colour or even white. In this inspiration photo, designer Ashley Bell (ashleybellinteriors.com) shows us just how sophisticated a room can look by adding colour to every surface but the walls. She uses a high-gloss finish on the teal ceiling, providing a reflective surface for both natural light during the day and the lamps and chandelier at night. The gold draperies, raspberry chairs and teal ceiling look modern yet classic when married with the white walls, yet they don’t overpower the room.
Tie in your ceiling colour with fabrics and accessories for a visual rhythm that allows the eye to travel around the room. In the living room, Ashley highlights her ceiling colour with decorative pillows on the sofa and a painting above the fireplace. It’s subtle but effective.
If you have tall ceilings that you would visually like to lower (yes, too-tall ceilings are actually a dilemma for some), extend the ceiling colour down the walls about eight to 12 inches (20 to 30.5 cm) to create a cosying effect. This band of colour at the top of your walls visually blends into the ceiling, tricking the eye to believe the ceiling is lower than it actually is.
If a bold ceiling colour is not your style (though don’t be afraid to push yourself; look how beautiful the room in the photograph is) consider painting it sky blue or butter yellow for a completely different effect. These colours help to brighten rooms that don’t have adequate natural light and to lift the eye in rooms that are vertically challenged.
If it helps make the case to your husband for painted ceilings, allow me to simplify the quandary for you with a quote from the iconic interior designer Albert Hadley, who said that “ceilings must always be considered. They are the most neglected surface in a room.”
This doesn’t have to be the case in your home.