Ceilings don't need to be boring. Given the chance, they can bring a lot to your design game. Here are some great ways to show your ceiling some love.
Painted Ceilings
Maybe because many decorators and designers have recognized the lost opportunity in basic 'ceiling paint white', beautifully hued ceilings have been growing in popularity over the past decade or so. While you might think that a ceiling goes pretty much unnoticed, you'd be amazed at how much the colour of the ceiling can impact the feel of a room. And paint isn't the only way to add beauty and interest to the shelter over your head-- there are some other ceiling trends that have been slowly growing over the past few years, and now they're going mainstream. I'll get to those soon. But first let's look at a few lovely painted ceilings together, shall we?
Traditionally, blue has been a go-to colour for ceilings (think southern porch ceilings painted in haint blue), and it sure does look heavenly. It makes a statement while still feeling totally natural above us, no matter the colour palette of the room--it is the colour of the sky after all! (My husband went for about four years without even noticing that the ceiling in our bathroom was blue, but that's another story for another time)
If this were my living room I think I'd spend a lot of time in here just inhaling deeply, like I'm breathing in fresh sea air:
With the high gloss paint, ceiling mouldings and the mirroring in the blue painted floor, this stunning ceiling above is definitely intended to be noticed, even in the middle of a whole stunning room. Blue can also add a more subtle touch, like in this living room below. If you cover up the blue ceiling with your finger, you can see that the room would feel just a little bit flatter compared to the room with the blue ceiling floating above it.
It just feels like a happier space with that blue floating up there, doesn't it? And note that this is not a blue room, in fact there is very little reference to blue elsewhere in the room, just in the carpet, which actually reads mostly as beige, and a tiny bit in the painting.
The great thing is that you can go as bold or as subtle as you like. If you're in camp drama, here's just a little taste of what you could do (and it's so easy! it takes the same time and money to paint in a colour as to paint with plain old white ceiling paint):
And notice how this ceiling is not only painted but also textured, due to the panelling up there (this is called foreshadowing, children-- I'm hinting at something coming up later in this post)
If you're a colour lover, well, this just gives you one more canvas to work with, so don't miss out. Look at this beautiful room with the gorgeous combination of rosy ceiling and soft green walls. So pretty:
If you love colour and like the idea of stepping your toes outside the box, you can get some great inspiration for painting your interior doors in something other than basic trim white in this post.
Wallpapered Ceilings
So, moving on from paint for your ceilings (I could go on for miles' worth of scrolling with gorgeous examples of every possible colour combination and style, but I need to keep the plot progressing here) wallpaper has had a resurgence, and it isn't going anywhere anytime soon. Plus, it's creeping up the wall and onto the ceiling.
Simply no words needed here:
I'm always looking for ways to add texture and coziness to a room, and grasscloth wallpaper is a great way to do this. So why not on the ceiling?
And while we're admiring the grasscloth and the room in general, can we take a minute to acknowledge the play of texture with the molding, the wooden blinds, the chairs (like cuddling with a giant teddy bear!), the shag carpet?
The natural coloured grasscloth is really striking with the black walls above. Grasscloth also comes in a whole range of hues, so you can get texture and colour all in one go, like this gorgeous dining room with the ceiling clad in blue grasscloth :
Wooden Ceilings
So, painted ceilings, check. Wallpapered ceilings, check. This brings me to the panelling I so cleverly foreshadowed earlier. As wood sheds all those layers of 80's and 90's paint and steps out naked into the limelight, we're seeing wood everywhere (Wanna know where? Find out in this post and this one too). And that includes the ceiling. Not just the beams, but the whole ceiling, panelled in wood. Not as easy (or inexpensive) as paint, but you may decide its impact is well worth it. Plus you know me, always preachin' how the warmth of wood adds something so special to a place.
Please note how expertly the expanse of wood is tempered by the white walls and light concrete floors. Even I would say there is such a thing as too much wood, unless you're in a log cabin in the woods, maybe.
This home below pairs the magic of white and black with the warmth of wood, using a combination of wood beams and white groove panelling on the ceiling. Lovely.
I hope this has opened your eyes to possibilities you might not have considered before. Adding a little something special to your ceiling can be a game changer. Easy to incorporate into a complete room makeover, or to do as a weekend project for a room in need of a little pick-me-up ---and you can make it as subtle or as bold as suits your personality :)
Until next time,
Susan
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