Decorate your Home with High Ceilings

Most of us have to cope with the problem of inadequate floor space; but what do you do when you’re faced with the dilemma of too much space—and it is in the vertical direction? While it takes a clever designer to make the most out of small floor space, it could be just as tricky to decorate a room with high ceilings!

Typically, apartment ceilings are 9-feet high from floor to ceiling. A high ceiling, therefore, could be anything that’s, say, twelve feet and over. While the extra height could add a luxe feel to your room—that is, provided the footprint of the room is equally spacious—in case it’s all vertical and the plan isn’t as large, your space could end up feeling a bit like a disproportionate tower. To address this, you would have to draw the eye up and create a focal point at a height.

How can you do that? Here are some tips and tricks to help you cope with a too-tall room!

Expand Your Floor Plan with White Walls

When it comes to opening up a space, there’s nothing that works as well as light coloured walls. White surfaces seem to visually recede away from you, and your space will immediately appear to be more balanced. Add a medley of textures and patterns to create focal points and pique interest— here, the black and white counterpane and herringbone-patterned wooden floor do the trick.

Exposed Wooden Beams

Ceiling beams are wonderfully farmhouse rustic, and add dollops of personality to any space. This charming dining and kitchen area features rough-hewn beams and rafters that blend beautifully well with the whitewashed walls and simple, homely elements in the room.

Create a Mezzanine Floor

If your ceiling is really high, and it’s possible to create an in-between mezzanine level, then by all means do so! An architect or structural engineer can help you to work out the specifics. You’ll need to support the loft with a steel beam between the two walls, and can add a ladder or a steel staircase to move between levels. Check out this delightful space that overlooks the galley kitchen and adds an extra dimension to this home.

Floor to Ceiling Glass

Another way of enhancing the high ceiling is by opening your tall room up to expansive nature views through floor to ceiling windows. Create a seamless transition between the indoors and outdoors, and make your garden a part of your home! With one wall entirely of glass, your room seems limitless, and the high ceiling adds to the truly beautiful aesthetic.

Cathedral Ceiling

A steeply pitched cathedral ceiling adds oodles of personality to this living room, with both the flooring and the wooden ceiling featuring a stylish dark stain. Crisp whites and layered neutrals make up the palette for the furniture and walls, adding a refreshing, relaxing vibe to the spacious open plan layout.

Say it with Lights!

Dozens of filament lamps suspended from the pitched ceiling make a brilliant statement in this chic farmhouse-style living room. The ceiling and floor are both dark, creating a space that is warm and vibrant at the same time—but it’s the glowing lamps that quite steal the show!

Ceiling Silhouettes

The high ceilings in this romantic bedroom have been toned down in interesting ways. Softly delineated curves in the false ceiling explore the play of light on different surfaces, lowering the effective height of the ceiling slab.  The lovely raw silk curtains are hung high, drawing the eye up and visually ‘pulling down’ the ceiling height.

Creating Balance with Wall Panelling

The ‘rule of thirds’ states that a wall that’s split into three parts will always be aesthetically balanced. Here, the designer has used coffee coloured wall panels in the upper two-thirds of the walls, balancing the look with silken cream panels next to the floor. The panels act as focal points, reducing the look of the high ceiling. Elaborate cornices add depth and character to the space.

Hang Artwork Near the Ceiling

A large expanse of empty space near the ceiling accentuates the verticality of the walls—and this is something you really don’t want, if your ceiling is already too high! To counter this, hang a large, striking piece of art close to the ceiling. What you’re trying to do is to create a bold focal point that anchors the space and draws the eye higher. A tall library that runs from floor to ceiling will work as well. Tie the look together with accessories that pick out the main colours in the art.

Panel the Ceiling!

Why not focus attention on the ceiling itself, making it the focal point of the whole room? Continuing the wall panels on the ceiling could be one way to do this. What’s more, the wooden ceiling cuts down the visual scale of your space, even as it adds to the cozy ambience.

FAQs on High Ceilings

We hope you’ve been able to get some décor inspiration for your rooms with high ceilings. Many of you have sent in questions about rooms with high ceilings, and we’ve tried to answer them all here!

• Are 10-foot ceilings too high?

If your room measures say 10 feet by 12 feet, then a 9- or 10-foot-high ceiling would be just right. As a rule of thumb, if your door lintel height is 7 feet, a 9-foot ceiling would look good, while if the lintel height is 8 feet, then the ceiling should ideally be 10 feet high.

• Why choose high ceilings?

High ceilings add a look of grandeur to your rooms. Spaces with a mezzanine overlook have a lovely vertical flow of space through the different levels and are a delight to decorate.

• Are high ceilings worth it? How do you accentuate high ceilings?

High ceilings are definitely worth it! You can unleash your creativity and play around with textures, layered lighting, colours that pop and warm, vibrant accessories. The more space you have at hand, the more ideas you can fill it with!

A home that features high ceilings offers plenty of opportunities to express your unique personality and design style. The extra vertical space is a great value add, but does require careful planning, without which things could get out of hand quickly! Looking to decorate your home with high ceilings, and need some tips from the experts? Connect with HomeLane today!