When it comes to decorating a house, most homeowners focus
on the walls, the floors, the windows, the doors and the furnishings. They never think to look up, other than to select a light fixture. Ceilings continue to be overlooked, or in this case, underlooked, when it comes to interior design. However, this forgotten space should be a staple in every decor plan.

We are now more aware and conscious of the entire volume of our surroundings,” she says. “We spend more time in our homes, and we want them to look and feel good. We are also exposed to more high-end design in magazines and TV programming. Our fascination with celebrities and how they live only fuels our desire to make our homes look as spectacular as possible.” This means leaving nothing out when designing and decorating our homes, and ceilings are one area where any change, small or large, can make a big difference in the overall appearance of a room.

Overhead options
So how can you add a splash to your ceiling? Believe it or not, there are many options available to homeowners right now. The easiest, as always in home decor, is paint. Take care, though, when selecting the color. “The choice of color depends on how you want your space to feel,” La Falce says. “Darker colors create a sense of intimacy and cocooning. Lighter colors give a feeling of height and airiness.” Therefore, if you have a low ceiling, it’s a good idea to choose a light color, while if you have a high ceiling, a dark color can help bring it down a little bit. Paint the ceiling a different color from the walls, or a different shade of the same color to create unity within the space.

Another option is to apply molding around the perimeter of the ceiling. This is especially effective in decorative ceilings such as tray ceilings and octagonal-shaped ceilings. You can further accent the molding by staining or painting it. “Paint the two distinct sections, ceiling and molding, two different colors,” La Falce says. “Or glaze the entire ceiling and trim detail the same color for some depth without a lot of
visual contrast.”

Working with wood
Wood can be used in many ways as well. For example, according to Patterson, if you decorate your dining room with wainscot and wood panels, you can use these same materials to create a paneled feeling on the ceiling. Beadboard and woods such as tongue-and-groove pine or cedar also add rich texture and warmth to ceilings. A high wood ceiling, crisscrossed with wood beams in a different color, is a popular look
right now.

Armstrong Building Products offers homeowners an easy way to add wood to ceilings. Woodhaven wood planks come in 10 different prefinished styles and are installed with a clip system. There is one key thing to remember, however: Woodhaven plank ceilings are designed to be installed in interior areas with relative humidity not exceeding 70 percent and temperatures between 60 and 85 degrees.

The best part about using wood as a ceiling material is the flexibility it allows. You can paint or stain it almost any color you desire, and it can be used on an entire ceiling, as trim or in patterns to create a coffered look.

Building materials
Offering even more flexibility in color and design, Armstrong’s Tin Look Paintable Ceilings come in eight different designs, including triangles, squares, circles and tin tile. The tiles come in white, which then can be painted to match the home’s decor. They can be applied with adhesive or stapled to the ceiling.

Whether created with faux materials or real metal tiles, tin ceilings are becoming increasingly popular for the elegant feel they bring to a home. These often are used in rooms with dark wood and deep colors to create a rich look.

Additional avenues for decorating ceilings include fabric treatments, wallpaper, vinyl wall coverings and wood beams. Many fabrics and wallpapers are textured and designed to mimic all kinds of other materials.

Whatever material you choose, just remember not to be afraid to decorate your ceiling. “Ceilings are meant to be decorated,” La Falce says. “The overall mood you are trying to achieve in the room should be a main determining factor of how to approach the decoration of your ceilings. It should be a part of the whole room’s design, not an afterthought.”