Q: I have just bought a house in which the living room ceiling is rather low, about seven and a half feet, and I am wondering what I can do to improve the look of the room. I have already removed the chair rail, and now I would like to know whether keeping the ceiling molding is a good idea, or should I remove that also? If I keep it, what depth is best? Also, I know that a unified color scheme for ceiling and wall would be best, but should they be the same color, or different shades? I plan to keep the scheme on the light side, so how about trim color for baseboards, etc.? My preference is towards taupe/cream/greens. Your advice would be appreciated.
A: For anxious types such as myself, a low-ceilinged room only serves to make us feel trapped, because with anxiety comes a certain amount of claustrophobia, so I'm glad to hear there are readers out there working hard to at least make their ceilings appear to be higher than they are.
And you're on the right track with what you've done so far. A chair rail only breaks up the room's walls, making the ceiling actually appear lower. It's the same principle with dressing to look slim: a long, straight dress with no waist will give the illusion of height and a svelte figure, whereas a heavy belt on your outfit will make you look like one of the seven dwarves. In a room with high ceilings - say, 9 feet or over - a chair rail creates a nice visual break, and provides interest, but you have enough height to work with so that the appearance of a low ceiling isn't a problem.
Ceiling molding - also known as crown molding - will still do the room a world of good, even with a low ceiling. Again, when you have stunningly high ceilings, of about 12 feet, you can afford wide crown molding, even up to about 8" in some cases. Of course, if you have ceilings like that you can pretty much do whatever you want with anything.
- Tip: But even with your lower ceiling height, a thin crown molding will still lend an air of elegance to the room, and give it a more finished look. And having a thin molding of about 2" or 3" won't detract too much from the height.
In fact, if you choose the colors well, it could even help give the illusion of height. A lighter molding and ceiling will draw the eye up, away from the floor, and a lighter ceiling color will add to the illusion that the ceiling is further away. So my advice for the color scheme is to stay with the colors you've chosen, and use the green for the walls and the cream for the crown molding and the ceiling. Then, for the baseboards, use either the cream again or the taupe.
As long as the colors are light, there won't be too much contrast between the color of the wall and that of the ceiling, which could contribute to the chicken-little feeling. Also, make sure the ceiling has a plain, smooth surface. Decorative ceilings, such as old cast-iron ceilings or elaborately-carved plaster ceilings, give a gorgeous, elegant texture to a room, but these should be saved, like the wide crown molding and the chair rail, for palaces and museums. In our own humble homes, we have to make do with tricking our eye into believing we've got acres of space above.
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