Farrow & Ball’s colour curator, Joa Studholme, and creative director, Charlotte Cosby, offer their expert advice on painting ceilings, architectural elements and cornicing
CEILINGS
Very little thought tends to be given to the colour of the humble ceiling, but the choice made will have a huge effect on the overall feel of a room. Consider the ceiling to be a fifth wall and give it due consideration.
Although ceilings are so often painted in some ubiquitous colourless paint, there is no rule to say that they have to be white; in the past few years, the fashion for painting ceilings the same colour as walls has exploded with the realization that most people don’t want the size and shape of their room to be defined by the ceiling.
Your ceiling colour can make a room look lighter or darker as well as change the perceived height of the ceiling. And don’t forget that Full Gloss on the ceiling has an amazing effect on a room, as does wallpaper – if you are feeling very brave.
Decorative ceilings
Using colour on the ceiling has recently become increasingly popular. It will create a focal point, particularly in an otherwise neutral scheme, and shouldn’t be restricted to just the obvious blue or, indeed, to paint.
When entering a neutral room with a coloured ceiling, it takes a moment before you become aware of it, introducing an element of surprise. Even the merest wash of colour on the ceiling will infuse a space with a little individuality. Subtle colours like Tailor Tack or Cabbage White are a light and charming alternative to white, while adding a decorative twist, particularly in bedrooms and bathrooms.
Changing a room’s perceived height
If you use a bright white on the ceiling of a room with coloured walls, the contrast between the two is so great that one’s eye is immediately drawn upwards, to read where the wall ends and the ceiling begins. Having read the top edge of the walls, you are immediately aware of the ceiling height, which causes it to drop.
If you choose a white for the ceiling that is more sympathetic to the tone on the walls, it will feel as if the wall colour has just gradated into a lighter tone on the ceiling. You are then much less aware of where the walls end and the ceiling begins, which means that the perceived ceiling height will rise. Old-school decorators would very often mix 25 per cent of the wall colour into the ceiling white to achieve this effect.
It is also worth noting that if you have a very high ceiling and want to bring it
