Thursday, June 18, 2009

Ideas For Painting A Low Ceiling

Make a low ceiling seem higher with paint.


A low ceiling can close in a room, making it feel cavernous and uncomfortable. If you have a low ceiling in your home and you're wondering deal with it, there are ways to make it appear higher than it actually is, using paint as your medium.


Cool Colors


Create the illusion of a ceiling that is taller than it actually is with cool colors. Cool colors reflect light and visually recede, making a space appear bigger than it is. If you want to give the space a hint of color, opt for cool shades of ice blue, pale green or even a paint that contains a tinge of lilac; these hues offer subtle color. If, however, color on the ceiling isn't your cup of tea, opt for a white that has a tinge of blue in it. Avoid warm colors as they absorb light and can make the ceiling appear lower than it actually is.


Satin Finish Paint


Another way to make a low ceiling appear taller is by using satin finish paint. This paint has a high gloss finish, which reflects light and automatically draws the eye upward and away from the floor. Just because satin finished paint reflects light doesn't mean that a darker shade of paint will work on your ceiling; you should still opt for a cool color paint. In fact, combining a cool color and a satin finish will do double duty, making your ceiling appear even taller than it is.


Vertical Stripes


Instead of painting the ceiling in this space, paint the walls. Painting tone-on-tone stripes on the walls will draw the eye upward, seemingly expanding the height of the room. Choose a color, such as blue, and select two tones of the color that are fairly similar -- light blue and powder blue, for example. Paint a base coat on the walls with one of the hues. When the base coat is dry, use a ruler and painter's tape to evenly space out lines on the wall. Use the second color to paint the stripes. When the paint dries, remove the tape and you'll have evenly spaced and straight stripes.








Same Colors


Paint your ceiling and walls the same color. When walls and a ceiling are painted the same color, they are differentiated, making it apparent that the ceilings are low. To avoid this, select a light, cool color, and use it on both the walls and ceiling.

Tags: ceiling appear, cool color, than actually, your ceiling, base coat, ceiling your