A ceiling medallion is a special kind of decorative molding that is meant to grace the center of a ceiling, usually in a dining or living room. It is often used in rooms that also have decorative crown molding. There are several things to think about when picking the right size medallion for your room.
Size of Light Fixture
Many ceiling medallions are used in dining areas or other rooms with a hanging light fixture. If your room has, or will have, a light fixture such as a chandelier, the important thing is that the medallion should not be the same size as the outside diameter of the light fixture. It can be bigger or smaller, but if it's the same size, the two objects will form a virtual column that will make the room appear smaller. Also, take note of the size of the canopy plate your light fixture hangs from. This needs to be the same size as the hole in the center of the ceiling medallion.
Ceiling Height
Ceiling medallions are generally meant for rooms with tall ceilings. A good rule of thumb is that the higher the ceiling is, the bigger the medallion can be. A really tall two-story ceiling can have quite a large medallion, unless it has small dimensions for length and width.
Room Size
A large room can have a larger medallion than a small room. A hallway, even if it's long, needs a medallion proportional with the width, not the length. If you have a large room that is part dining area and part living room, consider the size of the dining space only if you are using a medallion around a chandelier that hangs over the dining table.
Type of Room or Space
The size of a ceiling medallion depends on what type of room it's in. A room that's used for dining, for a bedroom or a large entry way, can have a medallion that's larger in diameter than the light fixture. But if you are putting a medallion in a bathroom or a small hallway, use one that's smaller than the circumference of the light fixture.
Formula
Take all of the factors above into account when picking a size. But you still may want a formula. One such formula, supplied by vendors that sell Arctel ceiling medallions, is to multiply the width and length of the room and then divide the product by seven. The resulting number would be approximately the diameter of a ceiling medallion for a room with a ceiling that is nine feet high. For taller ceilings, a larger medallion would work better.
Tags: light fixture, , ceiling medallion, ceiling medallion, ceiling medallions, center ceiling