EDesigns Custom Interiors
Transform Your Ceilings
Look up and be inspired. Open your mind to the possibilities available to enliven the ceiling, the most forgotten area in the home. One of the hottest trends in design today is enhancing the ceiling. It does not have to be a plain unadorned white space; there are so many more options. Through many ages and cultures ceilings have played a very important part in the interior design of homes. Of course, many of the homes that come to mind were castles or large estate homes. 
More currently we might think of the plastered ceilings of some of the Victorian homes or perhaps a beautiful vaulted wooden ceiling you have seen in a contemporary style home. There are many various ways to design your ceilings, transforming them from ordinary to extraordinary.
Plastered ceiling or the look of plastered ceilings is affordable for everyone. Add a ceiling medallion to highlight a stunning light fixture. Adding a frieze to your crown molding can further enhance the look. These types of moldings and faux plaster pieces are widely available and easy to install.
You might consider decorative ceiling beams which add immediate structural interest to the room.
The direction the beams run will change the way you perceive the dimensions of the room, so plan wisely. Lengthwise runs will make your room feel longer. While side to side runs will make you room seem wider. This type ceiling treatment works best in a larger room; in smaller rooms the beams could make the room feel crowded. Beams can be solid timbers or simply a hollow cardboard structure painted to look like real wood or even Styrofoam.
Perhaps you would like to have a wood ceiling, one that would add warmth and
texture to your home.
Wood ceilings can be tongue and groove planks (beaded boards) or wooden tiles. These ceiling are fairly easy to install and could even be used to cover that popcorn ceiling instead of having it removed. They are available in a number of different shades (everything from white to dark knotty pine) and since they will have no traffic to damage their surface will require no maintenance after installation.
Another choice would be ceiling tiles.
This application includes metals such as steel and tin or a carefree plastic like product all with a stamped design. Probably the most widely know tiled ceiling are the tin tiles often pictured in period homes. This look is often associated with a more country style but can be found with a more contemporary theme such as guitars, suns or a number of abstract patterns. Leather tiles are available with specialty color and finish requirements. Imagine a study with leather tiles flowing upward from a waistcoated wall and across the ceiling with a rich wood paneling grounding the lower walls. Also in the ceiling tiles family are 3D wood tiles. These tiles are reminiscent of coffered ceilings adding warmth and richness to your room.
One of the hottest trends in ceiling today is simply painting the ceiling a color. A pale blue or blue green gives the illusion of opening the room. It is almost the feeling of being under the sky, a breath of fresh air.
You will want to consider the ceiling color and the wall color, making sure the colors compliment each other. Ceilings can also be painted the same color as the walls or even a shade or two lighter. This gives a very sheltering feel to a higher ceiling space.
For bouncing light around a darker room, use paint with some sheen or even consider a polished ceiling. This technique can feel very rich and luxurious, especially in a powder room. To enliven your home do something with those ceiling besides painting them white.
Elizabeth Dinges