Don't forget about ceiling treatments

Aug 08, 2023

The venerable American designer Albert Hadley advised that “ceilings must always be considered. They are the most neglected surface in a room.”

Hadley, who in his 70s, covered his own living room ceiling with holographic vinyl, would be delighted to know that today's designers and homeowners are paying increased attention to the oft-neglected “fifth wall.”

The world of ceiling treatments, many of them rooted in historic architecture, covers a broad spectrum of materials and decorative treatments, and taking the uppermost surface of a room from drab to inspired may be just the thing to elevate your interior design.

A botanical wallpaper adds interest while also reinforcing the view outdoors in this eating area by designer Maureen Stevens.

“Fifteen years ago, everything was white,” said architect Wendy Kerrigan, of Atelier Design, who noted that clients have become more adventuresome with ceilings. “There is a bigger trend for more color and more pattern on the ceiling and in every piece of the house.”

In New Orleans, where older homes were built with high ceilings because they cooled the interior, made a home look grand and let in light, ceilings are often painted and accented with detailed plaster medallions.

When working on houses without their original medallions, interior designer Betsey Hazard, of House of Hazard, often replaces the missing ornamentals.

“We have them custom-made to the right size and proportion,” said Hazard. “It makes a difference. It adds that oomph back.”

A contemporary take on a ceiling medallion by architect Davis Jahncke in the home of Mia and Minor Jahncke.

But no matter the height of the ceiling or style of the house, there are myriad ways to give residential ceilings life and use them to trick the eye.

Using wallpaper on a ceiling brings in pattern, creates a cozy environment and is a way to tap into other current design trends such as cottage core and granny chic (think vintage florals, toiles and chintzes).

Hazard’s clients Sara and Keith McCullogh, who renovated a circa-1911 Victorian side hall cottage Uptown, wallpapered multiple ceilings to deliver the femininity and vintage-inspired charm they wanted for their four young daughters’ bedrooms and study area on the second floor.

“We fell in love with a Pierre Frey floral for the study, and it sets the tone for the whole upstairs,” said Sara McCullogh.

The McCulloch family used patterned wallpaper for their daughters' reading and play area.

One of the children’s bedrooms features a ceiling papered with a soft pink and cream wallpaper from Sister Parish, a historical American heritage brand.

Paint is an option that can be used in many ways. As a general rule of thumb, Kerrigan says darker colors work better on high ceilings and lighter colors for low ceilings — unless you are trying to make a low-ceilinged space feel snug and a high-ceilinged room feel even more expansive.

For a bedroom remodel in a shotgun with 12-foot ceilings, Kerrigan paired pale pink walls with a complimentary shade of magenta on the ceiling. In another client’s family room, she color-blocked the ceiling the same smokey green as the bookshelves to make the environment feel more intimate without enveloping the entire room. The treatment highlights specific areas and provides contrast with the three papered walls.

Tanga Winstead uncovered hidden treasures when she removed the sheet rock in the ceilings.

“It feels warm and cohesive and brings it all together,” said homeowner Emily Whelan. “I think it makes a big difference and it’s not a big commitment — it’s paint.”

A high-gloss paint or a lacquered finish with a reflective quality, like the Whelans’, adds a bit of glamour as well.

“The higher the sheen of paint, the more reflection, and that adds drama,” said designer Penny Francis, of Eclectic Home, who recently completed a dining room with a glossy moss-green ceiling for clients doing a total gut renovation.

After finding vintage green velvet chairs for the room, Francis repeated the same green on the ceiling for a bold moment that is balanced by white walls and clean lines. She describes the effect as “minimal but sexy.”

“Ceilings, for the layman, are often forgotten, but there are so many things that can be done that will pull everything together and create a wow factor,” said designer Maureen Stevens, of Maureen Stevens Design. “It depends on the style that the client is going for.”

'The higher the sheen of paint the more reflection, and that adds drama,' saus designer Penny Francis of Eclectic Home. Here, she uses a glossy moss green ceiling that mirrors the color of vintage green velvet chairs.

Murals on ceilings, an artistic tradition that’s been put to use from the celebrated Sistine Chapel to the elegant Garden District, are usually one-of-a-kind hand-painted works that can be customized for every client and taste and that range from the formal to the playful. Today, there are also DIY peel-and-stick applications for those who want overhead impact without the high-end cost.

Architectural elements also can be used to add dimension. Stevens designed a lattice ceiling treatment for a client who wanted her home study to have a garden feel. The wooden lattice, from a home improvement store, is painted to match the room’s lattice wallpaper.

Designer Ware Porter, known for his virtuoso use of color, designed a graphic apple green lattice ceiling made with custom-cut, plaster-coated and painted two-by-fours for the foyer of a New Orleans client’s second home on Avery Island.

“I wanted moments of wow factor,” said Porter, who used contrasting patterns on the floor and ceiling and created a whimsical take on the more traditional aspects of a foyer. “The entrance hall is the perfect place to do that.”

Vaulted ceilings like the one in this Metairie home add volume to a space and draw the eye upward.

Fretwork ceiling panels, coffered ceilings, beams, paneling and beadboard are just some of the other decorative treatments that add dimension, architectural interest and texture to ceilings. Stevens generally works with such highlights while designing new construction houses. But prefab fretwork panels and millwork can be purchased and added to existing ceilings for those who want to turn a plain white ceiling into something special. Beams, even if purely decorative, can be added for a contemporary or a rustic look.

“Going from minimalist to maximalist adds intimacy, warmth and personality,” said Stevens.

Hazard cautions, though, that adding architectural components, such as coffering, can be too busy for a room with a low ceiling.

Upholstering a ceiling with fabric, like wallpaper, can bring a Grandmillenial flair to a room, while tenting a ceiling with cloth can add fantasy, fun and luxury.

In contrast, stripping away decorative ceiling features, or even the ceiling itself, enables a room to feel more spacious.

'Going from minimalist to maximalist adds intimacy, warmth and personality,' says designer Maureen Stevens.

In the bedroom of her own carriage house, Kerrigan took out the joists and created a cathedral ceiling that follows the roofline to impart a sense of age, an airier aesthetic and architectural interest.

In new construction or renovation projects where overhead real estate is available and the budget allows, creating a cathedral or vaulted ceiling adds space and draws the eye upward.

For clients in Old Metairie building a classic French Provincial-style house designed by architect George Hopkins, Hazard proposed a groin vaulted foyer ceiling that works with the refined Old World architecture, the length of the foyer, the surrounding Venetian plaster of the walls and the travertine of the floor.

The key to ceilings that work, designers say, is to make them intentional and in sync with the rest of the interior.

“We always say there are six walls,” said Porter of his firm’s “top to toe” approach to design that includes ceilings and floors. “There is not a job we do that not every surface has been considered.”

Designers offer these rule-of-thumb tips for making ceiling pull their decor weight.

Use darker colors for high ceilings and lighter for low ceilings unless you want a space with low ceilings to feel cozy and a space with high ceilings to feel even more airy.

Use a high-gloss finish to add glamour to a space.

Use the same wallpaper on the ceiling and walls to envelope a room with a cocoon-like coziness.

Use wallpaper on a sloped wall or awkward ceiling to direct the eye to the pattern and away from the geometry.

Pair a sky-blue ceiling and white walls to suggest the outdoor sky.

Pay attention to structural support and insulation when stripping a ceiling away to the roofline.

Make your ceiling design intentional and in sync with your home.