11 Tricks to Make a Ceiling Look Higher

More visual height is no stretch when you pick the right furniture, paint and lighting

A lot of people dream of having high ceilings in their home. But consider this: Rooms with high ceilings are a pain to heat and to circulate air through; they also create challenges for sound and light control and often double the expense of painting, covering windows and adding artwork. Low and moderately high ceilings can be warmer, more intimate and more in proportion with human scale. Not to mention that changing a lightbulb is as simple as pulling out a step stool. Try that with a vaulted ceiling.

Frank Lloyd Wright often incorporated low ceilings in his Prairie-style homes. To compensate, he often made the rooms extra wide and deeply connected to the outdoor spaces. Using these concepts, and with the right furnishings and decor, you can make any ceiling feel just a bit taller.

Contemporary Living Room by Domb architects

1. Choose low, horizontal furniture. Keep everything hunkered down low. If you are fortunate enough to have a spectacular view like this, it will amplify the effect dramatically. If you don’t have a great view, low furniture will still maximize the perceived height of your room.

2. Use wide expanses of glass and keep window coverings simple. Notice how connected this space feels to the garden? Seeing the voluminous outdoor space makes this low-slung living room feel equally spacious. This trick works especially well if you’re right at ground level.

Modern Kitchen by Resolution: 4 Architecture

3. Keep lighting flush. In a contemporary home with a modest ceiling height, use flush-mounted lighting to keep the look clean. This approach will create the appearance of more headroom.

Eclectic Powder Room Guest Bathroom Stripes

4. Elongate with vertical stripes. Everyone knows that vertical stripes can be very slimming and give the illusion of height. The effective use of stripes in this narrow bathroom makes it look even taller.

Traditional Bedroom by Carolyn Woods Design Inc.

5. Use patterned drapes. They lead the eye up to give a feeling of increased height. What makes this strategy effective here is the absence of competing patterns. While you’re at it, keep crown molding proportional. Don’t go for a deep profile, which would shorten the wall expanse.

Contemporary Nursery by Artistic Designs for Living, Tineke Triggs

A detail at the top of drapes also delivers the same effect.

Modern Kitchen by Griffin Enright Architects

6. Use a vertical display. This grouping has an uplifting effect. By taking even just a few pieces all the way to the ceiling, you can increase the appearance of height.

Beach Style Bedroom by Red Element Design Studio

Even a grouping of small frames arranged vertically will lead the eye upward and create more visual headroom.

Contemporary Home Office by FORMA Design

7. Include uplighting. Notice how the ceiling seems to float in this photo. Bouncing light off the ceiling creates visual height. Sconces, cove lighting and even affordable torchieres can deliver this effect. This is a great technique for basements.

8. Give your ceiling high gloss. This creates an illusion of endlessness. If a ceiling like the one here is too dramatic for your tastes, use a semigloss paint instead.

Contemporary Family Room by Lisa Petrole Photography

9. Expose your structure. If it will give you more headroom, think about taking your ceiling to its bare bones. Basement renovations are great candidates for exposed structures. Some main-floor spaces in older homes have floating ceilings left over from a day when lower ceilings were desired. Remove these and your room will instantly feel taller.

Contemporary Living Room by Jessica Helgerson Interior Design

10. Introduce a diagonal. Have you ever noticed how a staircase railing invites your eye to wander upward, giving lift to a room? A painted diagonal or a decor element that creates a diagonal line will offer the same effect.