Look up!  What do you see? Hopefully a beautiful ceiling. If you’re fortunate enough to be gazing at a soaring vaulted ceiling–or even ones higher than 8 ft.–congrats! But most of us live with flat, low, white ceilings that are simply present and add nothing to a room’s beauty.  

So, is it possible to change a ceiling? Well, you probably can’t transform a one-story ceiling into a soaring cathedral, but there are ways to add character to your ceiling, regardless of its height. Our fabulous Gander & Co. contributor Emily, an architectural historian in DC and lifelong home styling pro, offers five ideas to inspire your next ceiling update!

No. 1: Crown Molding

Most rooms are rectangular, so adding crown molding where the ceiling meets the walls is an excellent (and easy) way to add interest to your room. Crown molding comes in many styles, shapes, and materials.  With home decor, it’s sometimes hard to decipher a hot new trend from true lasting style.  But don’t worry, crown molding has stood the test of time—even ancient Greeks used the style!

It not only provides decoration, but it ensures that the gap (which can sometimes not be very straight) where the wall and ceiling meets is neatly covered. Some styles such as Colonial or Craftsman look fairly simple in form.  More classical styles, such as Georgian Revival, Second Empire, and Queen Anne Revival can be large, heavy, and intricate in design.  

Recently, crown molding has become available in less “royal” profiles. Contemporary architects and interior designers have innovated the traditional decoration and come up with a wide array of more up-to-date and less fussy options. 

No. 2: Beams

Beams, regardless of what material they are made of, provide drama and sometimes even a sense of history to a room. Of course, there are already beams in your house—they’re the structure that holds up your ceiling—but they are rarely exposed. 

What we are talking about here is attaching beams to your existing ceiling to give it a new look. Beams can be made to look structural, old, new, decorative, or simply fun! And they’re quite flexible; they can be placed to accentuate either the long or short dimension of your room. 

Beams also don’t always have to run across the room. You can use beams to create patterns on your ceiling.  “Why would I want a pattern on my ceiling?” we hear you ask. Well, these patterns can be designed to form more interesting shapes that coordinate with the way your furniture is organized. For instance, you can use the squares or rectangles created by the beams to define different areas—like sitting versus dining—in an open concept space.

 If you’re looking for a bolder move and are a DYI-pro (or have a greater contractor!), rather than using a simple beam, you can use any of the moldings discussed above to create ceiling beams!  These beams will be a bit lighter than true solid wood, but you’ll have more choices when it comes to finishes.

No. 3: Cladding

Cladding is using any material to completely cover a surface.  When you clad a ceiling, it brings “instant” atmosphere to any room. Cladding, whether it is wood, laminate,  or metal provides a dimension to the ceiling that adds charm and substance.  Some examples of great cladding options are: tongue and groove—imagine narrow paneling that slides in joint with each other, shiplap—similar to tongue and groove, but easier to install, and decorative tin tiles.

No. 4: Paint

The easiest (and least expensive) way to update your ceiling is with paint.  The use of color on the ceiling can add excitement or calmness to a room. Using a color other than white on the ceiling will instantly make the room more interesting. You might want to use the same color as the walls, or you might want a totally different color. The colors can be subtle or shocking. Use your imagination!

No. 5: Wallpaper

I would be remiss if I didn’t talk about wallpaper. Wallpaper has a bad reputation for being difficult to remove when you tire of its look. And let’s face it, we’ve all seen an old (or even not so old) house with wallpaper that is simply atrocious. But wallpaper can add personality to a room in a way that no other treatment (except maybe that cathedral ceiling we mentioned earlier) can. Small rooms, such as a powder room, hallway, or dressing room can benefit from wallpaper either just on the ceiling or on the ceiling and walls.  Beware, this option is not for the faint-hearted, but the right wallpaper on the right ceiling could become a true statement of spot-on style in your home. 

So get to it! And make sure to share your ceiling makeovers with us in the comments and on Instagram! As always, thanks for gandering! See you next time.