Decorating Tips For Rooms With High Ceilings and Tall Walls

Love living rooms with tall ceilings? Me too! You surely already know that a luxurious vertical space comes with some interesting decorating challenges. Having a high-ceiling living room means you have an abundance of space 10 feet up and more. This can make a room feel grand and spacious, but it can also feel a bit sterile or a little cave-like. To design a warmer, more balanced vibe, you will want to look for ways to creatively blend the upper and lower areas by pulling focus upward. Following are a few designer tall ceiling room decorating tips that will help you take advantage of all that beautiful, soaring space.

Hang window treatments at ceiling height

Go grand! Hanging curtains lower than ceiling height tends to section off the wall and make the upper area feel more remote and separate. While extra-long curtains can get expensive, the results speak for themselves. Opt for solid color draperies for those with a minimal design over patterned fabrics, which can be overwhelming on a larger scale. (Photo by Margaux Interiors)

Utilize architectural features

So many choices — Exposed beams, crown molding, beadboard, and other architectural details are common in living rooms with tall ceilings. If your home does not have these features, consider making the investment to give the room some character, warmth, and visual interest that draw the eye upward and connect the upper and lower areas of the room.

Install a statement light

A big gorgeous light fixture hanging as a focal point is an excellent way to bring the upper and lower areas of a room together. The exact spot you hang it will be determined by other elements in the particular room, but centered in the main part of the room or above the coffee table or dining table is generally a safe spot. Select a piece that takes up a lot of visual space without necessarily weighing a lot, like a modern-style chandelier.

Hang large art creatively for drama

Whether it’s a gallery-style wall that takes up the entire floor-to-ceiling space or an extra large piece that you can hang a little higher, large art and artwork groupings help tie together parts of the room and pull the gaze upwards. Experiment with scale and proportion to add a bit of drama. Make sure your art complements the rest of the decor in your space.

Add a full-length feature wall

A floor-to-ceiling design on one wall is another great design technique to merge the higher and lower parts of a space. Something as simple and inexpensive as painting an accent wall, hanging wallpaper, or adding board and batten to one wall of a room can be quite effective. If you have a tall fireplace wall with high ceilings, you can extend the brick, tile, or stone toward the ceiling to draw the eye upwards.

Install bookshelving

As seen on HGTV’s Rock the Block, wall shelves or bookshelves are a creative way to take advantage of extra vertical space. Floating shelves strategically spaced around the wall work well in some spaces, while tall bookshelves may work well in others. If you enjoy reading, a full accent wall made up only of shelves may be just what you need.

Consider painting or adding wood to the ceiling

Trying to make your space feel less cavernous and bring the ceiling down a little bit? You may want to consider darkening the ceiling. Either painting the ceiling a darker color or adding wood or another texture can help make it visually appear a bit lower. This can help contain a really massive space and warm it up.