Method three. How to increase ceiling height with interior accessories

How not to renovate if you have a low ceiling

Let's start with the most important thing: what not to do and what exactly design solutions- a taboo for the owner of a home with low ceilings.

The first thing you should give up– these are bright and catchy ceilings. If you succumb to fashion trends and make a bright red ceiling in a room 2.20 meters high, then be sure that the room will look ridiculous and miniature.

The same applies to dark and overly colorful ceilings. Light pastel colors are also not an option. A light beige ceiling will “press” no less than a colored one. The best option, after all, is white.

Secondly, no multi-tiered compositions. If you make a low ceiling voluminous, it will look simply terrible. And the ceiling will seem larger than the entire room.

Third - forget about wide baguettes and plaster molding around the perimeter of the ceiling. This is all only for high walls, within three meters. Even at a height of 2.50 meters - wide baguette with ornament it looks out of place and visually makes the room lower.

Fourth - avoid large chandeliers, which hang on chains. Not only is there in this case big chance catch your head on it, it also visually makes the room smaller. Chandelier designed for halls with high ceilings and hanging in the Khrushchev building makes a pitiful impression.

Fifth - carpeting with a large pile is not your case. Such a floor visually raises the level of the plane and, as a result, the ceiling appears lower.

Sixth, don’t try to make the ceiling and walls too contrasting. Blue walls And white ceiling, for example, is much worse in this regard than light blue walls and a white ceiling.

Most the best option For low rooms– white walls and the same ceiling.

Moreover, without any baguettes on top or other plane separators. Don’t worry, it won’t look boring, since in this case the emphasis falls on completely different elements: decor, textiles, furniture.

But, if this is too radical and bold for you, then at least don’t make a strong contrast.

To “raise” the ceiling, you need to lower the floor!

If your apartment is old, built in Khrushchev, then the floors are probably made of wood. If you remove this flooring, you can “win” about 5-7 centimeters.

By and large, this is not that much. If you focus only on this method of “pulling out” the walls and neglect the other tips, then you may not notice this maneuver. But in warm conditions, the floor will lose greatly. Yes and in soundproofing properties. Do not forget that floors in houses old building- quite thin and after you remove the thick floor covering, you will hear everything that is happening with your neighbors.

Therefore, this method of raising the ceiling is not the best and it is not necessary to use it. Only in extreme cases, and only if you have a real replacement for wood. If we are talking about putting linoleum instead of boards, it is better to abandon this idea.

Reflection on the floor - visual illusion of height

But if you make the floor glossy, there will be an effect.

Any reflection, whether from the ceiling or the floor, visually “stretches” the walls. What should the floor be made of so that it shines?

A good option is stone covering, for example, onyx. This stone, due to polishing, reflects surfaces like a mirror. But, cheap and available material you can't call him anything.

An excellent alternative to natural gloss is self-leveling flooring.

Here the scope for imagination is great.

It can be made simply glossy, or it can be made voluminous, with a 3D effect.

But still, it’s better to stop at more simple version and don't complicate it.

A three-dimensional design is not always able to “lower” the floor. More often it turns out the other way around, and until you do it, you won’t know.

Since the picture in the catalog and real view such a floor in a room are two big differences, as they say in Odessa.

“Raise” the ceiling using glossy tension materials

Owners of premises with low ceilings often do not even consider the option of suspended ceilings. For one simple reason: to organize them, you need to attach a profile that will “lower” the ceiling by 5-7 centimeters.

But the “landing” effect will only work if you choose a matte finish. And, if you take gloss, then the situation changes radically.

These 5-7 cm are real and will be more than compensated by the reflective effect, visually “raising” the ceiling.

Looks especially good white gloss. He is capable of transforming even very small room with low ceilings.

Mirror ceiling

The same effect will occur if instead of paint or stretch ceiling you will decorate the ceiling with a real mirror.

This is quite expensive and not appropriate for all rooms. For example, this will be good for the bedroom and bath, but not so much for the living room. Uncomfortable and too bold.

Good results are obtained if the mirror elements are made partially and not in a continuous array. For example, install a mirror around the chandelier and along the perimeter of the ceiling. And it’s unobtrusive and raises the visual level.

What is better in our case: stretched or painted?

We looked at several options, but the most realistic and affordable of them are glossy stretch ceilings and ordinary ones, painted white.

What is better, more practical and more effective? Undoubtedly, glossy ceiling – good decision. But it is not suitable for all rooms.

For example, for a bedroom, the reflective effect is bad, since, in addition to the floor, glare from lighting fixtures will be reflected on it.

This means that when you look up, they will blind you. Also, if there is some kind of display case, lantern or sign outside your window that glows at night, it will definitely be reflected on the ceiling and will interfere with sleep.

Of course, the problem of light reflection from the street can be solved with the help of thick curtains. But nothing can cope with a sconce that is located directly in the bedroom.

Therefore, our answer to the question of what is better for the bedroom: gloss or painting, we answer with all confidence - painting.

But for the rest of the rooms you can easily choose a stretch PVC covering.

We remove all horizontal decorative elements from the walls

How the decorative elements are located and in what plane they are directed depends a lot.

You can make a white and glossy ceiling, but if you hang horizontally elongated shelves on the walls, then the whole “lifting” effect will simply disappear.

Remember the first law in clothing for plus size ladies? It says they should avoid horizontal stripes OK! They visually stretch the body in breadth. The same thing happens with a wall if there are long, horizontal shelves on it. The wall looks wider and lower...

In addition to hanging elements, you should also avoid designs that “pull” the wall in different directions.

Selecting a vertical wallpaper pattern

This means, based on the above, you need to select vertical patterns. The best option is a regular strip. It can even be quite bright - the effect will be very obvious. But a barely noticeable strip, even in the form of convex details, can also work wonders!

In addition to wallpaper, it is advisable to use other vertical decorative items: long, tall pictures, floor-to-wall mirrors, various elongated shelves and racks.

What ornaments should be avoided in wall decoration?

The worst option in the case of low ceilings is a large drawing.

For example, bright spots big flowers or geometric figures. Such details can literally compress the wall and make the ceiling visually lower.

We fasten the cornice correctly

Cornice - very important detail! If your goal is to visually raise the ceiling, then you cannot attach curtains using the standard method: on a cornice that is located on the wall.

The best option This is a string, hidden cornice. It can be made at the junction of a stretch ceiling and a wall, or using a special plasterboard niche.

But the main thing is to achieve the effect that the fabric was flowing directly from under the ceiling. This is a very strong “trick” that can visually raise the ceiling.

We buy a low ottoman instead of a standard sofa

And now we will tell you how to visually increase the height of the ceiling with the help of furniture.

If you install standard, high sofas and armchairs, the distance from floor to ceiling will look smaller.

And the higher the legs and backs are, the more noticeable it is.

But if you choose a sofa oriental type, that is, one that is located almost on the floor - it produces amazing visual illusion.

The same goes for coffee tables and other furniture. A low table will raise the ceiling, and a high cabinet will lower it.

Don't forget about lighting!

If you want to know how to visually increase the height without resorting to any reconstruction or repair at all, then we will answer you: with the help of good lighting.

Believe me, bright light can work wonders! True, the illusion of expanding the room will only be in the evening, when the lights come on.

It’s very good if you put a couple of tall floor lamps. They will serve as an additional source of lighting in the evening, and during the day they will “stretch” the walls due to their vertical shape.

Conclusion

In conclusion, I would like to say: you should not choose just one option for visually increasing the ceiling.

All methods must be used in combination. Well, or at least most of them. Not everyone will like low ottomans instead standard furniture, but the rest of the other techniques are quite simple and unobtrusive. Only A complex approach capable of transforming a low Khrushchev building beyond recognition!

In buildings of the last century, the ceiling heights are extremely low. You won't be able to raise them, but you can at least.

Color

Remove the line connecting the ceiling and walls. Visually enlarge the ceiling you can if you paint it and top part walls one color. If you paint all the walls in this color, and not partially, then you can not only visually increase the ceiling, but also to expand the space.

Verticals

Lines directed vertically upward seem to lengthen the walls. This will allow visually increase the ceiling height. To achieve the effect, you can not paint stripes, but choose wallpaper with a vertically directed texture.

Reflection

Reflective flooring can visually enlarge the ceiling due to the apparent increase in the volume of the room.

Another option visually increase the ceiling- use mirrors in its design. A ceiling completely or partially covered with a mirror coating increases the volume of the room and seems to rise above the floor.

Extend your walls with paint

When painting walls, use the area of ​​the ceiling: this way it will become a little more compact in area, but the walls will visually lengthen. The same effect can be achieved using a plasterboard or stretch ceiling partially painted in the color of the walls, as well as using ceiling plinth to match the color of the walls.

Decor. Try to have decorative elements design in the center of the room. Wall decor(paintings, posters) should not hang “from the ceiling”, the best place- at eye level of the beholder. This technique shifts the focus to the decor, distracting it from the ceiling and its height.

Furniture

Visually increase the ceiling height Properly selected furniture will help. It should not be high; the use of “walls” and cabinets with mezzanines is unacceptable. The only exception is sliding wardrobes, which can be decorated with mirrored doors to optically expand the room.

Light

Vertically directed from bottom to top, light fluxes “stretch” the room and help visually increase the ceiling.

Chandeliers or pendants in the center of the room are not suitable; they are replaced with wall lighting sources, proper lighting of individual pieces of furniture or the ceiling itself, for example, built-in spotlights.

Using these techniques together or separately will help visually enlarge the ceiling in your apartment.

A low ceiling in a kitchen or room can be a big problem if you don't know some design tricks. In this article we have collected the best techniques on how to visually increase the height of the ceiling in an apartment.

Optical illusion

1. Glossy shine. Very effective method solve the problem of low ceilings in a typical apartment - choose correct option finishing. Glossy surfaces visually increase the volume of the room, and the play of reflections gives the space additional depth.

It is for this reason that it is often advised to choose a ceiling made of shiny PVC film for a low room. In this case, the suspended ceiling does not have to be white. If you choose a dark glossy finish, then due to the reflective properties of the surface, the ceiling will still appear higher.

2. Different levels. Two-level suspended and false ceilings also help make a room or kitchen visually higher. Installing a suspended or stretch ceiling with two or three height levels in reality, of course, will “steal” several centimeters. However, the visual effect can be just the opposite. Along the perimeter of the walls, the ceiling is often made slightly lower. In this case, the central part is sometimes made of a material with a glossy sheen. If it is decided to make the entire ceiling matte, special lighting will come to the rescue. We will talk about his role below.



3. Perhaps the easiest way to visually add “growth” to the walls and visually increase the height of the ceiling is to use materials of the same shade in their decoration, for example, white, creamy, milky. When the walls and ceiling have the same tone, they seem to merge into one surface, the human eye is not fixed on the border between them, and the space seems higher and larger.



4. The same trick can be used when choosing cabinet furniture. For a kitchen with a low ceiling, you should choose a light one. kitchen set. Do you want to add some graphics to your interior? Try this option: order the lower cabinets with bright or dark colored fronts, and let the upper ones have light glossy fronts.

White cabinets against the background of a white wall and white ceiling will “dissolve” and seem almost invisible. Great way make the kitchen taller than it actually is.
5. For the same reason, the border between the walls and the ceiling should not be highlighted with a contrasting border. A reasonable compromise is a mirror or white stripe under the ceiling as a border.
6. The traditional solution, which is often recommended by designers, is to use wall coverings with a vertically oriented pattern. Wallpapers with vertical stripe, less often tiles. Sometimes walls are painted with paint, over which contrasting stripes can be painted using masking tape. Important point: Stripes should not be too frequent or too bright. Otherwise, there is a risk of achieving the opposite effect, and the ceiling will appear lower.



Play of light

7. Another stylish and functional solution that allows you to visually raise the ceiling is cornice lighting. LED strips and LED lamps are mounted under the cornice along the perimeter of the room, located just below the main ceiling level. Such lighting not only makes the ceiling higher, but also allows you to change the color of the lighting depending on your desire and mood.



8. False window. The method is unconventional, but very effective. Very good for a kitchen-dining room or a kitchen combined with a living room. Ceiling structure in the form of a window imitates a source natural light, creates the illusion of perspective and visually distances the low ceiling. Such a ceiling lamp-window is often a panel of light translucent plastic framed by a plasterboard structure in which electrical wiring is hidden. Another option for this solution is to make a niche in the suspended ceiling. For example, you can paste photo wallpaper with a picture of the sky into it (here you will find). Sometimes an imitation window is made from mirror tiles with overlays made of wood or polyurethane molding.



9. Traditional chandelier or pendant ceiling lamp - bad choice for low ceilings. Instead, it is better to use mortise or overhead spotlights, local lighting in furniture or niches, as well as lighting built into a suspended or suspended ceiling. If you still want to keep central lighting, you should give preference to lamps that direct the light up rather than down, and, in addition, “press” against the ceiling. Laconic flat chandeliers are perfect for Japanese style and neat plate lamps.
10. Pay attention to the rich local lighting capabilities. Additional lighting should be placed above the worktop, kitchen sink and in the dining area. The more light there is in a room or kitchen, the more spacious it will seem. Little trick: spotlights built into the top wall cabinets and directed towards the ceiling will also make it visually higher.



Windows and doors

11. If you increase the height of the doorway and, accordingly, the door almost to the ceiling, this will also help visually raise ceilings. A good alternative is to “extend” the door by adding a glazed transom to it on top. In a small kitchen, designers advise abandoning it altogether. interior door, if possible, or replace it with a high plasterboard arch.
12. The window should also be pulled up. At least visually. A light translucent curtain that gently falls from the ceiling to the floor itself, or a curtain with even vertical folds, will help to achieve this effect. A vertical pattern on tulle or a thin, barely noticeable stripe on curtains or roller blinds will also help you achieve the desired effect.

Vertical folds on curtains visually make the walls taller

Distracting attention

13. A low ceiling will attract less attention if you try to draw it towards the floor and walls. One of possible options- combination of dark and light walls floor coverings. Another option is a bold accent on the wall. It could be photo wallpaper, beautiful panel or accent wall, pasted over contrasting wallpaper with a bright pattern.
14. Another good decision- draw contrasting edgings on the ceiling. They will attract attention and help create the effect we need, visually expanding the volume of space and the height of the room.
15. Try combining two finishes on the walls. For example, you can use panels (wooden or plastic) or tiles below, and wallpaper, paint or tiles of a different color on top. This solution helps to visually raise the ceiling and at the same time move the walls apart. But this trick will only work if small space, for example, in the kitchen. If the room is large enough, horizontal division of the walls will visually make the ceiling even lower and squat.

The average ceiling height in a typical residential building is 2.7 m. However, it can be 2.5 m or even less. It all depends on the type of flooring and ceiling covering that you used to decorate the room. For example, parquet flooring combined with suspended ceiling“steals” up to 20 cm of wall height. Low ceilings have a particularly depressing effect when combined with darkness, improper lighting or a large volume of the room. Oddly enough, a small room with a low ceiling will seem cozy and comfortable, while a spacious room will seem cramped and uncomfortable due to low ceilings.

Some design techniques will help to visually increase the height of the ceilings.

1. White color. Making the ceiling white is probably the most effective solution: Even a very low ceiling will appear higher due to the radiance of white.

2. "Cold" tones. Paint the ceiling green, blue or purple or use any other types ceiling coverings in these tones.

3. Painting the ceiling in a shade of the same color, like the walls, but several tones lighter. Thanks to this combination of colors, the room will seem like a single whole.

4. Plasterboard covering with recesses. Use plasterboard to finish the ceiling, make several recesses in it and paint them more dark color than the rest of the ceiling.

5. Masking cornices. Ideally, to decorate a room with low ceilings, it is better not to use cornices at the junction of the ceiling and walls. However, if for some reason you cannot do this, choose the thinnest curtain rods and paint them to match the color of the walls.

Low ceilings always don't like it. They “pressure”, irritate, “hang”, visually make the room smaller large sizes along the perimeter. But the situation can be changed. Visual illusion comes to the rescue. Interior designers have their own tricks and recommendations on how to visually increase the ceiling. Various things will help to “lift” it design tips and optical illusions.

At the stage of renovation of the premises

If repairs are only in the future, then it is possible to plan some elements for visual increase heights in advance.

• To visually increase the height of the ceiling, you need to immediately discard all ideas for decorating the room in which there is a horizontal orientation. They visually expand the walls and shorten the height.
• In some cases, you can gain in the height of the room if you dismantle the old wooden floor and replace it with a screed.
• Compensation effect. You can slightly reduce the height in adjacent small rooms. In small rooms around the perimeter, a low ceiling puts less pressure on them, so this will not spoil them. And the difference when moving from a room with a low ceiling to a room with a normal height will be felt significantly. For information on how to visually increase the height of the ceiling, see the photo below.

Increasing the height of a room with color

This is one of the main tools that designers manipulate.

1. In order to visually make the room taller, you need to give preference to painting the ceiling in cool shades light colors. For example, use white, gray or soft pearl color.
2. Soft blues and light greens also make the room feel more open.
3. The ceiling and walls, painted the color of a pale blue sky, blur the line between them and make the room high.
4. Bright walls with a white, pale ceiling “raises” it, “pushes” it further and higher.

Mirrors and room height

You can visually increase the height of the ceiling through the use of mirrors.

Specularity makes the top of the room seem poorly defined. For this purpose, mirror panels or metal carcass with mirrors. They are very heavy, so the issue of fastening them is very important; its solution requires some effort and expense.

Instead of a glass mirror, today you can purchase polystyrene panels. This option costs much less, is lighter in weight, and easier to maintain. We must not forget that, unfortunately, necessary for this ceiling structure itself will lower it. The illusion of the second floor will save the situation, which is given by the mirror reflection of the room in the ceiling.

For a ceiling with a mirror reflection, you can consider stretched glossy options. They will also give a reflection and increase the height, but everything will be reflected blurry, so the effect of increasing the height will be weaker.

Mirror surfaces should also be present in other finishing elements, room decoration. For example, elongated large mirror, which stands on the floor in an elegant design, mirrors that repeat the shape of vertical paintings hanging next to them.

In general, you should prefer a glossy surface to a matte one in everything. It helps to visually increase space.

Features of room wall decoration

Everyone knows that a pattern with vertical stripes is good for low-slung rooms. It seems to stretch out the walls, thereby making the room taller. But not everyone knows the nuances.

Any stripes should be moderately wide. The narrower the stripes, the greater their height appears. You need to refrain from too contrasting stripes in large quantities. You can use, for example, one wall for them.

If you go overboard and make all the walls striped and bright, the room will become smaller. There don't have to be clearly defined stripes. It is enough that it will be any drawing with a vertical orientation. This is a floral theme, geometric delights, or any other elongated patterns.

Will fit well plain walls not flashy pastel colors. You shouldn’t give up on them, thinking that they are monotonous and uninteresting. They will undoubtedly do their job, they will be able to visually increase the height of the ceiling, and decorative elements and pieces of furniture will add brightness and creativity to the room.

The option of placing wallpaper a few centimeters on the ceiling is also effective. This technique has been used for a long time, but remains no less effective. But there is an opinion that such a visual illusion makes the room look smaller.

If you don’t like this option of installing wallpaper, then it is still not recommended to make their height a few centimeters below the transition from the walls, as is customary. Walls trimmed with wallpaper up to their very top border will look advantageous.

You can resort to painting the walls and/or ceiling by an artist. It is better to choose a drawing that depicts a distant subject.

Illusions of room volume

To visually increase the height, moldings are also used, decorative beams. These are light decorative elements. They are selected so that their color is slightly lighter than the entire ceiling. Thanks to this, the effect of its deepening in relation to the molding is created. But do not confuse molding with stucco details. They are the ones who make the room look lower, no matter how elegant they are.

Room lighting

Its potential for “increasing” the height of a room is great. Any types of large chandeliers are immediately excluded, even if they are not located low. Massive, hanging chandeliers are not ideal for low rooms, as they increase the feeling of “pressure from above.” You need to limit yourself to small flat chandeliers or small point light sources.

A well-lit room seems more spacious. However, you should not overload the room with chandeliers and other light sources. A smart decision would be to abandon chandeliers altogether in favor of side lighting and spotlights. As for the direction of lighting, the lamps on the walls should direct their light upward.

Furniture and ceiling height

Its role in visual deception is important. Harmonious and well-chosen, it can visually raise the ceiling. The visibility of high walls will be helped by creating narrow, thin display cases; open, ceiling-height shelves and racks.

Like all elements in the room, they should have a vertical orientation, which lengthens the room in height.

It is worth giving up bulky furniture, wide and low chests of drawers, long cabinets, and giving preference to simple, laconic forms. Large furniture makes a small room even smaller, and therefore lower.

Curtains for “pulling out” a room

This is not just “clothing” for windows. This is the space connecting the floor and ceiling. Therefore, its significance in the illusory increase in the height of the room is enormous.

The principle of refusal remains here. horizontal lines. Large patterns of wide vertical and horizontal stripes. This means that their length should be to the floor, and not end at the level of the window sill. You should avoid various lambrequins and other decorations that create horizontal lines.

Only long curtains low ceilings will help to visually increase the floor. Even if the window is small and the curtains on them are narrow, you should not worry about this. Visual height will only benefit from their vertical visual orientation. The right decision there will be a vertical fold on the curtain or any decorative element hanging from the ceiling to the floor.

Low room decor items

All decorative elements are subject to general rule– be long and have no horizontal lines.
Can be applied:

1. paintings elongated shape with a corresponding picture;
2. mirrors of various, but always elongated shapes;
3. posters without baguette;
4. elongated vases;
5. flowers with tall long stems,
6. floor lamps with long legs.

Deepening the floor instead of raising the ceiling

How to visually raise the ceiling if this is not possible or the changes made in the room for this purpose do not produce results? Why not try to visually deepen the floor! Can be used floor tiles with a glossy finish in light cool colors, varnished wooden surfaces(parquet, laminate).

Other accents for small rooms

From the low ceiling it is worth turning attention to other parts of the room. On the floor, for example. This can be done if you use materials that contrast with the top of the room in color and other bright properties. This could be finishing or decorating the floor with elements with a special structure. Perhaps a carpet, the structure and color of which should attract attention, an interesting contrasting floor tile.