According to the old standards that were in force until 2010, the ceiling height should be at least 2.5 meters. This value is considered the most familiar and comfortable for a person. After making changes to SNiP, the norms for ceiling heights were lowered, allowing builders to choose it themselves. The apartments still adhere to certain values relative to different rooms. For residential premises and kitchens, the norm remains the same at 2.5 m, but for corridors, hallways, halls, the figure is already slightly lower - 2.1 m. These rules are not respected in some communal apartments, hostels and old buildings (pre-Soviet buildings times). In private homes, as they say, the master is the master, and the owners have the right to choose the optimal height for themselves. Although in small rooms, high ceilings under 3 meters will look out of place, creating the effect of a "well".In large, spacious rooms, on the contrary, an overhanging top will land the living room or bedroom to a “cave” state. The design of low ceilings includes the selection of colors, lighting and proper decoration. Consider a number of tricks and techniques that will help fix construction flaws and make the room cozy, and its interior balanced.
The geometry of the room should be clearly verified. Ceilings overhanging too low negatively affect a person’s psychological comfort. For those who suffer from claustrophobia, this can even trigger an attack. If the room is low, it seems that the ceiling plate will now collapse and crush everyone who is under it. In order not to aggravate the situation and not visually land the ceilings even more, some interior elements should be avoided. You can not decorate a room with the following details:
Ceiling stucco. Favorite decoration of classic interiors will add volume where it will definitely be superfluous.
Bright, colorful decor on the walls.
Massive furniture. Instead of a voluminous classic wardrobe made of dark wood, it is better to choose a small cabinet to decorate the room. Do not use dimensional beds, sofas and armchairs. Such furniture will organically look only in rooms with classic parameters.
Dark colors in the ceiling. Stop at the traditional white version.
Massive chandelier with a cascade of bulbs. This, again, is a favorite decor for the classic style, which will have to be abandoned in favor of a laconic ceiling.For low ceilings, it is recommended to use several light sources that will divide the surface among themselves into sections or zones.
Curtains with lambrequins strongly "land" the situation. Moreover, they will not only make the ceiling even lower, but also reduce the room. Visually “elevate” the room light, airy curtains in light shades. If vertical strips are present on the textile, they will “lengthen” the room even more. You can even abandon the curtains altogether and use only a tulle web.
Massive or tall furniture. She will "support" the low ceiling. If you still choose tall furniture, then its bottom should touch the floor (without legs), and the top should reach the very ceiling. Better to consider the built-in options.
Modern interior solutions for low ceilings are not suitable: rack finish with wood (clapboard) or plastic panels, drywall structures, floor beams or beams.
In the latter case, the example is twofold. Beams of light brown color against the background of a whitewashed ceiling can make it higher, but only if the floors themselves are very thin and neat. By the way, this solution is suitable for fachwerk or chalet.
Techniques for visually increasing the ceiling
Low ceilings can be fought in many ways. The following tricks will help correct the situation:
A special wallpaper pattern. Here you can use not only vertical stripes, but also a geometric pattern of elongated rhombuses or ovals.
The ceiling must be painted neutral white. This classic option will help to make the room tidy and at the same time push the top a couple of centimeters apart. If the owners gravitate to experimental, modern design solutions, then you should adhere to the golden rule: the ceiling is lighter than the walls and in no case vice versa.
The floor should be dark with a slight sheen of gloss or varnish.
In rare cases, the ceilings are painted in blue, turquoise.These light shades of blue have unique properties to create the illusion of the distance between a person and those objects that are executed in them. A bonus to such a ceiling will be the feeling of being on the street, because the real sky is above your head.
The ceiling can be not only plastered, but also coated with white paint with a glossy sheen. The reflective surface will create the illusion of "bottomlessness." Of course, the stretch fabric would look prettier, but the design “eats” too much space, which is not compensated by gloss.
The walls and ceiling are sometimes painted in the same color, completely erasing the boundaries between them. At the same time, such necessary elements as heating radiators mask as much as possible so as not to violate the "integrity" of the two planes.
In another case, this transition is emphasized by white moldings and ceiling plinths (fillet). The contact of the two planes is stepwise, smooth.
Disassemble the floor. You can increase the height of the room not only from above, but also from below. If regulating logs were used in the house during the installation of the flooring, then they were definitely taken from a dozen centimeters. Such a complex design can be replaced with lighter ones.
In addition to the play of color, they use original combinations of decorative light sources, but we'll talk about this a little later. An unusual solution will be the use of reception with height differences. We will not hide, the option is experimental in nature and involves risks to make everything worse. The podium is installed in the room. It would seem that such a design would certainly take extra centimeters, which are already in short supply. In part, the way it is. The part of the room in which the podium is mounted will really turn into a more mundane, but the other zone will seem higher, thanks to a comparative example in the neighborhood.
Another stylish solution is to use the ombre effect, that is, soft color gradation.The walls are chosen as the canvas: the bottom is painted in a dark shade, which is gradually clarified to the ceiling.
The role of mirrors in increasing height and space
Mirrors make the room bigger: wider and higher. The essence of design tricks is the appearance of perspective, duplication of the situation in a reflective surface. Of course, you need to carefully decorate the room with mirrors so that you do not accidentally create a ballet studio instead of a bedroom. Reflective surfaces, as a rule, are placed on one wall, which serves as an accent. Mirrors should be arranged in groups or sections that are separated by vertical stripes (horizontal have the opposite effect). In some cases, using built-in furniture (wardrobes), the facades of which are decorated with reflective surfaces. For the same purposes, you can use plastic, varnish and lacobel (a type of glass).
Proper lighting
As mentioned above, any volumetric decorations on the ceiling will have to be abandoned. Chandeliers are also on this list. If the ceiling is decorated with a plasterboard structure, then its projections are equipped with spotlights. Such lighting is classified as decorative, so you still have to take care of the main light source. The central chandelier is replaced by a group of lamps that are placed above each of the functional areas of the room. Plafonds of decorative floor lamps and sconces should not direct the light down, as in classical interiors, but up.
What furniture to choose for a room with low ceilings
Each room should be decorated with low furniture so that the free space between it and the ceiling is kept within the usual. For a bedroom, a low (possibly hinged) bed is suitable, a boudoir table of the same height with an elongated mirror. Countertops of bedside tables traditionally go flush with the bed, so here they choose furniture details from the usual assortment.Additionally, a low ottoman or bench is placed near the bed. Use a sliding wardrobe with reflective surfaces of facades. The living room is decorated with a wide, flat sofa, armchairs and a low coffee table. Instead of a massive shelf, use a group of shelves.
For the kitchen, they get an original set: the lower part has a dark shade, and the upper is painted in a lighter tone. In other embodiments, the bottom uses a closed storage system, and the top - open. In the bathroom, it is recommended to avoid placing full furniture (except for the cabinet under the sink). To lay out towels and household items, vertical boxes with shelves for storage are hung on the walls.
To use understated furniture to look natural, use a Japanese or oriental style in the decoration of the room.
Architectural techniques
You can change the perception of narrow ceilings not only with decoration, furniture or decorations. When planning the premises, a number of simple architectural tricks are used to help stretch the rooms along the vertical axis. These include:
Narrow vertical niches. They are used to place elongated vases or other decor that fits into such frames. Niches are placed in pairs, because one by one they look too lonely on the walls. Perform drywall construction.
Increase the height of the door (to neighboring rooms or to the balcony) or window openings.
Installation of columns or pilasters, that is, those elements that vertically pierce the space from floor to ceiling.
If there is a fireplace in the living room, then the ledge above it is emitted with the help of color (darker than the ceiling).
Placement of decorative elements and accessories
Decor can adjust the interior picture. In this case, decorations will help maintain the effect of lengthening the room. Curtains should be selected either plain from light fabrics, or slightly denser with a vertical pattern (rhombuses, ovals, stripes).You can specially choose textiles for the ornament on the walls. Small picturesque decor (photos, paintings, posters) are arranged vertically. It is desirable that such jewelry have a pair with a plot related to them in meaning. The cornice must be installed directly below the border between the ceiling and the wall. You can not hang the structure even with a slight indentation from this line, since it horizontally splits the space, which should not be allowed. Curtains should fall from the ceiling to the floor. Short curtains are not recommended, as in country-style kitchens. Do not decorate textiles with garters. Curtains should simply move to the sides, emphasizing the ideal geometry of the window. Even the small decor, which is placed on the shelves and free countertops, should be slightly elongated along the vertical axis.
Conclusion
Low ceilings are not a sentence. They can be corrected with the help of simple tricks. As a pleasant consolation, it’s enough to imagine what heating bills come to the owners of tall (and therefore overall) apartments and how difficult it is to replace a light bulb in a room that looks more like a ballroom.
According to the old standards that were in force until 2010, the ceiling height should be at least 2.5 meters. This value is considered the most familiar and comfortable for a person. After making changes to SNiP, the norms for ceiling heights were lowered, allowing builders to choose it themselves. The apartments still adhere to certain values relative to different rooms. For residential premises and kitchens, the norm remains the same at 2.5 m, but for corridors, hallways, halls, the figure is already slightly lower - 2.1 m. These rules are not respected in some communal apartments, hostels and old buildings (pre-Soviet buildings times). In private homes, as they say, the master is the master, and the owners have the right to choose the optimal height for themselves. Although in small rooms, high ceilings under 3 meters will look out of place, creating the effect of a "well".In large, spacious rooms, on the contrary, an overhanging top will land the living room or bedroom to a “cave” state. The design of low ceilings includes the selection of colors, lighting and proper decoration. Consider a number of tricks and techniques that will help fix construction flaws and make the room cozy, and its interior balanced.
Content
What to exclude in a room with a low ceiling
The geometry of the room should be clearly verified. Ceilings overhanging too low negatively affect a person’s psychological comfort. For those who suffer from claustrophobia, this can even trigger an attack. If the room is low, it seems that the ceiling plate will now collapse and crush everyone who is under it. In order not to aggravate the situation and not visually land the ceilings even more, some interior elements should be avoided. You can not decorate a room with the following details:
In the latter case, the example is twofold. Beams of light brown color against the background of a whitewashed ceiling can make it higher, but only if the floors themselves are very thin and neat. By the way, this solution is suitable for fachwerk or chalet.
Techniques for visually increasing the ceiling
Low ceilings can be fought in many ways. The following tricks will help correct the situation:
In addition to the play of color, they use original combinations of decorative light sources, but we'll talk about this a little later. An unusual solution will be the use of reception with height differences. We will not hide, the option is experimental in nature and involves risks to make everything worse. The podium is installed in the room. It would seem that such a design would certainly take extra centimeters, which are already in short supply. In part, the way it is. The part of the room in which the podium is mounted will really turn into a more mundane, but the other zone will seem higher, thanks to a comparative example in the neighborhood.
The role of mirrors in increasing height and space
Mirrors make the room bigger: wider and higher. The essence of design tricks is the appearance of perspective, duplication of the situation in a reflective surface. Of course, you need to carefully decorate the room with mirrors so that you do not accidentally create a ballet studio instead of a bedroom. Reflective surfaces, as a rule, are placed on one wall, which serves as an accent. Mirrors should be arranged in groups or sections that are separated by vertical stripes (horizontal have the opposite effect). In some cases, using built-in furniture (wardrobes), the facades of which are decorated with reflective surfaces. For the same purposes, you can use plastic, varnish and lacobel (a type of glass).
Proper lighting
As mentioned above, any volumetric decorations on the ceiling will have to be abandoned. Chandeliers are also on this list. If the ceiling is decorated with a plasterboard structure, then its projections are equipped with spotlights. Such lighting is classified as decorative, so you still have to take care of the main light source. The central chandelier is replaced by a group of lamps that are placed above each of the functional areas of the room. Plafonds of decorative floor lamps and sconces should not direct the light down, as in classical interiors, but up.
What furniture to choose for a room with low ceilings
Each room should be decorated with low furniture so that the free space between it and the ceiling is kept within the usual. For a bedroom, a low (possibly hinged) bed is suitable, a boudoir table of the same height with an elongated mirror. Countertops of bedside tables traditionally go flush with the bed, so here they choose furniture details from the usual assortment.Additionally, a low ottoman or bench is placed near the bed. Use a sliding wardrobe with reflective surfaces of facades. The living room is decorated with a wide, flat sofa, armchairs and a low coffee table. Instead of a massive shelf, use a group of shelves.
For the kitchen, they get an original set: the lower part has a dark shade, and the upper is painted in a lighter tone. In other embodiments, the bottom uses a closed storage system, and the top - open. In the bathroom, it is recommended to avoid placing full furniture (except for the cabinet under the sink). To lay out towels and household items, vertical boxes with shelves for storage are hung on the walls.
Architectural techniques
You can change the perception of narrow ceilings not only with decoration, furniture or decorations. When planning the premises, a number of simple architectural tricks are used to help stretch the rooms along the vertical axis. These include:
If there is a fireplace in the living room, then the ledge above it is emitted with the help of color (darker than the ceiling).
Placement of decorative elements and accessories
Decor can adjust the interior picture. In this case, decorations will help maintain the effect of lengthening the room. Curtains should be selected either plain from light fabrics, or slightly denser with a vertical pattern (rhombuses, ovals, stripes).You can specially choose textiles for the ornament on the walls. Small picturesque decor (photos, paintings, posters) are arranged vertically. It is desirable that such jewelry have a pair with a plot related to them in meaning. The cornice must be installed directly below the border between the ceiling and the wall. You can not hang the structure even with a slight indentation from this line, since it horizontally splits the space, which should not be allowed. Curtains should fall from the ceiling to the floor. Short curtains are not recommended, as in country-style kitchens. Do not decorate textiles with garters. Curtains should simply move to the sides, emphasizing the ideal geometry of the window. Even the small decor, which is placed on the shelves and free countertops, should be slightly elongated along the vertical axis.
Conclusion
Low ceilings are not a sentence. They can be corrected with the help of simple tricks. As a pleasant consolation, it’s enough to imagine what heating bills come to the owners of tall (and therefore overall) apartments and how difficult it is to replace a light bulb in a room that looks more like a ballroom.