IMO, trends are fads that pass before the paint dries and most folks find themselves regretting and redecorating in no time. I think the better approach is to examine the room and decide what works best for the room.

If you want to play with the one color wall & ceiling, I would suggest the monochromatic scheme, and use a lighter tone of yellow to keep the ceiling height.
Generally speaking, monochromatic schemes (single color, various shades; tone on tone) give uninterrupted flow to small spaces. In theory, the eye scanning a small room done in a monochromatic scheme will not stop or pause; the eyes move uninterrupted through the space. Monochromatic is not the same as using a single color; the various tones add depth and range. By contrast, a single color will simply flatten out a room (one reason the same single color wall/ceiling paint fad is disliked by so many).

Warm colors (yellow, red, orange, green) make a room appear smaller. Cabinets on/against the wall will make the room feel even cozier. A warm color on the ceiling will make it appear lower. So a lighter yellow on the ceiling will keep it's height.

Will that make it feel bigger, smaller, cave like.. .or what?

Maybe it will, maybe it won't. One person's cozy space is another's claustrophobic cave. The question would be, besides seeing that method of treating the ceiling on TV, have you seen it some place in real life and what was your impression of color on the ceiling. Your response and interpretation of what a particular hue *does* to a room and a ceiling would most likely be different than my personal interpretation of same.

If you saw it on TV and it caught your attention, maybe it's something you should try. I hate the phrase it's just paint because I fully understand that it is most certainly not just paint. But, the room is 10x10 and if you were game, I'd say experiment. Do it and see what you think. If it doesn't work for you, if it doesn't meet your expectations, fit with your tolerances, then paint it back to white. You'll end up with another wrinkle to the part of your brain that deals in color. Adding on to color experiences can be a good thing especially when it's time to do another room.

Thank you very much for your advice, both of ya. I think what I'll do is paint the ceiling a very light yellow. I guess I just want to try something out of the norm, the while ceiling. I bought some brightly colored fabic to make a new valance out of. It'll be my first sewing project in my new sewing/project room! I have a brand new sewing machine still in the box that hubby bought me for Christmas. As I am sure you can tell - I am MORE than ready for this room to be ready!

"I hate the phrase it's just paint because I fully understand that it is most certainly not just paint."

Funcolors: Thank you very muchÂyou are so correct, it is not just paint, it is COLOR and color more than any other element in our environment evoke emotionsÂstrong, powerful emotions.

This is the power of color: when the painters were done painting the interior of last home, the foreman kept commenting on the "richness" and "beauty" of the colors, in particular on the blue I used in two rooms. He couldnÂt get over how "pure" the color stayed, "A blue that makes no shadows on itself in the corners." How does "paint" evoke just emotions in a man? Heck no, it ainÂt just paint.

Every night IÂd climb in bed and look around my Misty Green bedroom and think: "such a tranquil and beautiful bedroom." IÂd think, this is the perfect bedroom, it looks and feels like "home" is suppose to "feel". Heck no, it ainÂt just paint.

Some weeks after painting was completed and we finally moved in, a woman rang my doorbell. I recognized her as a neighbor, although we never formally meet or spoke. She introduced herself, apologized for being so forward, and said she had wanting to paint for some time but was unsure about color. She said over the past few weeks she could not help but notice each night when I turned the lights on in my home, how beautiful the colors looked through the windowsÂwould I mind sharing the names of the colors I used? Heck no, it ainÂt just paint.

Each time someone came into my home or just to my front door--male or female--they always commented on the "beautiful" and "rich" colors of my home. Heck no, it ainÂt just paint.

Eight months ago we put the house on the market, it sold in three days. Two other homes were for sale on our blockÂthey languished on the market. During the home inspection, the buyer walked from room to room, touching all the walls, remarking on the "beautiful" colors. She said, "Your taste in colors are beautiful, and they are just like mine." Heck no, it ainÂt just paint.

The right finishes + the right house + the right colors + the right lighting = incredible life affirming emotions.

It was color and lighting perfectionÂand I fear IÂll never get it that perfect again. It took me several months and 18 color tests to make the color selections for that house. Already done 14 color tests for the new house and not one color has worked.

Ahhh, Calgal. I'm sending all the best color vibes to you that I can. That's tough having to leave behind the perfect color plan behind. Don't give up, you have a lot in your bag of tricks to refer to, have confidence in what you've come to know to be true about color.

The average consumer of color spends between $100 and $250 in samples, so you are in good company.

If this was a larger room with a very very high ceiling, i would go for it. but since it is small, definitely keep the ceiling white or atleast a neutral colorway.

Calgal59. Your post intrigued me as we are in the planning stages of our retirement home. Would you be so kind as to share the colors you used in your home that were so admired and also the preferred lighting choices for the colors? I would really appreciate it. I love color and usually spend a little time each day fanning through the color deck and mixing and matching color ideas. It's a lot of fun. Thanks!

I don't think painting ceilings are "trendy", I think it's a matter of the room size that you are working with. The larger the room, the less likely I'd be to paint it the same color as the walls.

I have to say the opposite of Skooshka. The smaller the room, you should paint the ceiling the same.

I have a tiny bathroom with just enough room for toilet, sink and bathtub. I have white tile with black accents/border (original tile) about 1/2 - 3/4 up the walls. The walls are painted black including the ceiling; I add color with my accents. Painting the ceiling and walls the same color in a small room draws your eyes UP making it appear larger.

You COULD do this in a larger room as well, but it would probably look appropriate only if you installed crown moulding to give definition between the wall and the ceiling, but I don't think larger rooms need the ceiling painted the same color. A coordinating color would work, but I'd go with the lighter color on the ceiling as you had mentioned earlier.

What I wouldn't do is paint different colors on different walls in the same room.

In your case, if you painted the ceiling a yellow from the same color palette, that would look fine.

I would make sure the ceiling paint is flat or eggshell. You don't want a shiny ceiling, especially if there are any flaws - they will stand out like a sore thumb. On the walls I usually go with Eggshell or satin.

Good luck!

skooshka's and kim's perceived results are exactly what I'm talking about. Neither one is right.

However, neither one is wrong. :-D

It's entirely, completely, and totally about individual perceptions and tolerances. I paint ceilings in large volume rooms the same color as the walls - or darker - as a regular practice. Sometimes there's crown, sometimes not. Doesn't matter as the effect is the same. If a different ceiling color:wall color is involved, then the line just has to be wickedly crisp and straight. What happens is color brings that ceiling down into what's perceived by many as a more human proportion of space. It's a common strategy to help control all the high ceilinged spaces that have been popular in the last decade or so. They look really impressive and gorgeous, but for a lot of people they don't *feel* good. Looks great when you buy the house, but it's way different when you have to live with it. Color on the ceiling can correct that, change the perception, crown or no crown -- but it's definitely an approach that's custom and not one-size fits all.

I envy those of you who pick the right colors of paint. It sounds like it's a transcendent experience and it's no longer "just paint."

Alas, I don't have your confidence. I have a zillion small jars and quarts and have gone from wanting to be semi-bold to wondering if I'm just an off-white person at heart. The longer I wait for my painter to start in May, the more I second-guess myself. Too many choices are driving me crazy, not to mention 25% 50% 75% of all those choices. :)

For me, I have to keep reminding myself, it's just paint. It's not a full sleeve tattoo or knocking out a wall in my house. It's paint and I suppose I can survive a less than optimum choice of colors. I won't like it, I'll beat myself up a bit over it, but I will survive.

And with any luck, I'll love it and it will become something more than just paint.

linelle, I talk to a lot of people about color. Sometimes I think we make it harder then it has to be. (Easy for me to say sitting here in my pink slippers, I know :~D)

If you can map out what you want, put words to how you want your room(s) to look and feel, then all you have to do is translate those *wants*, those expectations into paint colors.

That's essentailly what a color consultant does. Color speaks and it's a matter of aligning expectations, architecture, inherent light, and design style/tastes with specific paint colors and nuances - tints, tones, shades, hues.

When someone is struggling, struggling, struggling, in choosing a paint color, usually that's an indication that there's some *part* out of alignment. Balance is a good thing to reach for. Don't get too wrapped around, hyper-focused on any one *part* of the process.

The right paint color in your environment can absolutely deliver a transcendent experience. Unfortunately, I think few people truly know what that means, few have experienced color in their environment that is in alignment with their own unique expectations and tolerances. The typical processes of choosing wall colors lead in directions that don't really mean anything. i.e. Inspiration pieces, pulling a color, ya know all those decorating-type color memes we've all grown up with.

From my perspective, the choice is to *decorate* with color or customize environments and create unique atmospheres with color. There's a difference.

Decorating with color isn't necessarily easier than customizing and creating - designing - with color. It's just that's what most folks think is easier because it's all they know or have been shown.

Personally, I think defining expectations and identifying tolerances is a faster, more direct, and almost guaranteed path to that transcendent experience. Because... the primary focus is humans and architecture not so much focus on the stuff. It's definitely a *big-picture* way to think about color in our environments.

The stuff from the room that most people rely on for color inspiration is not what *experiences* color, yet it is the inspiration pieces, the rugs, and whatnot that often drive the color palette -- sometimes for an entire house.

When we talk about color in terms of creating a transcendent experience, then the better known color memes seem irrelevant and kinda silly -- in a word, disconnected.

Wow, funcolors, I think you're speaking some truth here, even if I still wonder about color.

I don't have inspiration pieces from which I'd key color. Don't get me wrong, I like color...as long as I can pick it up, move it around, put it away if I'm sick of it.

What I want is really soothing neutrals, more on the warm side. I love light. My living room isn't dark, but it doesn't get as much light as I'd like. I want light and warmth without being really aware of my walls at all.

I have a small house (just under 1300 sq.ft.) and the living area flows together, so I want a pulled together, peaceful space. I'm not after excitement, drama or a loud statement.

Thanks for your insight.

I would say that if the ceiling height is 9 feet or below, you should absolutely paint the ceiling the same color, or maybe a 25-50% concentration of the original paint.

I really don't like the look of the obvious yellow (or blue or green) walls, and then a plain white ceiling. It looks unfinished. It almost looks like you ran out of money or something like that. The funny thing is, people will pay money for white ceiling paint, so why not just put the $ toward a nice ceiling color?

uluvbs, what if the ceiling is 9 feet or above? My bedroom and living room go from 9 to almost 13 feet. The thought of having a green ceiling doesn't thrill me.

One other thing...if I decide to change my wall color for any reason, I'll also have to repaint the ceiling. That in itself gives me severe pause.

What I want is really soothing neutrals, more on the warm side. I love light. My living room isn't dark, but it doesn't get as much light as I'd like. I want light and warmth without being really aware of my walls at all.

I have a small house (just under 1300 sq.ft.) and the living area flows together, so I want a pulled together, peaceful space. I'm not after excitement, drama or a loud statement.

One other thing...if I decide to change my wall color for any reason, I'll also have to repaint the ceiling. That in itself gives me severe pause.

That, my color friend, is your color ThinkMap. Three little paragraphs. From those words multiple color solutions are possible. It really can be that simple.

For grins, you might want to post on the Decorating Forum. Post asking people for their ideas; what specific paint colors do they think will fit with what you are wanting from wall color.

uluvbs perception that white ceilings look unfinished is a valid consideration -- for uluvbs. The practicality of a white ceiling working thru many wall color changes is also a valid consideration -- for linelle. A ceiling is an important part of the box that makes a room. It's a large horizontal plane above our heads. Just by its orientation, not necessarily size, it's in a position to majorly influence how a room can feel and function.

It's important to keep repeating that there are no one-size-fits-all answers when it comes to how to treat ceilings.

I agree that paint and the different painting techniques out there, are very individual and personal choices.
I have both white ceilings and toned down wall color ceilings in my home.
I would sugjest painting part of the wall, against the ceiling, before the ceiling, I know, wrong order, but it would give you an idea of what it would look like with a white ceiling, even if it is only the primer. If you dont like the contrast, you can dilute a little of the main color with white and try a small patch, then try the wall color on another patch. Don't get carried away, but make the patches big enough to seriously get the impression of the different effects.
I love color, and some of the choices I made are not for everyone, the bottom line is, I live here, guests don't.
Find a color that intriques you, or inspires you, or speaks to you, or one from a color choice thing on-line that you like.
And it is "only paint" if the love affair turns out to be only an infatuation. For a reasonably small amount of money, it can be changed.

We re-painted the LR, DR, and BR two years ago. Used software such as Glidden Color at home to decide on the colors. You take a photo of your room and then paste in the color you think you want. We went through a lot of colors before making our decisions.

Our ceilings are a lighter shade of the color on the walls. About four steps lighter.

I wanted a blue-green in the BR, like the ocean where it is shallow. We brought the closest color we could find and painted a 3 by 3 foot sample board. I did not like the color - it was too green. So we purchased blue tint. This stuff is very strong. Just a few drops make a difference is what we were told.

My patient DH put in a few drops, stirred the paint, and then I painted the sample boards. We did this for four nights. Finally, I got the color I wanted. We LOVE our BR. I'm not saying this is the color for you, I'm saying keep at it until you get a color that you LOVE. The wait is worth it.

(Sorry, Boxie - I know this goes beyond your question. This thread seems to have been hijacked. I'm assuming you have painted your ceiling by now and are happily sewing away!)

imo...I prefer the ceiling and walls to be the same color. however if you use a deep tone or dark paint...I would prefer the ceilings to be a lighter shade white flat ceilings really date a house to me. there is so much breakup in flow for the eye that the room looks chopped up. if you have a vaulted or recessed ceiling divided from the walls by crown molding two colors looks fine and not too choppy.