Take a moment and peer overhead. That vast expanse of white ceiling greeting your gaze? It represents the color of conformity, a surrender to the default—in other words, one big yawn. While we consider walls to be fair game to coat in color, ceilings are generally left an untouched canvas—but this mentality neglects their vast potential.

It’s time to paint your ceiling.

If you’re blessed with high ceilings—and what a blessing that is—don’t be scared to boldly paint them a darker shade. The height will absorb the color and introduce a focal point; a hue overhead also produces an invitingly intimate environment by bringing gravitas in a way that no amorphous expanse of white can ever deliver. On the other end, while it may seem counterintuitive, painting a small room a darker color—including the ceiling—blurs boundaries, producing a sense of the infinite where square footage and ceiling height are, in reality, at a minimum.

Hallways are an ideal starter “room” for painted ceilings. Paint the back wall and the ceiling the same color while leaving the side walls white, and you’ll “widen” the space; paint the side walls and ceiling while leaving the back wall, and you’ll emphasize the length of a hallway.

For those who insist on playing it safe, begin by adding a small percentage of your wall color to white paint, then splash it across the ceiling. You’ll introduce a subtle, complementary interplay of light and dark that will become more pronounced during certain times of the day without offending any sensibilities.

A word to the wise: Move everything out before painting, and cover anything you can’t remove carefully. Purchase a self-feeding paint roller, use a sturdy ladder, only wear your rattiest clothes you wouldn’t hesitate to discard, and be prepared to be left speckled and splotched like human terrazzo.

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