Painted ceiling ideas: How to match your flooring

Farewell, white ceilings - your reign has ended. For too long we’ve been on decorating autopilot, always painting ceilings and woodwork white without ever questioning if we even like it or if it even works. Because the eye is drawn to anything white in a room, white ceilings can pull a room down, making it feel much smaller than it is. On the other hand, the colour drenching trend has seen designers embracing one floor to ceiling colour, but that might be a bit too intense for some.

The painted ceiling trend is a great way to bring in more colour, and the colour and shade combination you choose can affect the way the space feels. In addition to the four walls and the ceiling, you’ll also need to consider the colour of the floor. Do you match or contrast the floor with your ceiling? We’ll look at how you can bring this trend into your home, which colour combinations work best, and the rooms to use them in.

Find out more about:

Coloured ceiling trend
Floor and ceiling colour combinations
Coloured ceiling ideas by room

Coloured ceiling trend

Although a painted ceiling might seem like a modern trend, it’s been around since the Victorian times. Many of the ceilings featured plasterwork, ceiling roses, and coving that were often painted in a different colour or gilded to make them stand out. Today’s coloured ceiling trend is much less ornate, and involves painting your ceiling to match the walls, the woodwork, or both (which is basically colour drenching).

Same colour ceiling & walls: Use same colour across both for a seamless look, which can make small spaces feel larger
Same colour ceiling & woodwork: This punctuates the room and pulls out the details, particularly if you use a darker colour or a contrasting colour to the walls

Floor and ceiling colour combinations

The colour of the ceiling can change the feeling of a room in the same way a floor can. Unless you’re going for carpet, you’re probably not going to colour match your ceiling to your floor. Instead, we need to think about shades and tones from top to bottom.

Light floor, dark ceiling

For a touch of drama, paint the ceiling dark. Paired with a lighter floor and wall colour, it provides balance, and makes the room feel much cosier without overpowering the space. Dark walls and ceiling plus a lighter wooden floor in an elegant herringbone design bring a sense of luxury.

Light floor, light ceiling

For something fresh and modern, mixing a light floor with a light ceiling will raise the height of the ceilings and add an airy, open feel to the room. Rather than going for pure white, which can feel a little cold, choose a warmer toned cream or off-white floor.

Dark floor, light ceiling

This combination is best for rooms with low ceilings. The dark flooring adds depth while the lighter coloured ceiling opens up the space to make it feel taller and bigger. Paired with white walls, this gives the impression of a wider or longer room.

Dark floor, dark ceiling

Going dark on both the ceiling and the floor is best for rooms with high vaulted ceilings. It pulls the ceiling down for a comforting, enveloped feel, and when you introduce dark walls to the mix, you create a cocoon of cosiness.

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Coloured ceiling ideas by room

There are lots of factors involved in choosing the right floor and ceiling colour combination. For example, the function and size of the room, the architectural style of your home, and the colour you chose will all play a part in deciding which of these painted ceiling ideas work best. Here are just a few of our coloured ceiling ideas for each room, along with the perfect flooring to match.

Living room

How you live in your living room will help you to narrow down a ceiling colour. A vintage blue living room is always a relaxing space, and it feels natural to continue this calming colour onto the ceiling. Any decorative plasterwork can be left white to highlight the detail. When picking the complementary flooring, a natural laminate or a light-coloured carpet would look beautiful.

Bedroom

Bedrooms are usually painted neutral with light furnishings to bring a sense of calm, or they’re a dark and cosy space designed to make you feel sleepy - a bit like a cave for hibernation! An earthy mid-toned green on the bedroom ceiling won’t feel too dark and will help achieve that feeling of restfulness. We always like to go for maximum cosiness in the bedroom, so a cream or beige saxony carpet would finish off this look.

Bathroom

Bathrooms are often the smallest room in the house so go for a dark ceiling balanced by a dark floor to give the impression of a taller, grander space. Monochrome is always on-trend for bathrooms, which is why a black painted ceiling works really well with a stone-effect vinyl.

Dining Room

Dining rooms are generally quite extravagant rooms with high ceilings and focal lighting. Dark flooring looks good in dining rooms, and if you want to create an intimate dinner party ambience, pair dark wooden engineered wooden floor with a dark painted ceiling.

Hallway

In short and narrow hallways, a dark floor with white walls and a white ceiling can make the space seem longer. But an entrance hall is a place you can also have a bit of fun, so a pop of bold colour on the ceiling, balanced by light wood-effect luxury vinyl flooring, ensures that the statement ceiling gets all the attention.

If you’re bored of white ceilings, why not give a coloured painted ceiling a try? Grab your paint swatches and order some flooring samples to work out the ideal floor to ceiling colour scheme for your space. We have lots of other interiors styling tips over on the Ideas Hub, from how to add an unexpected pop of red to how to get the country cottage look.

Post author

Johanna Constantinou Interior Trends & Lifestyle Expert

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Published: 24-02-2025