The Fifth Wall - Gold and Silver Ceilings

Many homeowners paint their ceilings "Decorator's White." They don't realize that the ceiling is a room's "fifth wall"  - an extra canvas they can use to add drama to a space. Metal-leaf ceilings transform entryways, powder rooms, master baths, and libraries. According to decorative painter Willem Racke, who is based in San Francisco, "Ceilings are a good way to make a room more cohesive."  He notes in the Wall Street Journal ("From Chinoiserie to Faux Tortoise Shell" by Sarah Tilton, January 10, 2013) that "metal-leaf ceilings are always popular . . . though the trend has moved from gold to silver." I think silver and gold are equally beautiful, and I offer examples of both below. Which do you prefer?


 "At the end of the hall, a trumeau reflects a row of crystal chandeliers. Antique Silver Leaf ceiling treatment. Decorative painting on eglomise: Simes Studios Inc."
Lake Forest, Illinois home of Ditomassos family.
Interior designers: Kara Mann and Kristin Nelson, Kara Mann Design.
Photography by Werner Straube.
Text by Krissa Rossbund.
"Glamour and Sophistication" produced by Hilary Rose.

"The Ditomassos, who frequently entertain, wanted the butler's pantry to equal the glamour of the rest of the home. Vaulted ceilings shine with a silver leaf finish [by DesignRed Decorative Painting], and white built-in cabinets house the homeowners' collection of porcelain serving pieces."
Lake Forest, Illinois home of Ditomassos family.
Interior designers: Kara Mann and Kristin Nelson, Kara Mann Design.
Photography by Werner Straube.
Text by Krissa Rossbund.
"Glamour and Sophistication" produced by Hilary Rose.

"Red, white, and blue gets a bohemian twist in the library with lacquered walls, a silver ceiling, and ethnic textiles."
A 1960s Washington, D.C. town house.
Interior design by Hillary Thomas and Jeff Lincoln.
Photography by Eric Piasecki.
House Beautiful (May 2012). 

"Hollywood glam rules in the dining room with a gold-leaf ceiling and chairs designed by Billy Haimes covered in Clarence House coral velvet." Ceiling wallpaper: "Gold Leaf" by Zuber Inc.
Hollywood Regency-style house.
Design by Timothy Corrigan, Timothy Corrigan Inc.
Photography by Mark Edward Harris and Michael McCreary.
Text by Amy Elbert.
"Hollywood Before and After" produced by Laura Hull.

 "Hollywood glam rules in the dining room with a gold-leaf ceiling and chairs designed by Billy Haimes covered in Clarence House coral velvet." Ceiling wallpaper: "Gold Leaf" by Zuber Inc.
Hollywood Regency-style house.
Design by Timothy Corrigan, Timothy Corrigan Inc.
Photography by Mark Edward Harris and Michael McCreary.
Text by Amy Elbert.
"Hollywood Before and After" produced by Laura Hull.

"[Mary] McDonald envisioned a clubby space with gray walls, graphite wool drapes, crisp while molding, and a handsome vintage Jansen table. Still, she says, 'I've got an 18th-century Francophile fetish.' Ceiling, meet Versailles: Gold wallpaper adds major opulence. Mementos in a single shade - emerald - introduce sophisticated punch." 
Mary McDonald's Hollywood guest house.
Interior design by Mary McDonald.
"The Bold and the Beautiful"
Domino (Fall - Winter 2012).

"The dining table, inspired by Jean-Michel Frank, is surrounded by Art Deco chairs; the chandeliers are of Venetian glass, the ceiling is sheathed in a de Gournay wall covering ["Gilded"]."
Mercer Island, Washington home of Lara and Jeff Sanderson.
Interior design by Kelly Wearstler.
Photography by Mikkel Vang.
Text by Celia Barbour.
"Shadow Play" produced by Anita Sarsidi.
Elle Decor (September 2012).

"The living room ceiling is papered in 'Metallic Leaf' by Phillip Jeffries."
Family home in Scarsdale, New York.
Interior design by Pat Healing, HB Home.
Photography by Maura McEvoy.
House Beautiful (October 2011). 

 "The living room ceiling is papered in 'Metallic Leaf' by Phillip Jeffries."
Family home in Scarsdale, New York.
Interior design by Pat Healing, HB Home.
Photography by Maura McEvoy.
House Beautiful (October 2011). 

"To make the Tony Duquette chandelier feel more at home, [Ruthie] Sommers had decorative painter Peter Bolton create an elaborate tree design in gold leaf on the dining room ceiling. Jacaranda and plum trees inspired the vibrant pink Penny Morrison fabric on the front of the chairs and the Claremont floral on the back."
Los Angeles, California home of Ruthie Sommers.
Interior design by Ruthie Sommers.
Interview by David A. Keeps. 
"The Sweet Life" produced by Doretta Sperduto.
House Beautiful (March 2011).

"Inspired by the sparkly powder room at Bemelmans Bar in Manhattan's Carlyle hotel, the room is sheathed in gold-patterned chinoiserie wallpaper and floored in penny tiles."
These penny tiles really do look like pennies.
Ceiling: Custom, hand-applied gold leaf by Vonda Jessup.
Floor tiles: Gold penny tile by Arizona Tile.
Scottsdale, Arizona home of Berkley Vallone.
Interior design by Berkley Vallone, Vallone Design.

"The walls and floor of the master bath are covered in Bisazza tiles, the French mirror is 1950s, and the custom sink was handmade by Sicilian craftsmen; the fittings are by Hansgrohe, and the ceiling is covered in gold leaf." Note the "random gold tiles sprinkled in to pick up the gold leaf on the ceiling."
Mehall Griffey and Jerry Maggi's apartment in Catania, on the island of Siciliy.
Photography by Gianni Franchellucci.
Text by Craig Seligman.
"A Sojourn in Sicily" produced by Anita Sarsidi.
 Elle Decor (December 2012).

"Shining over the master bath, the ceiling is covered in torn pieces of wallpaper flecked with silver leaf."
Custom wall covering: "Ripped Silver Paper" by Walter Knabe Studio. 
Tub and faucet: Kohler.
Interior design by Suzanne Kasler.
Architectural design by William T. Baker.
Photography by Tria Giovan.
Written by Sarah Egge.
"Young at Heart" produced by Betsy Harris.

"The dining room features a reclaimed-elm pedestal table from Mecox and a silver-leafed ceiling; the mirrored sideboard and silver candlesticks are from John Rosselli Antiques." 
Architect: Joel Barkley.
Decorator: Alexa Hampton.
Photography by Durston Saylor.
Text by Jesse Kornbluth.

Silver-leaf paper on the living room ceiling of Daphne Guinness's New York City apartment.
Design by architect Daniel Romualdez.
Photography by Thomas Loof.
Styled by Carolina Irving.
"In Her Fashion" written and produced  by James Reginato. 
Architectural Digest (March 2011).

"Moroccan lanterns hang from the ceiling, which was papered and lacquered in silver. Clarence House leopard and brown fabrics."
Greenwich Village apartment.
Interior design by Thomas Britt, ASID.
Architectural design by Peter Napolitano.
Photo credit: Scott Frances.
Text by Penelope Rowlands.
Architectural Digest (February 2007).

"A silver papered ceiling enhances the airiness" of the kitchen.
Greenwich Village apartment.
Interior design by Thomas Britt, ASID.
Architectural design by Peter Napolitano.
Photo credit: Scott Frances.
Text by Penelope Rowlands.
Architectural Digest (February 2007). 

" 'The space itself was inspirational,' designer Charles Allem says of a penthouse he remade for a Manhattan couple. Silver leaf adds drama to the living room's barrel-vaulted ceiling. [The silver leaf was "done by hand on a scaffolding . . . [and] took . . . three months."] Velvet draperies, hand-printed in Italy, 'never stop cascading,' he says, from the beveled-mirror rods he designed. Italian etchings and Murano glass lamp, left, Lorin Marsh. Stark carpet."
Interior design by Charles Allem, ASID.
Photography by Paul Warchol.
Text by Nancy Collins.
Architectural Digest (April 2007).


"Willem Racke and Leigh Edwards did not deviate far from the home's Mediterranean roots in this entrance hall. 'We wanted it to encourage guests to see more of the house,' Racke explains. The original woodwork and marble-tiled floor drove color direction. Gold highlights were added to the ceiling, finished to look like rich leather."
Interior design by Willem Racke and Leigh Edwards, Willem Racke Studio.
Entrance Hall, Traditional Home's 2011 San Francisco Decorator Showhouse.
Photography by Philip Harvey.
Written by Clara Haneberg.
"2011 San Francisco Decorator Showhouse" produced by Heather Lobdell.
Traditional Home.


A photo of the black-and-white striped "circus tent" bathroom that Willem Racke created for interior designer Stephen Shubel's San Francisco studio appears in my blog post, "Black and White," dated August 28, 2012.

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