Should you paint above the picture rail?
More specifically, should you paint the wall colour above the picture rail? Or, bring the ceiling colour down to the picture rail? It’s a long-debated question in the small world of interiors. It’s that bit of wall that sits between the picture rail and the cornicing (or ceiling). Known to some as the frieze. Do you treat it as part of the wall, or treat it as part of the ceiling? Surely it’s a simple enough question that has a ‘right’ answer?
Nope. The annoyingly ambiguous answer is, it depends on what effect you want to achieve. There is no definitive right or wrong answer. It was something I had a very clear opinion on until recently when I was painting my daughter’s bedroom. I was always on team ‘take the wall colour above the picture rail’. This is because I am a huge, huge fan of high ceilings and taking the wall colour up accentuates this.
BUT for the first time ever I wasn’t sure it was the right thing to do. So I did what all indecisive, over-analytical people do. I left it white for a bit, then painted the wall colour on the frieze to be sure I didn’t like it, and then painted it white again. FFS. But at least I know now.
So now my view is a bit more balanced. And if you are wondering whether you should paint above the picture rail here are my words of advice.
YES – IF YOU WANT THE CEILINGS TO APPEAR TALLER
Taking the wall colour above the picture rail will instantly make your walls appear taller and your ceiling higher. The colour draws the eye further up the wall elevating them to the max. So if you love your high ceilings and want to accentuate them then absolutely get that wall colour above the picture rail.
YES – IF YOU WANT THE ROOM TO APPEAR CALMER
The other benefit is that the room will feel calmer as the paint colour is wrapping around the room like a blanket. To enhance this even more then paint all your woodwork in to match your walls. The picture rail itself as well as the skirting, architraves, door etc. Having everything all the same blurs the boundaries and means there is no distraction to the eye which gives the whole space an enveloping and cocooning feel.
NO – IF YOU WANT THE ROOM TO FEEL COSY
And what I mean by ‘cosy’ is to make the ceiling feel lower. Sometimes a very high ceiling can create a feeling of anxiety or unrest. Lowering a ceiling may actually be something you want to do, as in the case of my daughter’s bedroom. She has quite a short wardrobe and a low bed (because she’s only two and a half!). When I painted the wall colour above the picture rail yes the room looked bigger but suddenly her furniture looked ridiculously small and out of proportion. It looked like a borrower was living there. Painting the frieze back to white instantly lowered the ceiling and made her furniture feel like an appropriate size again. And if it’s a small room like a downstairs loo having very high ceilings can make it feel like you’re in a lift shaft. So it’s not always a good thing to have a really high ceiling.
NO- IF YOU WANT THE ROOM TO FEEL TRADITIONAL
Having the frieze in a different colour to the walls will accentuate all the features like the picture rail and the cornicing. So if you are a fan of the period features then don’t take the wall colour, or wallpaper, up past the picture rail.
YES OR NO – IF YOUR INSTINCT IS TELLING YOU
Trust your gut. Mine was telling me that it should stay white in Freya’s room. But I didn’t know why at the time so I slapped the wall colour on anyway and only then it became obvious why it didn’t work. So even if you don’t know why your gut is telling you something, trust it anyway. I would have saved myself hours.
So whilst I’m still a fan of the ‘above the picture rail’ look, I appreciate there are circumstances where you may want to keep it below. Which team are you on?
If you would like any interior design advice in real life rather than just on the blog, check out my services here. I work across Southampton and Hampshire and would love to meet you 🙂
Sarah x
Luv this. I have always had it a shade darker but I will definitely be trying this
There is no rail up just now and this is the first time I’m decorating it and I’m definitely trying it
Thank you! My next question is should I install a picture rail so that I can paint above it? This is in a room with a lower ceiling than I like that I am trying to make look taller.
Hi, if it’s a standard height ceiling there is no need to install a picture rail this will just break up the wall and make it appear shorter. So just take the paint up to the ceiling. Good luck 🙂
Hi my problem Is even more confusing as we have really high ceilings and a picture rail and a dado rail! How do I go about getting this right?
Hi my problem Is even more confusing as we have really high ceilings and a picture rail and a dado rail! How do I go about getting this right?
I would always paint the dado rail and the lower and upper walls the same colour in this scenario. Breaking the walls up into three sections doesn’t do it any favours! Good luck, Sarah x
Which would you recommend in a box room? My sons bedroom.
If the room is taller than it is width or length then only take the paint colour up to the picture rail. Good luck S.
Absolutely right about keeping the room cosy. I have gone for striking Georgian colours on ceiling and down to picture rail on two rooms in my period house and a patterned wallpaper below the rail with accents of the ceiling colour. I’m very happy with the results and the room has not lost the gorgeous period features.
Oh wow, that sounds amazing, love it!
Hi. I love the colour walls you have there – it looks like grey, but with a hint of mushroom. What colour is it?
Hi Caroline, that’s a very good description of it. It’s Skimming Stone by Farrow and Ball.
I love this article! Thanks 🙂 I have a question too. I have high ceilings in a cold darkish north facing room I want to turn into a bright, lovely playroom for my 5yr old and new baby due in June. A friend recommended orange to waist high, white from waist to picture rail and then a pastel pink ceiling climbing from and including the picture rail. I love this idea but am afraid of over-committing with painting the ceiling – due to pregnancy, high ceilings and inexperience. Would this scheme work with orange to waist, white up to picture rail and pink from the picture rail to the top of the wall – leaving the ceiling untouched? I can’t seem to find many examples like this anywhere. Thanks!!! 🙂
Hi Dee, congratulations on the new baby and thanks for getting in touch. When there is a picture rail in a room I wouldn’t advise creating another division at waist height as you will be breaking the height on the wall into three sections which I think would look a bit clumsy. I love the idea of combining orange and pink, perfect for a north facing room. So I would drop the white and take the orange up to the picture rail then go pink above the picture rail and onto the ceiling. That would look beautiful. All you need to do is get the right orange and pink to work together. Oranges can be at the more yellow end of the spectrum or have more red in them for a lovely pinky/orange which would then work really nicely with a gentle pink. If you are nervous about the ceiling you could do a more subtle pink based white, something like Great White by Farrow and Ball. Good luck, sounds like an exciting project 🙂
Great insight. If you paint white above the picture rail, are you using white ceiling paint on the frieze and the ceiling also? thanks!
I have in my rooms but this is because of cost. If money were no object I’d love to use a ‘colour’ on the frieze and ceiling, you don’t have to stick to white. A pale pink would look soft and beautifully or an off-white for a more subtle contrast with your walls would look lovely. But whatever you do use on the ceiling I would use on the frieze too x
Thanks for posting this! It’s been harder than I would’ve thought to find a straightforward answer to the picture railing situation…Am wondering what your advice would be for a room with ten foot ceilings with dark wood trim and picture rail. I like the wood (and am renting so couldnt paint over it if I wanted to) and am planning on wallpapering below the picture rail but I dont know if I should then have the top portion of wall painted same color as the ceiling (white). Or painted a color that coordinates with or matches the wallpaper? The dark wood picture rail and trim seem to break up the wall in an inconvenient way….
Hmmm, that sounds interesting. It’s hard to say without seeing a picture, I can picture the dark picture rail but not sure what the trim must look like? I love that you are wallpapering and with such high ceilings that will look glorious. If it were me I would paint above the picture rail in a coordinating colour you pick out from the wallpaper like you suggest, but I would also take that colour up and over the ceiling. If you have a white ceiling, then a different colour above the picture rail then the dark wood rail and trim and then the wallpaper I think it could look too broken up and distracting. Sounds like an interesting one. Good luck, and you are welcome to email me a pic if you want any further advice!
We are having this dilemma so appreciate your blog a lot.
And I appreciate your singing! Just watched some of your videos on YouTube, magical.
Hi Sarah
Thank you for the article. I’m thinking about painting above the picture rail. The only articles I’ve found on the subject have a beautiful cornice to paint to at the top of the wall in addition to the rail. My ceilings don’t unfortunately. Any thoughts on this or seen it work well?
Hi Claire, I would say the same principles apply whether or not you have beautiful cornicing. I’ve also got some rooms without any cornicing at all. So if you want to take the wall colour above the picture rail up to where it meets the ceiling then go for it!
Hi Sarah. We have a 1920s house we’re renovating. High ceiling, picture rail and painted walls and ceiling Doors are stained rimu. Architraves and skirting will be painted. Would you paint or stain the picture rail? And if painted wd you do the same paint as the archs and skirting or same as wall or ceiling.
Hi Lea, I would paint the picture rails, same colour as the walls if you want them to appear taller or same colour as arches/skirting if you want to highlight them as a feature. Good luck!
This is really helpful. Thank you. We have lived in our house for 10 years and have always painted white above the frieze but now decorating a large room for a teenager and want a more modern look. If I go right up to the ceiling, do I have to get a separate paint for wood for the picture rail?
Hi Emily, you don’t have to, because the picture rail doesn’t get any wear or tear like skirting boards and architraves do, you can just go over it with the same emulsion you are using on the walls. If you want to use a different paint for a bit of contrast in the finish you could use an eggshell in the same colour. Hope that helps, Sarah x
Hi Sarah, I know this is an old post but hoping I will still get a reply! I have quite a long narrow living room with windows at both ends, I just paint it white as I’m not so sure what else to do with it, my sofas don’t even look right in anyway whatsoever, so I would appreciate your insight please x
Hi Margaret, sounds like an interesting space! I’d be very happy to help you. You can check out my Design Surgery service here where we can discuss your project and I can offer my professional advice 😊 https://paperroomcreative.co.uk/product/design-surgery-interior-design-consultation/
Picked out a tropical print wallpaper for a large guest bedroom (1920’s home). Only using it on 1 wall behind the bed. Do I wallpaper above the picture rail to the ceiling? Will the wallpaper pattern look broken up with white picture rail running through it? Rest of the walls white. Background of paper is white.
Hi Julie, I would take the wallpaper just up to the picture rail. It would be nice to pick a colour from the wallpaper design to paint above the picture rail and over the ceiling to really finish it off. Best of luck with your project x
So glad to come across this post. Have been going cuckoo about the same issue in my Victorian Reno. All rooms were are painted random colours up to the picture rail and then white with high ceilings and coving. And I hate it. But painting it in creates all sorts of other challenges, so at the moment it‘s between painting all the way to the coving OR painting all the way to the coving including skirting and doors but keeping picture rail and windows in white. We‘ve gone with a very light grey from lick and that seems to work best so far for us… but it may change my mind again… 🙃
Well, I was really surprised when my decorator seemed to expect that I would have the frieze, the same colour as the ceiling – White!! I have it painted in a darker shade of bluey-green, to the walls beneath the picture rail and love it! I think I may have to experiment. My home is a 300 year old cottage.
That sounds perfect! Love it when a room is more considered and interesting than just boring old white 🙂
Hi. I’m just looking at this and thank you so much for the post. I’m wondering about papering my walls a chevron pink and bronze paper from GrahamBrown. Could we paper below and abov the rail and paint the rail a pink to match the paper or is that just a totally ridiculous idea? Currently the room is painted one darker colour below and good old farrow and ball pointing above, witht he rail in pointing too.
Hi, yes you absolutely can use the wallpaper above and below the picture rail and paint the picture rail in a pink to match. I would also paint the ceiling in a subtle very pale pink too so it doesn’t feel left out! Good luck x
I have a picture rail AND a dado rail! I’m thinking I’ll paint wall and dado same colour and then white above picture rail or same colour up to the ceiling. I’d also like to do a William Morris wallpaper in the small hall (also with dado and picture rail). What do you think about where to paper and where to paint?! Thanks!
Hi Hannah, yes defo do the dado rail the same colour as the wall. Having a dado rail and a picture rail actually make walls appear shorter so you don’t want to emphasise that by painting it a different colour. Once you’ve eliminated the dado issue by blending it in you can either take the wall colour or wallpaper up to the picture rail or right up to the ceiling. Good luck x
Thanks so much for this! I’ve decided to paint up to and including the picture rail in ammonite, and above it white. But now I’m not sure what kind of paint to use. Can I use emulsion that I’m using on the walls? I’ve read that you can get a special primer so that this is possible. What’s your advice please?
Hi Hannah, the emulsion would be fine on the picture rail as it’s so high up but the emulsion finish is likely to be too fragile for the dado rail which will get knocked with wear and tear. I would paint both in eggshell ideally, it also gives it a nice sheen that subtly highlights it. Good luck.
Much prefer the ceiling colour down to the picture rail.
Our house is 1960’s with 2.4m ceilings. No ceiling coving.
We painted the LR dark (kind of Air force) blue and we love the blue, but HATE the very harsh angle where the blue wall meets the white ceiling.
It’s a decent size room (about 4m x 5m) and we only really use it in the evening, so I thought that if we brought the ceiling white 300 mm down the wall we’d get rid of that awful angle divide. My eye’s drawn to it constantly!
In the bathroom we painted the ceiling the same duck egg blue as the walls and it looks fab’ (the ceiling height is only 2.3m upstairs), but I think it would be too dark if we did that in the LR, and even if we painted the ceiling a lighter blue, you’d still see that angle. I’m on the verge of re-painting it a different colour!
Any ideas/advice please? It’s a NW facing room with a typical 1960’s very wide 3 m window.
Hi Susan, thanks for your comment. I tend not to use white on ceilings in rooms where I am using stronger colours on the walls. White creates too much of a harsh contrast which can make the room feel uncomfortable. With blue walls I would use an off-white, or something with a good dose of grey in it like ‘strong white’ or ‘shadow white’ by Farrow and Ball. This softens that harsh contrast and creates a much more serene feel.
I have what are referred to by my neighbours, many Dorset Curves in our house . There are picture rails in all the principal rooms , then the walls above curve into the ceiling. We have always decorated with plain coloured walls then white ” friezes ” above the picture rail and ceiling . Its impossible to take the wall colour above the picture rail unless I paint the walls the same colour as the ceiling. Have you any advice ? I would like a taller airier feel but don’t know how to achieve it .
In this scenario I would either take the wall colour up and over the ceiling, if it were a neutral, to elongate the walls and create a more airy feel. Or, if it it were a darker colour on the walls, I would pair it with a lighter variation of the wall colour on the ceiling or something like a very pale pink can work beautifully on a ceiling. If you use a white on the frieze and ceiling with a darker colour on the walls you will always be creating a strong contrast that makes the walls feel shorter than they are, softening this contrast by using something other that white will make a big difference to the feel of the space.
Nice problem to have!
Sarah
Thank you for all the advice…its so difficult to decide how to decorate with a picture rail although i do love them as a feature. Im currently decorating my master bedroom and gone for a light grey just up to railing because its a dark room. I feel like i need a feature wall behind bed and was considering panelling. Does this work with a picture rail ?
Hi Claire, yes you can definitely have panelling with a picture rail. You just need to be careful of the shapes you create with the panelling to make sure you don’t shorten the wall too much. Different shapes will create a different look so I would draw out your wall on graph paper, and draw in the picture rail too, and then play around with what shapes will work. I would tend to go for taller, narrower rectangles but it will depend on your ceiling height and the width of the wall. Once you start drawing it out you’ll see what works and what doesn’t, just trust your gut. Good luck, Sarah
Hi Sarah,
Great article, thanks. I have been struggling with this decision the whole afternoon until I found your article and happy to paint all the way up.
Thanks for the reco on the small room. The guest bathroom is quite small thoigh it jas no rail. Any ideas how to avoid the ‘shaft’ feel in this space.
Thanks
Hi there, glad you found it useful! Yes you can just use frog tape to create an imaginary picture rail in a small room that doesn’t have one, it will do the same job of visually lowering the ceiling. Good luck, Sarah x
Hi Sarah
We have a high victorian ceiling as well. We are planning to paint the ceiling and above the picture rail in white. My question is should the skirting, door frame, window frame and door be white or a complementary colour? Looking at f & b old white for the walls and love light gray for the wood work, but not sure if then there is too much going on.
Hi Ann, thanks for your question. There is absolutely no reason your woodwork should be white (unless you love the colour white). For me rooms always feel more elegant and considered when the woodwork is a complementary colour, the Old White and Light Grey combination would be perfect! 🙂
Great article , thank you :). This has helped me decide . We have Victorian height ceilings and will go for the same colour above the picture rail and the ceiling . South facing however I can’t decide if too complicated to have three colours – wall / woodwork and ceiling or to paint the woodwork/ ceiling the same colour as the walls . going for calm tones – back to the Farrow and Ball testers I think
Sarah, What great advice. Thanks. I have a large living space which is about to be decorated. The skirting board is quite wide, 20+cm, leading up to a dado rail and then up to the picture rail. There are 2 built in bookcases, one either side of the Victorian fireplace – just shorter than the picture rail.
I have learned from your blog that I will be painting all one colour on the walls up to the picture rail (and maybe beyond to the ceiling – yet to be decided). The ceiling will be off white.
My question is all the woodwork: skirting, dado, picture rail and bookcases. Would these be the same colour as the walls but in eggshell?
Thanks.
Thanks for writing this blog; a very interesting read. When we moved into our house all the rooms were painted white above the picture rail to match the ceiling and I hated it! I adore tall ceilings. So bit by bit I have repainted the rooms and painted up to the ceiling in the wall colour (but keeping picture rail in white) – our colours so far havent been too strong (a lot of F&B greys and Little Greene Pearl Colour.
Now I have a dilemma! We are redecorating my son’s room; the wall colour is going to be Little Greene Bone China Blue and his new cupboards and half wall panelling (which is on the opposite side to the cupboards) are going to be in Little Greene Gauze. Above the half wall panelling is going to be a dark blue wallpaper from Paperwall called Zodiac Sky; I think because we have the panelling already in gauze and then the wallpaper above, we are going to need to wallpaper above the picture rail too so that the wall isnt divided in three. The furniture is quite big (high rise bed and big new fitted cupboards) so hopefully it works!
Hi Sarah,
Brilliant article!!! I’m currently in the middle of decorating my sitting room, I have a picture rail all the way round. I’ve chosen Egyptian cotton for the walls, I also wanted to paint the skirting boards and door frames black. Should I paint the picture rail black or paint it the same cooour as the walls?? Tia x
Hi Sarah. Great article and so what I need ATM.
We are putting F&B Crimson red on the wall below the picture frame and Rubine ashes on the area above the picture rail. Should the ceiling, picture rail and coving be the same colour I.e Rubine or should they (or some of them) be white? And if rubine can the skirting, door and architrave still be white? Many thanks
Hi, I’m in a quandary! I have a picture rail in my lounge. I’d like to wallpaper the alcoves either side of the chimney breast.
If I paper up to the rail I guess I’d paint the ceiling down to & including the rail in an off white, then under the rail in my chosen wall colour. Would that work??
Or, if I paper the whole alcove above & below the rail (to maximise use of the lovely paper I’ve seen), how do I tackle the rest of the room and the rail?
Thanks
hi …do u paint the picture rail the same sheen as the wall? or use satin/semi gloss?
Hi. Like so may other readers this was the article I needed to get me thinking. However, cant find a post exactly same as my dilemma – so here goes! I’v just bought a small house with dado rails in the sitting room. I plan to take the same cream F+B colour over ceiling, walls and all woodwork. But…want to paper the fireplace, including the two bookcase spaces either side of fireplace. Do I take the paper up to the ceiling with cream dado rail running through it. Or, just up to dado rail with cream paint above. Cant decide which option would look best with the neighbouring walls all painted cream up to and above dado rail and over the ceiling? Hmmmm….?
What about painting the picture rail a different colour to emphasise the division? We have 3.5m ceilings in a large proportion a Georgian house. We knocked through between the kitchen and dining room and are looking for a way to unify the two spaces by painting picture rail and arch a darker colour (maybe a chocolate brown?) than both walls (dulux heritage dusted Heather and f&b setting plaster respectively). I am getting cold feet and the new kitchen is installed in two weeks – any thoughts on this?!? The frieze and ceiling are white.
Help! Lots of great advice here but I have a different problem. My husband decided to re-install picture rails in the two front rooms in our 1920s house. The rooms are quite small with bay windows but he wanted a more traditional look. Now, however, he thinks we should not put picture rails round the chimney breast and leave the chimney breast white! The rest of the walls are to be painted in Paint & Paper Library Plaster IV with white above picture rails and all white woodwork. How can I convince him that this is a BAD idea?