Paint Color for Ceilings (furniture, stone, dining room, kitchen)

[songinthewind7]

I want to paint the inside of my house but I think I'll start with the ceilings and get them out of the way.
Right now, the ceilings throughout the house are a dull white color.
Question is, do I paint them an off white color or a brighter white color?
I'm looking for more of a fresher look but not dull like I think off white would be or if they're brighter white, not too overwhelming.

[PNW-type-gal]

Why stick with white then? None of my ceilings are white or off-white.

[songinthewind7]

What color are your ceilings? White is all I've ever seen on them. My walls will be painted in color though.

[ShaneSA]

White ceilings make the room appear taller, even if it is tall. The white ceiling will allow any color on the walls and not detract from the wall color.
Putting color on the ceiling, the same color as the walls or a contrasting color will make the room feel like it is coming in on you. It is a decorating taste and I think difficult to get the right combination to have color ceilings.
Stick with bright flat white to keep the ceilings up and not noticed from the wall color or decorations (furniture).

[PNW-type-gal]

I don't find that's true at all - granted my ceilings are all a lighter color than the walls, but they are mostly just a lighter version of the wall color and it looks great.

My kitchen walls are an ochre color, the great room is two colors of a medium adobe tan/brown. The ceilings are just toned down versions of the wall color (though I'm thinking about contrasting one of them). The rooms all face south and we get a ton of light, which really accents the colors.

[K'ledgeBldr]

here's an old guideline that I learned from an old painter-
Whatever the wall color, use a "white" ceiling paint (not bright white, or ultra white), add one cup (8oz) of the wall color to one gal of the ceiling paint. It does work in most cases- just not red; believe me, I know.

[golfgal]

My ceilings are all painted a color too. They are generally 2 shades lighter then the wall color. I LOVE the look and it doesn't make the room come in on you at all. In our bedroom the ceiling is 2 levels. The part at the wall slants up to another level and that level is flat. We have the slanted part painted about 2 shades lighter then the walls and the flat part is the same color as the wall. It looks very nice and again, the ceiling isn't coming in on us at all.

Our walls are a deep tan color (Scarecrow from Benjamin Moore if you want to look that up) and the ceiling is Stone House from BM. The stone house color is a very pale tan. Our dining room is a dusky, deep green but we used the stone house color on the ceiling there.

[ali&ajsmom]

i would pick your wall colors first then your ceiling colors and do your ceiling a couple shades lighter than your wall color. I find white ceilings to be what everybody does to be safe, but I like color I just painted my accent wall showstopper from sherwin williams and plan on doing my walls a nice tan with a lighter tan ceiling. Good luck with your choice.

[jmking]

I use "Ceiling White" by Glidden. It applies as a pink color then turns white. The beauty of this is you can see where you've applied paint and where you've missed by accident. It works very well.
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[pennquaker09]

The ceiling is the "fifth" wall in a room. They don't have to be white. It would depend on what your goal is for the room and what other elements you have in said room.

Here is my dining and entry area: