Attic flats have a charm all of their own. They're cosy, but they can make furnishing your home a challenge. Find out how to furnish a room with a sloped ceiling in style using the right furniture and accessories – and how to make the most of the storage space.
How to furnish a room with a sloped ceiling:
- Tips for bedrooms with sloped ceilings
- Living rooms with sloped ceilings
- Home offices with sloped ceilings – how it's done
- Use the right colour
- Lighting sloped ceilings for more space
- Light, airy accessories
1. Tips for bedrooms with sloped ceilings
At first glance, a sloped ceiling seems impractical. Use the slope as a snug corner for a cosy sleeping area. A low bed without a headboard fits perfectly under a sloped ceiling. Decide whether you want to place the long side or the head end of the bed against the knee wall. A bed with built-in drawers gives you extra, hidden storage for bed linen or winter clothes.
If you don't want to give up your large, generous bed, place chests of drawers or low sideboards under the slope to create plenty of storage space. A clothes rail gives you the space you need for dresses, blouses or shirts. Fix the clothes rail to the sloped ceiling – that way you make the most of the space. Hang an opaque curtain in front of it and save yourself an expensive built-in wardrobe. Visually shortening the slope with a chest of drawers makes the dark corner disappear.
Bear in mind that rooms with sloped ceilings are usually very small. Don't overfill them – choose your furniture carefully and limit yourself to the essentials.
2. Furnishing a living room with a sloped ceiling
As in the bedroom, the sloped area of a living room is ideal for lying and sitting. Why not put the sofa under the slope? Make sure the sofa isn't too high so you don't bump your head. Moved slightly away from the wall, the sofa corner feels airy and relaxed.
Why not use the sloped ceiling as a cosy reading corner? An armchair with a low backrest (1) and a height-adjustable floor lamp with focused downlight (2) invite you to relax with a book after work. A bookcase (3) that fits directly under the slope provides the storage you need, and a light (4) right under the ceiling illuminates the whole room.
If you don't have a window directly in the sloped wall, put your television on a low TV sideboard.
3. Home offices with sloped ceilings – how it's done
Set up a small home office area under the slope. If you want to place your desk against the knee wall, pay attention to its depth so you don't bump your head. If you put the desk against the gable wall, choose a long one. Corner desks are a good choice for small rooms with sloped ceilings, as they make the most of the space.
When choosing a desk, look for a simple design and slim legs. In smaller rooms especially, design plays a big part in keeping the space from looking cluttered and cramped.
Try to set up your workspace near a window. When you're working, it's important to have plenty of natural light, to protect your eyes and work at your best. A window directly above the desk on the knee wall makes the room look taller.
4. Use the right colour
Light colours make a room look bigger. You've probably heard this many times when it comes to interior design – and it's our tip here too. Paint the knee wall in a light colour.
It doesn't have to be white – beige or nude tones also make the room look bigger. If you're a fan of dark shades, you don't have to give them up completely. Paint the gable wall in a dark forest green or a deep midnight blue. A dark wall gives the room visual depth. Patterned wallpaper adds accents, and you can use it on the gable wall without hesitation.
5. Lighting sloped ceilings for more space
In rooms with sloped ceilings in particular, it's important to light the whole room well. Use one light source as general lighting for the entire room. Place a second, lower light source under the slope. Lighting up the dark corners makes the room look bigger.
Use table lamps, low floor lamps or wall lights with a swivel head. Rechargeable LED lights add soft accents of light where there are no sockets or light outlets.
"Highlight the highest point of the room with lighting. It gives the room visual depth and makes it look bigger. In rooms that open up to the roof apex, striking pendant lights or uplighters are ideal for lighting the space. They emphasise the ceiling height and light up areas that would otherwise fade into semi-darkness." - Viktoria, interior expert
6. Light, airy accessories
When it comes to accessories, less is more. A minimalist interior creates a greater sense of space.
Light fabrics such as linen in subtle shades make the room feel bigger and brighter.
Roller blinds or Venetian blinds help keep the sun out when it's warm, so the room doesn't heat up.
If you think you can only hang pictures on straight walls, think again. Framed posters are just as easy to hang on sloped ceilings.
Have fun furnishing your room with a sloped ceiling.
Photo credits: Sabine Erhard, Hatice Köse, Sandra (@karlas_view)
