Walk into a home with a double-height space of any kind and there's an instant wow factor.
Whether it's a grand entrance with a sweeping staircase, high ceilings and an immediate view to the floors above, or an element of surprise created by walking through a standard height hallway into a vast, open, double-height living room, it's a design concept that never fails to impress.
If this type of ceiling idea appeals to you, here are some of the best examples we've found of double-height spaces. From those that have transformed existing homes, to ones that were integral to the overall self-build design, we're confident you'll find something to inspire you.
1. Start as you mean to go on with a striking double-height entrance
Walk straight into a double-height hallway and it sets the tone immediately for how the rest of the home will be. And the property shown here doesn't fail to deliver on this.
Adam Knibb, founder of Adam Knibb Architects who designed the house explained how the double-height feature also paved the way for the remainder of the home's layout.
"The house was organised around a dramatic double-height entrance hall, with a sculptural floating staircase essentially forming the heart of the home. Using a central void in this way meant there was a clear spatial connection, with the double-height creating a central spine to unite the rest of the layout.
"On the ground floor, openness was embraced in the layout, but we also included flexible living areas where more privacy was available," he continues. "Upstairs, four bedrooms were arranged around the central double-height core, providing an immediate connection between both floors. Using a similar palette of materials throughout was also key to creating the overall look of a home that was both modern, but reflective of the environment in which it was placed."
In 2011 Adam set up Adam Knibb Architects, focusing on creating beautiful buildings that benefit the environment, people and whole life costs.
2. Use an all-white colour drench for extra impact
While some homes with double-height spaces mix and match colours and materials to give the void a variety of looks, there's something to be said for sticking to a clean white wall and ceiling paint.
In this open plan kitchen and dining space designed by Paul Archer Design, white walls and ceilings create a sense of endless space, with a half-height wall cleverly disguising a simple floating staircase that leads from one floor to another.
The eye is distracted by very little, other than the neat dark grey kitchen tucked against the back wall. Even the kitchen flooring is a pale oak, ensuring this home is everything you could want, if a space flooded with light is your end goal.
3. Barn conversions are ideal for a double-height feature
While barn conversions generally turn into stunning homes, there are often planning restrictions that mean you don't have as much scope to create a light-filled home as you do when designing from scratch.
However, as John Everitt, architect and director at coombes:everitt architects explains, it's where double-height spaces can offer the perfect solution.
"This beautiful double-height kitchen forms part of an extension to a listed barn in the Cotswolds. The extension had to be subservient to the existing barn, which meant the new building couldn’t be two storeys.
"Designing it as a double-height space was the ideal solution," says John, "as it provided a sense of scale and light to the kitchen/dining area internally while minimising the visual impact externally."
John Everitt is a RIBA certified architect and director and co-founder of coombes:everitt architects, an award-winning Cotswolds based practice dedicated to creating beautiful, carefully crafted homes that enhance the way people live. With more than 25 years’ experience as an architect, John’s area of expertise is designing contemporary sustainable homes within AONB/National Landscape and Green Belt.
4. Top your double-height lightwell with a glass roof
Of course, you could also ask, why stop at double-height when you have a choice of modern glazing options at your disposal when building, extending or renovating a home?
It was something the homeowners clearly asked of themselves when working with Paul Archer Design to create this stunning double-height staircase with glass roof and corner glazing feature.
Flooding every possible space with light, it also gives an immediate connection to the outdoor surroundings – in this case, the terraced streets of London, which are in stark contrast to the light and airy feeling inside, but nonetheless of great visual interest as you move upwards through the home.
5. Include a view at the end of your double-height space
On the subject of views, there's also no better way to make your double-height space even more impactful than to use it to frame a striking view at the end.
But, if this is an option for you, then think carefully about how you ensure the view holds as much prominence as the upwards space. In this example from coombes everitts architects, darker hallway colours help to make the ceiling and walls feel lower, while the white hallway flooring draws your eye along the floor towards the bright blue outdoor swimming pool.
However, as with most double-height spaces, size matters, and trying this idea in a smaller space might not work as well, says John Everitt.
"If a space has too small a footprint, double-height spaces can end up with strange proportions. They particularly work very well when combined with a staircase that may either be within the space or adjacent to it."
6. Use the double-height to showcase dramatic lighting
When working with a double-height space, your lighting design will need extra consideration. Spotlights placed metres above living room sofas or kitchen worktops simply won't work in the same way as they do in rooms with standard ceiling heights. And while floor and wall lamps will be able to do some of the work, you need to think carefully about how you make sure your space is practical, as well as stylishly lit.
In this idea, a striking wooden sculptural pendant light is suspended on a long cable above the dining room table. As well as providing enough light for the occupants to eat, the wooden finish ties in neatly with the oak framed architectural glazing to create a cohesive look.
Lights to illuminate your double-height space
This stunning three-tiered glass and brass chandelier would look perfect suspended in a double-height space
Consider extendable wall lights where task lighting above tables or kitchen islands is needed
Be generous with your distribution of floor lamps when height isn't an issue and you need some accent or task lighting
7. Use a double-height feature to help zone an open plan layout
Although it's common for double-height spaces to run across an entire zone, using a smaller one can equally help to create zones within a larger room.
In this open plan kitchen, lower ceilings run across the main kitchen area, not just defining the space but also allowing for practical kitchen island lighting and full-height cupboards that nestle just below the ceiling.
Towards the end of the room however, a staircase opening into a double-height void neatly punctuates the end of the kitchen and helps draw light down into the end dining area.
Once again, as we have seen in several of the ideas, open-treads are used in the staircase design to allow light to flow through more naturally. The curved design of this particular staircase also adds an extra visual frisson to this otherwise angular space.
8. Use two sets of glazing to emphasise height
Although floor-to-ceiling glazing can work well in double-height spaces, with climate change a growing concern, as well as choosing the right type of glass, dividing your windows into two different sets can help with both with hot and cold issues.
"When considering how to heat the space, you have to be mindful that if the double-height area is on the elevation of the building and is highly glazed, there is a very likely risk of overheating on a sunny day, almost at any time of the year," explains John Everitt.
Here, a combination of sliding patio doors offer easy access to the outdoors, while large picture-sized windows above create beautiful framed views of the sky - whatever the weather.
If you are embarking on a self-build and are keen to include glazing, but worried about solar gain and heat loss, make sure you also take a look at our expert guide to Part O of the building regulations which is designed to tackle these concerns.
9. Think of clever ways to task light a double-height space
Switching back to the subject of lighting, we also wanted to share the clever task lighting idea from this Paul Archer Design project.
Instead of relying on low, suspended ceiling lights which could potentially obscure the view from the mezzanine walkway, beautiful Anglepoise-like wall lights stretch horizontally across the double-height void to light the dining area.
Way above head-height, but large enough to cast sufficient light below, it's a clever way of avoiding any lighting mistakes when working within a high-ceilinged environment.
10. Double-height spaces work in renovations too
Although it's normal to associate double-height spaces with new builds, rather than older, often narrow and low-ceilinged homes, it's important to consider them if extending or renovating a period-style property too.
Here, the lower ground level of the property was lowered by taking advantage of an existing undercroft storage area. This provided better access to the garden, and then to maximise on this connection, a section of the original ground floor was removed and replaced with a large double-height space, fronted with expansive glazing.
The new mezzanine level created by removing half of the floor was then fronted with a Juliet-style balcony to provide views both up and down inside the home.
11. Pair a double-height space with a glazed walkway
The owners of this home, which was designed by Oakwrights, were keen that the new house would include some elements of the property and barns that had previously stood on the site and, having lived in a barn conversion previously, felt at home with a central double-height space.
To make the most of the stunning countryside views, the double-height hallway features a huge expanse of full height glazing, while the glass balustrade fronted walkways are always a great idea for anyone after landing ideas that won't block views or light.
Walkways in double-height spaces are a concept used in contemporary homes too, picks up John Everitt. "In many of the properties we’ve designed, we’ve created double-height entrance halls and dining areas, for example, that have first floor bridges passing through them, providing elevated views over the surrounding countryside. This design concept also provides opportunities for improved visual connections between spaces within a home, which helps the space feel airy and open."
12. Include a striking feature ceiling
When a double-height space is one of the main focus points in your home, don't miss the opportunity to be more adventurous with your ceiling ideas.
This striking contemporary self-build features a full-height atrium which was designed to act as a central courtyard between the two sides of the house. Both the front and back of the space feature full-height glazing and have been fitted with vertical louvred screens to maintain a sense of privacy.
This louvred design is then mirrored in the ceiling, with long slats of wood stretching across the void, tying the scheme together both physically, and visually.
13. Nestle a home office into the ceiling space
Double-height spaces provide the perfect opportunity for creating a mezzanine level. This is a particularly good idea for those worried about sacrificing valuable floor space for soaring ceilings.
Here, a home office has been set into the ceiling space, overlooking the open plan kitchen diner beneath. Be sure to include methods of bringing in light from above, such as roof lanterns or skylights if you are considering a mezzanine level.
14. Double-height spaces can transform dormer bungalows
In the case of one and a half storey house designs, double-height spaces and vaulted ceilings often make perfect sense.
"One and half storey homes often feel interesting and having vaulted or half-vaulted bedrooms upstairs creates a really fun and inspiring space to work with," says Border Oak's Merry Albright.
In the living space of this dormer bungalow, the landing overlooks the space and shares the fantastic views, while the more private spaces are tucked into the gable ends.
Not sure how double-height spaces differ from vaulted ceiling? What the term double-height really describes is a space that spans two whole storeys, uninterrupted. One voluminous space from ground floor right up to the underside of the upper storey's ceiling. Unlike a vaulted ceiling, double-height ceilings can be flat, just as with a standard ceiling.
15. Mix up your ceiling heights
Combining double-height spaces with those of a more standard height is a great way to break up open plan layouts and to ensure that certain spaces feel a little more intimate and cosy.
In this self build, from Oakwrights, the owners had specifically asked for plenty of entertaining space on the ground floor but only needed three bedrooms on the first floor.
The architect therefore suggested the idea of a double-height space. The living room is full height, with a completely glazed gable end, while the dining space feels like a separate room thanks to the lower ceiling height.
16. Or create contrast by keeping original ceilings
If you are lucky enough to be converting an old barn or a building with beautiful existing beams then leaving the space as a double-height area will really ensure the full character of the property can be enjoyed.
In some cases, planners may also insist on keeping spaces double height so as not to interfere with existing openings or windows.
This project is something of a masterclass in barn conversion ideas. The owners wanted to be respectful to the 17th-century timber frame and so built an interior structure to house the kitchen, pantry, cloakroom and mezzanine office that they wanted in the space.
Convinced a double-height space is for you? John Everitt shares his final tips on what to make sure you consider when working with your architect on the design, particularly when it comes to making sure adding one one sacrifice your final useable amount of space.
"While double height spaces are great at helping to give a varied sense of scale within a property, add drama and excitement to a home, invite natural light deeper into the floorplan and can also help create natural stack ventilation in the middle of a floor plan, they do come at the risk of increasing the footprint of the building, and can be perceived as a waste of first floor space," he notes.
So, make sure you can still fit in the number of rooms you need, and achieve the correct room sizes. And don't forget than when there's a void, there's also space for sound to travel further too.
John's advice? "To manage sound, select materials carefully to ensure you don’t create too much reverberation."
