before and after crown molding on vaulted ceilingHere’s my not so carefully guarded secret of how to install crown molding on a vaulted ceiling.

You don’t.

The majority of homes built during the last thirty years consist of both traditional and contemporary design elements.  This is most evident in the great room and open floor plans that replaced more traditionally divided homes.

These great rooms, with their asymmetrical vaulted ceilings, are the contemporary portion — installing crown molding on these chaotic angles looks forced.  Your crown molding looses and your great room looses.

Instead, install what I’ve come to call a “flying crown.”


Use a flying crown to divide up the vast walls of impersonal and hard to decorate exposures of drywall.  Paint the walls below the flying crown a bold color, and then paint the space above the flying crown some other color.

before and after installing crown molding on a vaulted ceiling

This great room decorating technique allows you to create a more intimate space below, while retaining the lofty, airy space above.

Follow-up Post: No Crown Molding on Vaulted Ceilings.

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Cheers, Ken