{inspired} Italian painted ceilings

So you know how painted ceilings are sort of a thing these days? I thought you guys would like to take a peak at how painted ceiling were done in homes 300 years ago. The last week I was in Italy, I stayed with a friend who lives in a beautiful 300-year-old building. The ceilings? Were Ah-maze-ing. Let's take a look.

Above is the entry way. From the front door, you walk into the pink/coral entry way area. The right is the ceiling detail. Gorgeous right? Oh, and on a side note, do you see the french doors that lead into the living room? There were a lot of amazing architectural details in this place too.

And here is the living room. Also? My friend is from Turkey and brought that amazing blue lamp back from an Istanbul market. I need one - it was beautiful :). The down side to the ceiling, although they're amazing, is that my friend was having a really hard time decorating around them because they are so bold. For example, she loves the blue light, but felt like it clashed with the ceiling. So while I was drooling over them, I do agree that they're a bit of a commitment!

Here is the design over the bedrooms. Please disregard the mess that was my bed :). I LOVED the yellow above this room. And, the high ceilings? Swoon!

I thought this was interesting. Because the ceilings are so old, they're protected by a historical code, so builders/remodelers can't hurt them. So instead of walls reaching to the ceiling, they separated a couple of bedrooms and a bathroom with these glass partitions. They are high enough that you can't look through them, and they preserve the ceiling and the view. Interesting!

So while they are incredibly bold, I would LOVE to design a room around them. I can just imagine making the ceiling the focal point and bringing other shapes and patterns to compliment them. Maybe I'll work up a mood board one of these days :).

Friends, on a completely different note, I hope you have a very Happy Thanksgiving! How do you celebrate? Dinner with family? Friends? We'll be joining my mom's side of the family for a huge dinner -- I'm super excited! Enjoy!!