The last house we lived in had 12 foot ceilings downstairs and 9 foot upstairs. When we walked through that house, the 12 foot ceilings made every room feel so spacious!
Then we moved in...
For some rooms (like our 17' x 19' master bedroom) the 12 foot ceilings were, in fact, very nice. The room's proportions worked well and the space felt luxurious. But for most other rooms, they just felt 'off'... The powder room felt like an elevator shaft. The master closet had clothes rods 10 feet off the ground! The kitchen and master baths felt like hallways, even though the rooms were 12-13 feet wide. The breakfast room felt like a tower. The two-story family room felt like a hotel lobby! And almost every room felt 'exposed'. Too open. There was no 'cozy' to be found anywhere in that house.
Our current house has 8' ceilings in most spaces, with some small areas of 7'6" and one 18' area. At first, I was worried that the 8' ceilings would feel so low! But I really came to appreciate them, and to appreciate what the variations in ceiling heights did to improve the 'feel' of our home. There are open spaces, cozy spaces, transition spaces...
Having lived with them, I would strongly urge you NOT to put 12 foot ceilings everywhere in your house. For rooms whose smallest dimension is 15 feet or so -- then IMO, they work. But for smaller rooms, DON'T DO IT! Nine or 10 feet are plenty high enough to feel open and spacious in a good way.
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ceiling heights ; dont do 12ft in small areas like bathrooms or all over home
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