The Vawdrey House on Mastering Lighting for Tall Spaces

Lighting secrets for tall spaces

Rooms with high ceilings have an undeniable presence, but they can also be some of the trickiest to light well. Go too small and the fittings disappear. Go too bold without balance, and the room loses its warmth. To explore how to get it right, we spoke with Sophie Chapman from The Vawdrey House, who shared her expert insights on creating lighting schemes that bring tall spaces to life.

Avoiding Glare and Shadows in Tall Rooms

Tall ceilings often create pools of light and harsh shadows when fittings are too directional. The result can be a space that feels uneven or uncomfortable. Sophie suggests flipping the focus away from task-style beams and instead creating a soft, diffused glow that flatters the architecture.

Avoid directional lights, focus on soft glow and creating ambience. Tier your lighting so it works with the space, and always consider how it looks from every angle-including outside.
–Sophie Chapman

A statement piece, such as the bespoke Alton Pillar Chandelier, can anchor the room, but its success depends on complementary fittings that cast warmth evenly across the space.

Product: Alton Pillar multi pendant light  

Getting Scale Right

When you’re dealing with tall ceilings, it’s easy to assume that the challenge is simply filling the vertical space. But Sophie points out that width and proportion are just as important as height. Ignoring them can leave a scheme feeling unbalanced, no matter how impressive the ceiling height.

Proportion is everything. It’s easy to focus only on height, but width matters just as much. We always collaborate with our specialist suppliers to make sure the technical side is spot on and the scheme works efficiently.
–Sophie Chapman

Considering scale across the whole room ensures fittings feel harmonious with the architecture and prevents the space from swallowing the design.

Photographer: Bee Holmes | Product: Hereford Globe Hall Lantern Light

Choosing the Right Bulbs for High Ceilings

It might seem like a minor detail, but the right bulb can make or break a tall space. The fittings may set the style, but the light source determines the mood.

Get your bulbs right! Warm light but not dull. If you invest in lighting, don’t scrimp on light bulbs.
–Sophie Chapman

Choosing the right temperature and quality ensures the scheme delivers both ambience and practicality. Warm light keeps the space inviting without losing clarity – vital in large rooms where atmosphere can easily be lost.

Product: Grafton Pendant Light

Lighting That Works in High-Ceilinged Spaces

High ceilings give you permission to go bigger and bolder, but that doesn’t mean the light should dominate the room. The best fixtures work with the space, filling it gracefully without overwhelming the architecture. Sophie explains that pendants arranged in a tiered drop are a reliable way to achieve this balance.

A tiered drop of Aston pendants is hard to beat-it creates drama without overwhelming the room
–Sophie Chapman

By staggering pendants at different heights, the light feels proportionate to the scale of the room while drawing the eye upward. It creates impact and atmosphere in equal measure, making it a timeless solution for tall spaces.

The Future of Lighting Design

Design isn’t only about aesthetics, it’s also about anticipating how we’ll live in the future. For Sophie, sustainability and smart technology are the most exciting areas to watch.

I always look forward to seeing how sustainability and smart lighting will develop and improve our spaces.
–Sophie Chapman

These innovations will influence not only the efficiency of lighting but also how we experience our homes, adding flexibility and long-term value.

Layering Light to Create a Cohesive Space

A room with high ceilings can often feel like it serves different purposes depending on the time of day. Without layered lighting, it risks being too stark during daylight hours or too flat at night. Sophie highlights why balance is essential.

Think about the fittings and fixtures in the surrounding scheme- don’t mix up your metals too much…contrast is good but a muddle is not. Think about different times of the day you will use the space and how you want the space to feel.
–Sophie Chapman

For example, kitchens need strong task lighting for food preparation, but this should soften into a social setting for evening meals. Living rooms benefit from natural brightness in the day, then require warm, decorative lighting at night. In multi-purpose rooms, layering ensures the space feels equally inviting in every setting.

  Shop: Bathroom Cluster Lights

Making a Statement with Chandeliers

High ceilings invite bold lighting choices, but Sophie emphasises that they must be considered within the wider scheme. A chandelier can be a striking centrepiece, but without the right support it risks feeling isolated.

Balancing the fittings in a space is crucial. A statement chandelier works well when you have a mix of architectural lighting in the space and can feature a statement. More subtle layered lighting is better when you want more flexibility… A statement in a hallway, layers in a snug.
–Sophie Chapman

The key is letting the room’s purpose guide the decision: some spaces deserve a showpiece, others benefit from subtlety.

Planning a Lighting Scheme from the Start

Lighting often gets left to the later stages of a project, but Sophie advises weaving it into the design vision from the very beginning. Doing so ensures fittings and ambience evolve naturally alongside the rest of the scheme.

We approach a scheme in a holistic manner. Our vision is a whole and therefore the lighting is considered at the very beginning of the design concept stage. We then develop this vision as the design stages progress, defining fittings and balancing the different styles of lighting.
–Sophie Chapman

By planning early, the lighting scheme can enhance every stage of the project rather than being forced in at the end.

   A single Aston pendant adds vertical warmth to this smart, high-ceilinged entrance hall. | Product: Aston Lantern Pendant Light

Fritz Fryer Lighting in The Vawdrey House Projects

Sophie explains how Fritz Fryer fittings have helped her bring together traditional and contemporary design in a range of projects.

For Thames House, Longfield and Greenwich, using fittings which bridge the traditional style with modern living worked well. Using fittings from Fritz Fryer like the Aston, Grafton and Hereford ranges complemented the simply detailed stylish spaces.
–Sophie Chapman

 

At Ebb & Flow, the goal was to create a residential atmosphere in a commercial environment. These examples show how the right lighting choice can completely transform the mood and function of a space

The project was successful in creating a residential aesthetic in a commercial environment, and this was accentuated by the way the lighting changed ambience from day to night.
–Sophie Chapman

These examples show how the right lighting choice can completely transform the mood and function of a space.

 Shop High ceiling Cluster lights

In a nutshell…

If your home has tall ceilings, lighting can be the difference between a space that feels cavernous and one that feels inviting. From tiered drops that add scale and presence, to thoughtful layering that shifts with the time of day, the right choices make high ceilings work for you rather than against you. 

As Sophie puts it, “Proportion is everything”. So go ahead, plan early, think in layers, and let your tall space shine at its best.

Key Takeaways: Lighting High Ceilings

1. Proportion is everything – Balance height and width so fittings feel in scale with the room.
2. Layer for flexibility – Combine pendants, wall lights and architectural lighting to adapt from day to night.
3. Bulb choice matters – Warm, dimmable bulbs (2700–3000K) keep large rooms atmospheric yet practical.
4. Statement with support – A chandelier or tiered drop should be anchored by softer background lighting.
5. Plan from the start – The most successful high-ceiling schemes are considered early in the design stage.

Need help lighting a high-ceilinged space? Our team at Fritz Fryer offers bespoke chandeliers, lighting design support, and expert restoration services to bring your vision to life.