Furnishing an attic with sloping ceilings
Attic floors have more floor area than usable space. The square metres on the plan say little about how much of it is actually habitable – what matters is the height at each individual point. Two rooms with an identical floor area can feel completely different, depending on where the ridge runs and how high the knee wall is.
The three zones of a slope
Below about 1 m (3.3 ft) of headroom, an area is only usable for storage. Between 1 and 2 m (3.3 and 6.6 ft) you can sit and lie down. Only from around 2 m (6.6 ft) can you stand and walk comfortably.
The distribution follows almost by itself: bed, sofa and seating in the middle zone, drawers, boxes and low shelves in the low zone, walkways and work surfaces in the high zone. Anyone who reverses this loses space without gaining anything. A desk under the slope forces you to duck, and a tall wardrobe under the ridge blocks exactly the area in which you could walk upright.
In practice this means: before anything is put in place, it is worth measuring the height at several points and marking the boundaries of the zones on the floor. Only then does it become clear how much genuinely usable space there is – and where it lies.
Made to measure under the slope
Standard furniture ends at the slope, and behind it a wedge remains unused. Across a whole attic floor this adds up to several square metres.
What helps are low, deep pieces of furniture that reach exactly to the slope: drawer units, low sideboards, built-in units. Even simple shelves at two heights use the wedge better than a tall wardrobe that ends half a metre (1.6 ft) in front of the wall.
Two things need to be considered. First, drawers and flaps need space to open, and that means forwards rather than upwards – otherwise they hit the slope. Second, the front edge of a piece of furniture should not lie exactly where you walk past. A few centimetres of distance spare you bumped knees.
Not everything against the slope
The most common mistake is to push all the furniture with its back against the slopes and leave the middle of the room empty. The result looks like a corridor with alcoves.
Furniture from the middle zone can therefore move forward into the middle of the room. A bed does not have to be pushed right up against the knee wall; it can project far enough that there is comfortable space on the open side, and then it looks like a piece of furniture in the room rather than a shelf against the wall. Only the area under the ridge stays free: the headroom is needed there, and a continuous path keeps the room walkable.
In the same way, a seating group can stand freely, as long as it stays in the middle zone and does not block the path under the ridge. A low sideboard placed across the room separates areas from each other without costing height. This is how a loft becomes a room.
Where the bed belongs
In an attic, the placement of the bed is the decision around which the rest of the room is arranged. It makes sense for the bed to stand with its long side under the slope: the middle height is quite enough for lying down, the high zone remains free as a walkway and standing area, and the open side for getting in and out faces the higher side.
If the bed stands crosswise to the slope instead, so that the height decreases along its length, the head end belongs on the higher side. Anyone who sits up at night or gets up in the morning straightens up at the head end, and that is exactly where the height is needed. Towards the foot end, the ceiling can perfectly well come lower.
The very low zone – everything below about 1 m (3.3 ft) – remains storage in both cases. Flat drawers or boxes behind and beside the bed fill the wedge that nobody would otherwise use.
Light has to come from below
Ceiling lights work poorly under a slope, because at most a narrow strip of flat ceiling is left from which they could sensibly hang. And roof windows provide a lot of light during the day – for the same size, even more than a window in the façade, because they see a larger section of the sky – but in the evening none at all.
What is needed are several light sources at a low height: floor lamps in the higher areas, table lamps on sideboards, light that shines onto the slope instead of hanging from it. A slope that is lit looks higher; a dark one feels oppressive.
Because daylight through a roof window falls steeply from above, the wall below often stays dark while the floor is bright. A light paint on the slope and walls distributes this light better in the room. And because roof surfaces heat up strongly in summer, every roof window needs sun protection – fitted on the outside it works considerably better than on the inside, because the heat then does not get into the room in the first place.
Carry the colour through
Painting the wall and the slope in different colours emphasises the bend and makes the room look lower. A continuous tone across wall, slope and ceiling makes the boundary disappear.
This also applies to visible beams: if they remain in a strongly contrasting tone, they visually cut the room into panels. If you like them, leave them – but then the rest should be all the calmer.
Light, low-saturation tones have the advantage under slopes, because they reflect the scarce light instead of swallowing it. A dark paint can work, but requires considerably more light sources so that the room does not close in.
Frequently asked questions
From what height is a sloping ceiling usable?
Below 1 m (3.3 ft) only for storage, between 1 and 2 m (3.3 and 6.6 ft) for sitting and lying, from 2 m (6.6 ft) for standing and walking.
Which furniture fits under sloping ceilings?
Low, deep pieces that reach to the slope – drawer units, low sideboards, built-in units or shelves. It is important that drawers and flaps can open forwards.
How do you light an attic?
With several light sources at a low height and light that shines onto the slope. Ceiling lights rarely work there, because there is hardly any flat ceiling surface.
Should the slope and the wall be painted differently?
Better not. A continuous colour makes the bend disappear and the room look higher.
Where should the bed go under the slope?
In the middle zone, with its long side under the slope and the open side towards the higher zone. If it stands crosswise to the slope, the head end belongs on the higher side, so that you cannot bump your head when getting up. The very low zone remains storage.
