Keep it light otherwise it makes the low ceilings feel even lower. I will share our story in the hope it may help you! Picture 1. We moved from a house with high ceilings to one with low bedroom ceilings and it felt claustrophobic for a while (2 years we put up with it). Our bedroom, when we moved in, had burgundy walls, dark wooden doors into the ensuite and wardrobe, b&w zigzag curtains and pink carpet (yes someone thought pink carpets and burgundy walls would be a good idea!). The one redeeming feature was large glass sliding doors that led out onto a covered deck which provided a view and let in some light (which pretty much got swallowed by all the dark features). We faced our bed towards the doors when we moved in to have a view - as who wants to look into the bathroom like the previous owners did in the picture! Transforming the space: We pulled up the carpet and laid medium coloured wood floors (dark floors were too much for this space and needed to work through entire house), we painted the whole room including the ensuite and bathroom slatted doors white - all of which transformed the space in a way that really surprised me. A tallish wooden bed head and antique dresser, along with tall (rather than wide) artwork help add height to the room as do the doors now that they are white. To keep a feeling of warmth in the room (sorry minimalists out there) I used linen bedding in greys and used blue accessories in rugs and cushions which compliment the artwork which we picked up from a painter on the streets of Paris (framed on our return). We used a muted rug on the floor to bring elements together and for warmth for our feet as we live in a very cool climate during winter months. I simply wanted colour that wouldn't overpower the space. Since pics were taken: We have since started revamping the outside deck and removed some of the lattice which has brought a beautiful flood of natural light flooding in and a view of the garden. Our next step: will be to add some white linen or silk curtains at the highest height possible to maintain an illusion of height. We will extend the curtains to land either side of the doors when open, as while we now need to have them for some added privacy, we still want the light and the view most of the time including when the deck is lit up at night. We will keep the curtains light as colour would encroach on the room size which isn't very big. Our dream addition is to replace the sliding doors with white French doors. Hope this is helpful.

Funny how your query has popped up on the Australian version of Houzz, as we are along way from Nebraska. I would want an explanation from the builder why the coffered ceiling needs to drop so far as they look very heavy and oppressive. Probably the sort of detail I might use in a multi-story carpark. Are the dropped sections concealing plumbing from upstairs? Could he build it without any coffers? If there is a choice between 12inch coffers or no coffers I would go with a flat ceiling. A new home is a lot of money and you need to get it right so I would say 6 inch coffers as displayed in the model home, or walk away. See if he changes his tune... Best of luck Dr Retro of Dr Retro House Calls.

Thanks all for your advice. Ive included some renders that I made with view along the corridor with and without the bulkhead. I don't think renderst does it justice until you actual walk through @ frame stage. I agree that ceiling height and comfort and look, depends on climate, orientation, insulation, relative proportions of other parts such as windows/doors. Because of the Melbourne climate, we have planned for double glazing, and good insulation with R2.5 batts wall, R6.0 ceiling. We have 2.4m height of windows and door around the ground floor which is btw 3 to 3.6m so I think proportion wise should be ok. In the family where it was always planned 3.6m from the start, we have a band of clerestory windows too. We have decided not to be too excessive with windows ( ie 3m and even 3.6m floor to ceiling - how grand would have that looked though! ) to minimise heat loss during winter. Energy rating for house is 7 stars so far. Thanks for giving me the pro and cons - I have some more confidence to let it stay at 3.6m throughout now.

Hi dreamer, thanks for the suggestion. Im wondering though, how do I treat the junction between the vanity and the fixed panel of the shower screen? The diagram I uploaded above leaves out the shower head, so there will in fact be a shower-over-bath in the above scenario, with a fixed panel adjacent the bath. If I have the vanity hard up against the bath, I'll need to tile the side of the vanity, no?