We have raked ceilings in our new split level extension that follows the fall of the land (and in the rooms that were part of the skillion sections of the old cottage) and I love the sense of space they give and also the fact that the inside reflects what is happening on the outside of the house. We have used ceiling boards (painted white – I didn't want to feel like I was living in a cigar box) both in the old cottage and in the new section and they certainly add an enormous amount of visual interest to the rooms as well. However, I endorse the comments about the added trickiness of light fittings. Pendants with rods are out and pay particular attention to the little rose/canopy thingies that connect pendants to the ceiling – make sure that they sit flush with the ceiling and don't have weird unsightly bits that you can suddenly see because of the angled ceiling. We have successfully used LED downlights with a recessed diffuser and dimmer switches to make sure there is no glare but if the raked angle isn't too extreme they are a definite possibility.

For a "couple of days a year" get a pedestal fan straight on everyone and leave the features in the ceiling. Seriously...I have 12 ceiling fans in my house and two wall mounted fans...the wall mounted fans are so much more effective then ceiling (and I don't know where you live, but did you know fans have a "summer" and "winter" setting??). Most people don't. Tip: turn the fan off before changing the setting.

The lounge in our 1956 house in South Africa had a stained wooden ceiling. The house didn't have any insulation so the lounge would become really hot in Summer. We opted to have the original ceiling removed and dropped 150mm so we could install insulation. We needed to paint the original panels but left the varnished beams. Every wall in the house was painted white, which I found too stark. I decided to paint the lounge using a light blue and a peach colour. People thought this was a bit bold, but I was happy with my choice. The before photos were scans from the 1980s, as I couldn't find the original EA photos when we bought the house.

Good morning! I love love love your ceiling! As others have asked - is it something that repeats through the house? I would 100% keep them - the key is to work with them not fight against them. I would also replace the light fitting - look at having recess lights installed. There are a number of things that you can do when you have such a prominent feature such as this in a room - you either choose to work with it and 'calm' it down into the space - such as painting the ceiling and the walls in the same colour - or you say - to hell with it and make it the hero of the room. I have seen some stunning ceilings where the walls have been painted in a 'white' and the ceiling painted in a strong colour such as navy which then ties into accents in the room. It would obviously depend on your personal style. Good luck!