• Start with good tools: a strong ladder, the right tape and ergonomic brushes.

• Popcorn ceilings? No problem. You don't have to scrape and skim coat them if your time and budget won't allow. A matte finish in a deep shade will minimize the textured effect.

• Don't use gloss paints unless your ceiling is in excellent condition. If it is, it's an excellent look.

• A lighter color than the walls makes them look taller. That includes tinted whites and cool blues and greens. Black and near black also create a more expansive effect. Warm colors make the room come down, like a hug.

• A trick for making a tall room feel cozier: Paint the ceiling a different color than the walls, and bring that ceiling color down 3 feet or so into the walls.

• Use a color that varies from the walls and trim. Martha Stewart Living for Home Depot takes away guesswork by suggesting ceiling and trim colors for its wall-color paint chips.

• Timid about a ceiling color outside of white? Try a yellow-tinted white such as Niveous, which adds warmth to the room, or Sonnet, which contains a touch of pink, flattering to all skin tones. Both are Benjamin Moore. Sky Blue is a classic.

• Color-confident? Benjamin Moore's Caribbean Azure is deep turquoise. Benjamin Moore senior interior designer Sonu Mathew used Sesame, a greenish-yellow, for the ceiling in her recently repainted Gray Owl home office.