We had a 50s ranch that had a half wall. Instead of pillars, they had chains hanging from the top with balls and wooden dowels alternating, strung on the chains. It was pretty bad. So we removed the chains and instead bought a wooden screen from Pier 1 and cut it to fit and attached it top and bottom to create an interesting room divider that still let light and air through. We mounted it on one side and added track lighting above on the other side to use as display. It came out very nice. I don't have a pic, but this is something like what the screen looked like before we cut it to fit.

Until you can afford to have the ceiling redone, I would leave all the spindles. I know it's not what you want suggested, however I learned the hard way that it's better to get a plan together for an entire room than say a section at a time. Leave them, plan out a vision you love one room at a time and then get to work. So if you took out the spindles in the kitchen, removed the wood, and redid the ceiling, what would you then do with the remaining half wall in the kitchen?

Do you want just the spindles gone and a substitute put in or do you want nothing there at all?

For the second room I can't tell how close the spindles are to the edge of the half-wall but if there is some room maybe you can just build a box around them and then paint or stain them.

It would be pretty if you filled the space with stained glass panels as room dividers.

Also, you posted this on the conversation side...if you post on home decor you may get more replies

If the ceiling swirls are original to the house, it is likely that the swirls continue under the ceiling plank. You will end up having to repaint the whole ceiling. Even if the ceiling differs in texture in that area, once you paint the ceiling, any difference in texture might be quite tolerable - and the overall look more attractive to you than with the spindles in place.

Did you see this?

Go to houzz.com and search on half wall. You'll see some more updated treatments including column ideas and surfaces for the top of the wall.

Thank you all for the ideas. I will check out houzz.com as well. Annie, that link on removing them is a good one! Lurk kirsch, the half wall in the kitchen is going to stay, because of the island on the opposite side....but I need to figure a plan for that old stone look on it! LOL...that's another project!

Because I believe that some day, someone is going to buy your home and want to bring it back to it's original state, I could suggest carefully covering the posts, boxing them in as in your last photo would work. You could also box in the area around the stone too.

I had an opening between the kitchen/DR which I wasn't too fond of, and hung 2 wood/iron square wall decor panels~if something longer is needed, they can be found in vertical lengths. I suspended them from 'S' hooks, which connected with large screw in eye hooks I used in the ceiling. .I did need to paint(black) the back-side of the wall panel frames, since they were made for only one side to be seen, and also spray painted the 'S' hooks/eye hooks black. When I sold, the buyer liked the idea so much she asked if I would leave them! Needless to say, the $80 was worth the sale.