Have you gotten a price to change the texture? I’m afraid black might just draw attention to the ceiling, I’d just paint it the same as the walls if I couldn’t afford to deal with the texture.

Doesn’t the texture really just scrape off? I think black May look ominous..and there are some designs now that are using textured ceilings, you may want to just paint it a nice white to rally freshen it up.

The texture is not coming down, like I said. Yes, that is the ideal choice but it's not happening. I've painted basement ceilings black before and the difference was fantastic! I guess the question is, will black paint hide the texture?

I agree with K Laurence same as the walls to hide. best plan is to get rid of texture when you can.

I can assure you that if I see a black ceiling in a kitchen, I will be looking very hard at it and will notice the texture even more! But why not do a small section and see if it looks okay?

Texture isn't a bad thing, though. I might try the cabinet color in a glossy paint up there (it won't end up glossy because of the texture).

There are some bad textures of course. Is yours regular or patchy and messed up?

Thanks Fori, I might try a small section. The ceiling texture is very heavy, and very patchy. It is plaster and lath with drywall over the top; and a couple of rooms were combined at one point. The ceiling has been painted before and could have asbestos in it, so I'll say it one more time for the people who did not believe me before ;-) ...the texture is **NOT** coming down!

Ugh, we have splotchy ceilings like that... I hate them! We’ve removed it in some small rooms, but for us it wasn’t as easy as just scraping it off because they had been painted in the past. In one of our rooms we will eventually lay boards on the cathedral style ceiling to cover it up, but that’s not feasible in our entire house. We’ve had rooms where we painted it white, and rooms were we painted it darker to match walls... but the REAL key for getting the awful texture to be much less noticeable is to get as flat of a sheen as possible on the ceiling. Your ceiling is much more noticeable because it looks dingy next to the walls. If you matched the white, but with a very flat sheen, it would look 100times better. I’d personally do a color before I did black in a kitchen...

I too have some texture and know it's not coming down unless it's stripped to the studs. :P

This ain't a popcorn ceiling!

It might be worth (muhahahaha!!) adding MORE texture to even it out.

Thanks Sandra, I'll try to edit the original post.

^^I have to agree with Sandra Martin. Unfair to be frustrated with people for not giving you the answers you want to hear if your post had scanty information and no photos.

In any case, painting basement ceilings black is not the same thing as painting your kitchen ceiling black. How large is the kitchen? Are there windows in the kitchen? What color cabinets do you have? I agree with others that it will call attention to the ceiling more because a black kitchen ceiling is unusual, and people will be staring at it. For resale (I know you didn’t mention resale) it would be an issue because potential buyers would ask why did you paint the ceiling black so would highlight it.

Hi M Miller, I'm just pointing out that I did mean what I said, and had good reason for it. Also, I did post a picture, so I'm not sure why you can't see it?

Ah, sorry I didn’t see your photo. Sometimes these posts on Houzz can do weird things with photos appearing and not appearing. Anyway, what I said still applies. I think a black ceiling will call attention to itself and won’t look good. I know that is not what you want to hear.

Would it be possible to cover your existing ceiling with 1/4" drywall panels. They usually run about $10 a 4x8 sheet. Your cabinets, faucet, hardware, etc. all look great. I agree with most other responders that a painted black kitchen ceiling in that room would detract from that great look.

I was gonna say what Hazel suggested - instead of removing (which you are not doing due to possible asbestos), have new drywall installed over it. It’s obviously a good bit of work, but IMO would be worth it to get rid of the texture issue.

The best thing you can do is paint the ceiling the same color as the walls but in a dead flat finish.

Instead of drywall you could continue the wall panelling onto the ceiling. You seem to have a cottage-y vibe going that would really support a tongue-and-groove ceiling nicely.

That would be pricy.

I think your idea is a good one, just make sure to use a flat sheen. I don't think it would attract more attention to it, think of all the restaurants, cafes and public places that paint their ceilings black to hide structural elements, you don't see people staring at them.

I have been wanting to do that at my home, I too have textured ceilings (not popcorn) and I hate it; I just haven't had the time (or courage) to do it.