Our Home | Staircase Inspiration

I hope everyone’s had a peaceful weekend. A string of chilly mornings and a touch of the sniffles had us bundled up with hot cups of tea and the first spicy vegetable soup of the season. It was a blessing to slow down a bit and enjoy some time indoors. The cold temps also had us unpacking the rest of our boxes (yes, we still had some to unpack 🙂 ) looking for sweaters and warm blankets. We did manage to make some progress here and there, mostly paint touch-ups on the fence and mowing the backyard but I also had some time to gather my thoughts and work on a new house project we have lined up, our staircase… 

It is a cute little staircase dividing the house into two main parts. It’s not really centered because the entrance door is not centered but I love how it’s placed and how it makes the floor plan feel straightforward. The front door opens into the staircase and as you enter to the left you have the living room, to the right the dining room and both rooms are connected with a back hallway that leads to a third bedroom, a full bath and the kitchen at the far right. The plan is cozy and efficient and the staircase acts as the perfect divider.

The problem

However, two things are wrong with it that warrant immediate action. One – it is not safe. Isabella was playing at the bottom of the stairs the other day, playing monkey bars on one of the balusters, when it broke. Nobody got hurt, thank God, but the incident pointed out the obvious – the balusters and newel are old and flimsy, probably original to the house, which makes them over half-a-century old and possibly dangerous. With young kids constantly abusing every inch of the house, safety comes first and so the balusters, hand rail and newel post need reinforcing.

Another issue I had with the staircase, from the moment we stepped foot into the house, was the look. A little too ornate and fragile for a modest colonial cottage, is what I thought. The balusters and newel post have turnings and the detailing overpower the simple cottage look I am after. I think such architectural details work in grander homes or cottages with a more romantic, ornate aesthetic (like Victorian, Georgian or Tudor) but because the staircase is practically in our living room and I’m aiming for a clean, colonial look, I want to replace the balusters and newel post with a simpler design. We shopped for a 4 x 4 x 8 post at Home Depot, a post cap and 7 new balusters, and our handyman is working on it as we speak. I will share with you the end result next Monday, along with our living room, but in the meantime I’d like to talk to you about the inspiration gathering part (my favorite) of the project.

The Inspiration

Deciding on what type of stairs we wanted took a little time and some research. Because staircases are one of those architectural elements that when done right, will work with the overall design of a space instead of standing out, I could not remember how they looked like in some of my favorite homes. Do you remember staircases in your favorite homes? Have they stayed with you over the years? For me it’s both yes and no. Some staircase designs are so breathtakingly beautiful that they become a focal point themselves and little else is needed. Those I remembered but that is not the look I was after. (Having a breathtakingly beautiful staircase in our teeny tiny entrance would be overwhelming 🙂 ) In other instances, the staircase has a supporting role and becomes a part of the whole design. You won’t remember it because it worked so well that you remember the finished room and how good it looked, rather than the parts. And that is what I want 🙂

Above, a staircase that steals the show… Everything in this photo is so beautiful – the handrail, the wall treatment, the builtin shelves, antique table and sconce… A perfect mix of old and new. Anyway, over the last couple of weeks I’ve looked at SO MANY images of stairs on Pinterest, I lost track. I did love quite a few and saved those in case you are interested and would like a peek. I know handrails and balusters are not the hottest of design topics (at least not as hot as color selection or textiles) but I’m still hoping to get you interested enough to get a conversation started. Do you care about the stairs in your home? Do you notice or ignore them in inspiration images? How do you prefer them- ornate or simple? Let me know what you think! Here are some of my favorites…

I’ll be back next week to share with you our finished staircase. Thanks for stopping by, have a great start to your week!