It's easy to see why some of us neglect our stairs at home - they
are just a means of getting from A to B, plus they are not classed as a room,
right? Technically speaking yes, however, stairwells can be a place where first
and sometimes crucial impressions are made during those transitory steps
between one floor to another.
A disappointing climb up a dark and dreary staircase littered with
yesterday's laundry can leave us completely uninspired and detract from our
overall impression of a space. Another important point to consider is that many
staircases are one of the first features that we see on entering a home –
increasing the value of a well-presented set of steps!
In terms of creative options for our homes, thankfully, plenty of
help is at hand with a wealth of stairwell options now available to research
and buy staircases online,
including external
staircases. I've had a creative blast today delving into stairs-related
interiors inspiration, to come up with some of my top tips for exploiting
stairs to their full potential - whether you're looking for an off-the-peg
option or a creative DIY inspired makeover.
(keep scrolling)
Here in our newest renovation project near Bath, I’m currently
deliberating over what to do with our stairs – on moving in we immediately
ripped up the old 1960’s threadbare carpet (there was no vintage coolness about
this one). In fact, I think the current bare wooden steps look more than
acceptable and I am very tempted to simply paint them in two or more
contrasting colours.
Every good interior should have a strong and consistent flow,
which in part relies upon well-designed and decorated corridors and stairwells
to deliver us on, what I like to call, a 'style tour' of a building. Perfectly
executed stair style can be a useful means of linking a themed 'thread' between
floors, or making a standalone style statement, whichever ‘floats your boat’!
(keep scrolling)
I’m all for updated classics and I love the abundance of
eye-catching stair runners now available, these offer a great opportunity to
introduce a bold pattern and/or colour to your staircase.
If a tight budget is a consideration, then explore the possibility
of painting your stairs in your favourite hue and if you can stretch those
pennies further, why not pick a corresponding wallpaper for a completely new
stairwell scheme.
For true archi-lovers and minimalists, it’s hard to beat the
manmade beauty of concrete combined with wood and/or metal for a truly
confident and solid design.
Images (from top) 1/ Vosges Paris 2/ Haptic Architects 3/ DSheer Luxe
4/ Design Sponge 5/ Axel Rod Architects 6/ Simplestylings
7/ Tomson floors 8/ This Old House