Choosing staircase styles & colours
staircase styles
The style of your staircase should mimic that of your home & décor. Different staircase styles could fall in the following categories:
- Modernist
- Classic
- Contemporary
- Victorian
- Hamptons
- Federation
- Mid Century Modern
- Commercial
- Traditional
Although It is not uncommon to have a mixture of these styles in the one staircase depending on location and the area, it is important to try to blend the staircase style to the suit the home. Most importantly you must be comfortable with the overall look of the staircase once it is completed. Other design features of the staircase could involve the following methods:
Staircase designs:
- Closed Riser
- Open Riser
- Cut Stringer or Sawtooth Stringer
- Cantilevered
- Semi-Cantilevered
- Curved
- Floating
- Timber Spine
- Steel Spine
Of these staircase designs, a multitude of materials could be utilized effectively in any one staircase and balustrade. These materials should be chosen in a way that it compliments the home and also the structure of the staircase design. You would not design a large, long straight flight staircase with a glass balustrade with a material that could not support the load of the staircase and the users of the staircase eg. Balsa. You would need to design it with a material that would support the loads imposed upon it with a hardwood or a steel structure. On the other hand, you can use less structural materials for shorter flights of stairs as the span isnt as great and the loads are less. The staircase can incorporate but not limited to the following materials:
staircase materials
colors and finishes
a few things to consider
- Hardwood Timbers
- Softwood Timbers
- Glass
- Stainless steel
- Mild Steel
- Structural Steel
- Concrete
Your staircase is going to be the largest piece of furniture on display in your home. Be sure to make it the focal piece. Don’t be afraid to use different colours on your staircase to compliment solid timber tones. Alternatively, having a staircase all in the one colour with slightly altered shades and carpeted treads and risers, can be just as effective. Hamptons Style staircases use this theme constantly. The combination of a lighter paint colour and a natural or darker coloured timber, always looks great in the home. This method is used in a wide range of staircase styles.
Matching your timber colour on the staircase to the timber flooring is essential. This will ensure that they compliment each other. You can generally stain lighter timbers to match the colour of darker pre-finished timber flooring. It is a good idea to ask your staircase supplier for timber offcuts off the staircase of the same species, to sample stain colours. Be aware that some pre-finished timber flooring species from overseas may not be available in Australia, but generally your qualified staircase company can guide you to something that is very similar.
- Closed Riser staircases you can either have a carpeted staircase, solid timber treads and painted risers or solid timber treads and risers. The stringers can either be painted or a timber finish. Rule of thumb is that you don’t have painted risers with timber treads and stringers. Any other combination works well.
- Open Riser staircases have treads that are generally of a solid timber or concrete construction, depending on the style of stair. The finish of the timber or concrete treads needs to be of a non-slip resistance that complies with the Building Code of Australia. These non-slip resistant coatings will aid in preventing falls on the staircase. The stringer or structure that supports the treads can be a timber or paint finish that compliments the rest. Steel stringers can be powder coated off site or painted on site. Be ware that some staircase designs strictly involve the onsite paint method due to their assembly requirements.