What shall I do with the bannisters? Something brave?

[TheEverdelightfulsamantha]

This is our hallway, it’s a three storey town house, with no windows in the downstairs hallway and lots on the upper two floors - so I think I’m going to repaint the 15 year old magnolia in Timeless because everything else I’ve tried looks great in light, or dark, but not both (but I’m very open to suggestions there too!). We had the floor fitted last year - engineered oak - and now I don’t know what to do with the varnished pibe bannisters - I wondered if pairing them navy would look good? Is navy the new grey and it will be hopelessly last year by next year, or is already? I don’t know!

my usual approach to decorating anything is to come up with a great plan, and then convince myself it’s too crazy and end up choosing something Neutral and essentially dull! What would you do? Pictures or links to hallways and stairs that you love, paint shades… all appreciated !

You want to paint the bannisters in navy ? That is a brave move ! What paint would you use ?

Looking at your photo the thing that stands out for me is the door. What lies behind it?

I’m not convinced on the navy…. Your hallway looks v dark. I’m wondering if all timeless , even banisters, with the wood/carpet to add warmth would be better?

If that door is not hiding a toilet, I personally would replace it with a glass door which I did in my hallway. Now it is filled with light and gives scope

This is a really good idea!

I can see it working, though Persoanlly would opt for a charcoal over navy just out of preference! I think you’ve got to go for something you love and don’t worry about trends too much unless you’re selling any time soon.

I love this painted bannister…

Btw what’s behind the curtain? It kind of dominates, could a slicker/lighter cover up solution work to bounce some light around?

Also is there enough wall space to put a mirror or two up?

Yes, what’s behind the door! What a good solution to fit a glass door.

I think painting the bannister would liven it up a bit and I saw some Pinterest photos of navy ones which look good. Do you like the colour? I like these:

Oh and yes the curtain, can you get rid of it or change it?

We fixed mesh to ours and put trailing indoor plants on it. It looked fabulous.

banisters are the absolute worst to paint - do not paint them in anything "of the moment", anything that will show chips, anything that shows dust

which for me rules out dark colours pretty much

We usually keep the door open, I have just closed it to show how dark it is! The curtain covers a door on the left which goes into the garage, I put up a curtain I had that fitted when we moved it as there was a rail, it could be removed when we redecorate but I think it helps with reducing the cold that comes in from the garage (and I quite like it). The door at the end goes to a second reception room which we work from home in and is also a guest room so if we swapped for a glass door it would need a curtain - I have considered that though! The steer is clearly no on the navy bannister- thanks for the sense check!

@Heroicallyfound i love that too!

If you normally have the door open then, if you like colour, could you not paint the walls something more exciting?

@Whaeanui i do like those images - it looks really elegant I think… and light!

Your home looks really nice by the way, I love seeing into other peoples houses!

I think i aspire to be more stylish than I actually am 😜

Yes I’m still on Pinterest looking at entryways with stairs! Some are amazing.

@Whaeanui what would you suggest that is more exciting?

I mean pretty much anything would be more exciting than white… 😂

Have a look at glass instead of spindles, we've done this and it lightens up the hall and landing, we're really pleased with it, it looks stylish and modern.

I really like greens in an entrance, a bit like the one here, but I actually looked and there’s some really nice ways of painting a quite neutral light colour including white that are not boring at all. Art for me is the difference too, well placed and the right size and art can transform an entranceway.

https://www.abbottwade.co.uk/glass-staircases/

For some examples

I think it's all about personal taste. Many people love a wooden bannister and I can kind of see why.
However I recently painted ours in Hopper Head (F&B) and I just love it (see crap photo below, but you get the idea). I'm naturally drawn to darker colours so would always encourage painting things so I like your navy idea. Go for it.

@WookieWoo i love that!