What can I do with my stairs? Pics inc

[MerryMarigold]

I stripped beige the runner off and filled all the holes about 3 months ago. I still haven't decided what to do, what color to paint them, bannister, panelling. The stairs look much wider without a runner but the family seem to prefer carpet. I like the idea of navy stairs and panelling and keeping the bannister as is. But....I don't know.

Any ideas? Please.

Navy carpet on the stairs would look great but would show all the dust and debris. What about a striped carpet?

Thanks. I'm not hugely keen on carpet full stop, definitely not navy though, you're right! I was thinking navy paint.

I painted the stairs in our 400+ year old house (stairs are Victorian) a few years ago using Little Greene Lamp Black eggshell. Then I papered the risers using some vintage Arts & Crafts Movement border paper I'd had lying around for ages. I varnished the paper a few times but it hasn't worn terribly well.

We're about to sell and I'm refreshing the stairs, this time using Little Greene floor paint in the same colour. I'm hoping the paper will clean up ok.

Here's a pic of how it currently looks.

Navy walls and durable jute “carpet”?

Look at the Frenchic groups on fb 👌🏽

How much natural light do the stairs get? This could affect colour choice.
If it was me, I’d go for a striped flat weave runner (Roger Oates type), with navy panelling, and then a wallpaper above that echoed the colours of the runner.

I love bare, painted stairs, but our house has a lot of stairs and it’s thunderously noisy. We have this runner on stairs and bannisters painted F and B Inchyra blue, but ours is wider than the image so a fair bit of painted step visible.

The issue is the pine(?) on the left.

I agree! I'd get rid of the panelling or paint at least. How come you don't like carpet on stairs? Not a criticism, a genuine question. I'm not a fan of wooden stairs, noisy, slippery, look unfinished to me etc.

I would paint the stairs, panelling and spindles white and have a runner, not carpet. I would possibly have the handrail a darker wood colour. Something like this:

if they were mine , I would paint the wooden panelling white, then refresh the white paint on the stairs and bannister. It depends on what decoration you have in the room they lead into at the bottom in terms of colours. if you don’t want a carpet runner which would be my preference , then I would use stair riser decals , attached a fairly generic one so you get an idea https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/1319278510/floral-removable-stair-riser-decals-pack?click_key=3f64be01f51b94eb040b0dd01f034bd67c7463b8%3A1319278510&click_sum=36499d00&external=1&rec_type=cs&ref=pla_similar_listing_top-5

Back in 2012 at a previous house we opted for cream painted stairs with a Roger Oates runner....

We're going to paint our stairs with non slip paint and fix some non slip treads. No more carpet because the cats just shred it and they know they shouldn't but they just can't resist even thought they have a scratching post.

Thanks. Some great ideas.

There was a runner before but the stairs look so much wider without. We do have 2 cats and dog and no other carpet in the whole house.

Other issue is that there is a second staircase to downstairs which was put in by previous owners. It is same colour as the bannisters.

I agree that I hate the colour of the panelling and it needs to be painted. The question is what colour. There is panelling all over downstairs though so I wouldn't get rid of it, likely would need to be replastered behind.

I love the black stairs with the risers. I looked at patterned risers previously but no one else liked them.

The whole house needs redecorating. It's currently all painted scratched up off white with dark skirting. I'm not really a white person so I do want to do something. The flooring downstairs is entirely beige tiles. It's too expensive to change.

The floor. Orange chimneybreast could go too. It's all inherited.

@LibertyLily I LOVE the first photo you posted (of the stairs in your current house). So interesting! 😍

Thank you!

Are there neighbours next to the stairs? If so, a carpet would be good for neighbourly relations, even if you're not keen. My NDNs have wooden floors and no stair carpets, and when the children run up and down stairs it sounds like tap dancing elephants.

Sorry OP I’m no help! I have stairs carpeted in carpet that we must have chosen in a dream, it’s terrible.
@RoadLess love this. Where from pretty please?

How about a durable neutral coloured runner that will blend in and won't make it look narrower and then paint the panelling the same as the bannister. I'm not sure about painting the stairs navy though?

It’s Roger Oates— ruinously expensive, but lovely!

Bloomin gorgeous thank you! Roger Oates is a blast from the past, the 2000s when we couldn’t afford nice stuff. Off to have a look again, thank you 😊

Yes it was neutral/ very light brown before but it still narrowed the stairs. Might still have carpet though, kids want it.

I looked at Roger Oates. Lovely but 😱. (That was clearance). I don't trust the cats not to scratch it up, and the dog takes her treats to the bottom stair!

Stairs in middle of house so noise is OK. We don't have shoes upstairs.

Why do you care how wide they look? They obviously don’t actually change width or useability. They’re never going to be grand, stately home stairs. So I’m genuinely not sure why that seems to be such a big deal for you, OP?