Staircase in victorian hallway to pain or not

3 years ago

I need help deciding what to do with our staircase. It is worn in places and iI could, as advised, touch up with wax and leave it the dark mahogany colour it is. I am goin to paint all the walls jasmine white to lighten it all up from the current dark cream, a new carpet will also go down. I cantcan't decided whether to paint the spindles white or not, some people have suggested it will increase saleability however it didntdidn't put us off, as our hall is wider than average iI feel it can take the dark bannister. What do you think?

Featured Answer

PRO

misch_MISCH studio

3 years ago

Hi Jill,

to be honest. Painting the staircase will not resolve your hallway that needs more than that I am afraid.

What are you trying to achieve with the paint?

ps; great pendant and balustrade

Message me if you'd like to discuss more & I'll see if I could direct you further.

Mischa

mMx

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (14)

Jill Gibson
Original Author
3 years ago
I think i have come to the wrong site. Im aware our hallway needs more than that, my question was regarding the staircase. The walls will be painted lighter as it a dark hallway.
Related Discussions
Victorian hallway
Q
Comments (15)
Wow what a beautiful house !! That red carpet is soaking up all the light, once that's gone it will make a huge difference. Maybe then paint the stairs white or an old white, or a light coloured carpet. I would keep the Lincrusta, unless you dislike it, it adds period drama and texture, and again paint it off white. Wickes have a surprisingly interesting range of colours too, cheaper than F&B. The curtain probably stops a draught, I would get a huge white vintage French linen sheet, £60ish on eBay, and possibly line and interline it. After all that if it still seems dark, you may consider painting the wood panelling, shame but it could look great ! Also paint the lower banisters the same as the rest !
...See More
Advice on hall in Victorian house
Q
Comments (9)
Hello, I would definitely paint the woodwork white rather than leave it cream. It really will lighten it up and help to make it feel fresh and new. You also must change the light fitting. Your hallway is quite narrow and looks quite dark; try to find a fitting that illuminates and is brighter. It might be worth experimenting with different bulbs too. Blue and gold go great together. I agree with chotston01 that wallpaper and paint don't always go together. Have you looked at a gold paint for above the rail? I also think its a huge change when all your other rooms are very light. You might find that its simply too dark for you once you live with it for a while - but then its easy to paint the smaller area with a lighter blue - like the duck egg. Ill be interested to see the finished hallway. Good luck.
...See More
Dado Dilemma in Victorian hallway renovation
Q
Comments (8)
I love my dado rails. I have picture rails in all rooms but dado rails in the hallways as I find it really breaks up the room and my toddler uses them to wipe his sticky fingers on, rather than the walls. I think your rail may be a little high though, like ours were and we also had 'dado rail art' at the top of the stairs. Took plastering to fix. It's really nice having pictures up the stairs which I haven't got around to as I don't have picture rails and drills make me worry our ancient plaster will crumble...so wonder if picture rails could have helped with that. Just a couple of thoughts!
...See More
Before & After - Victorian Hallway and Staircase
Q
Comments (6)
Hi there! Great! I am glad your client accepted your design. It is "look at me"))) kind of staircase and all entrance.
...See More
Sonia
3 years ago
Absolutely gorgeous hall and staircase! It’s got real character. I feel you could go white which is always classic or some kind of grey. Either a graphite dark grey or something paler but more classic such as F&B Moles Breath - my sister has this in her hall and it’s stunning. Last picture is Moles Breath.
AM
3 years ago
Yes paint the spindles It will look fab. I like Sonia’s first pic, your hall would look great like that.
Daisy England
3 years ago
Another vote for painting the spindles a shade of white.
PRO
Poppy Noble Interior Design
3 years ago
Hi Jill.

What a great space! There are quite a lot of options with such a lovely large staircase such as this. It’s just working out what route you’d like to go down. Traditional, eclectic, modern etc.
I agree with Sonia and feel that a runner would look stunning. You could either have the tread sanded back to it’s natural wood and just have the rises painted. Or have the stairs painted and the rails painted in a different colour. I’ve attached some pics to show you how far you can take it. Also for some inspiration 😊
T Gray
3 years ago
We agonised for ages over whether we should paint our stairs in our Edwardian or not as they were horrible 90s orange varnished pine for the most part. The banister and newel post however are a nice oak in a darker colour. We painted the walls in the hall F&B Old White and used a complementary white called Slipper Satin (more of a cream really) on the treads and risers and spindles and left the banister and newels as they were. The colours have given us a classic but neutral scheme that shows off our original tiled floor.

Looking at yours though, the newels, spindles and banister are absolutely lovely and if you are lightening up the entire space anyway, it would be a beautiful feature. If you do decide to paint then you need to decide if you want to highlight the feature or tone it into the rest of the decor. I would show it off if it were mine. :)

I would suggest a runner on the stairs too actually, makes even more of a statement. Good luck!
Eileen M
3 years ago
Stunning hallway! Keep us posted what you decide. Love Sonia’s suggestions. I can’t convince my other half to paint our spindles - I’m working on it. I’ve attached a picture of our hallway as very similar to yours.
J
3 years ago
I'd say leave, I don't like to damage original features. Though I wouldn't paint the walls white, I'd have a darker wall colour (or at least something else dark in the room), so that you don't have such a large contrast.
E D
3 years ago
last modified: 3 years ago
I get what you’re saying J, but painting something is not damaging it.

The dark wood stain could actually be a later addition (so maybe not original).

It’s an impressive hallway though and the bannister will be a great feature, painted or not.

Sorry, that isn‘t much in the way of advice, is it? 😊
Juliet Docherty
3 years ago
It's beautiful and I think you have several options. At the moment, if you look at your first photo, the bannister disappears a bit into the carpet and so isn't the focus. If you were to go for a paler carpet then it may work better. I love Sonia's first image, but I think what makes it work is the warm dark wooden floor that contrasts with the cool mid toned carpet and pale walls. If it were mine I would consider keeping the bannister and posts wood and painting the rest a sympathetic colour such as Shaded White by Farrow and Ball, it would look less contrasting and calm. If you like things traditional then I would look at a carpet that emulates Sisal and choose a colour palette that complements such as the Shaded White/Shadow White colours from Farrow and Ball. If you google 'How to Decorate with Joa Studholme - Living Room" she is doing a lockdown tour of her home in which she uses these colours.
kazzh
3 years ago
If you are undecided about painting the spindles, a starting point might be to think just about the steps only. Were you moving away from the full carpet towards a runner on wood? Changing this aspect might help you to decide. Giving the whole bannister a good srub down with an appropriate wood finish cleaner may bring out a glow and freshen things up, making the dark banister a feature against your lighter walls.
E D
3 years ago
Came across this photo and thought about this thread.

‘Inspo’?

O Road · More Info
jasmine_west39
3 years ago
Hi Jill

Your hall way is amazing! I wouldn’t paint the balustrade but keep the original colour. The wall need to be painted in a lighter colour- you’ve already decided that. If you paint white or another colour you will lose the beauty of the natural wood plus you will also have to keep maintaining it. It’s a amazing space and your ideas are perfect.