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.

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.

Yes paint the spindles It will look fab. I like Sonia’s first pic, your hall would look great like that.

Another vote for painting the spindles a shade of white.

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 😊

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!

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.

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.

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? 😊

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.

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.

Came across this photo and thought about this thread.

‘Inspo’?

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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.