Step Up: staircase design ideas for your next project (2024)

  • Previous story
    • Architecture
    • Book Preview
    • Homes
    Book Preview: ‘I never met a straight line I didn't like’ uncovers Christchurch’s mid-century modern movementNovember 19th, 2020
  • Next story
    • Checking In
    • Interviews
    Checking In: siblings Hugo and Grace McCloud on building a contemporary interpretation of a traditional terraced house in south-east LondonNovember 20th, 2020
Step Up: staircase design ideas for your next project (1)

Staircases are not merely a functional tool to help you get from one floor to the next. They can – and should be – a theatrical architectural feature in their own right. Here we pick out some staircase design ideas that put their best foot forward, from spiralling beauties to attention-grabbing focal points.

Step Up: staircase design ideas for your next project (2)
Step Up: staircase design ideas for your next project (3)
Step Up: staircase design ideas for your next project (4)
Step Up: staircase design ideas for your next project (5)

Stairs with a twist

Spiral staircases have a long and rich history. Their use in castles and cathedrals eventually trickled down into domestic architecture and their popularity has endured – not only are they space-efficient but they are objects of beauty in their own right. This expansive duplex penthouse in Clerkenwell, in a late 19th-century textile warehouse, is connected by an unobtrusive spiral staircase that blends seamlessly with the building’s industrial interiors.

Three floors are effortlessly linked by a striking spiral steel staircase at Atlas Mews in Dalston. The shape-shifting interiors of Archway Studios – a 19th-century railway viaduct in Kennington, transformed into an award-winning home by Undercurrent Architects – feature a number of white-washed stairs, including a neat spiral that connects the living quarters with the bedrooms. Meanwhile, a stunning plywood staircase, which is lit by a round skylight, can be found at the house designed and built in 1969 by the architect David Tapp for his family in Henley-on-Thames.

Dramatic entrance

Staircases can make a real statement – from grand palaces to stately homes. Not everyone can snag one of those, of course, but homes that find clever ways to make a visual impact with theirs can still benefit. Victoria Mews in Queens Park, for instance, has a sculptural central concrete and steel stairwell that acts as an atrium and plays with shapes and textures.

The ultra-modern custom black steel staircase at Hindsleys Place in Forest Hill pays homage to the building’s industrial past and nods to the home’s black Crittall windows. The staircase at a Victorian townhouse in Hyde Park displays an elegant approach to colour, where some of the white-washed treads are picked out in grey and brown.

Step Up: staircase design ideas for your next project (10)
Step Up: staircase design ideas for your next project (11)
Step Up: staircase design ideas for your next project (12)
Step Up: staircase design ideas for your next project (13)

Tread lightly

But how to make an impact without being too dominating? Open-tread staircases are the solution. A magnificent example can be found at Aberdeen Park in Highbury where a 1970s home has been refreshed by Ian Hay Architects. Here an open-tread staircase with twisting brass handrails leads to a library mezzanine.

Railings and balustrades don’t have to overwhelm; the striking staircase in blackened steel that rises through the entire property in Clerkenwellallows in plenty of light. And the spectacular Ghost House in Warwickshire, designed by BPN Architects, nods to the timeless appeal of sweeping imperial staircases in country homes, but here they come in a decidedly contemporary folded-steel iteration.

NEWSLETTER Subscribe for moreSIGN UP
  • Collections
  • Interiors

Step Up: staircase design ideas for your next project (15)

Collections

Bright Futures: six projects packed with potential January 12th, 2024

Collections

Rich Pickings: three homes for sale in Kent December 13th, 2023

Collections

Opportunity Knocks: seven homes with earning potential November 30th, 2023

Collections

From the Ground Up: six plots now for sale November 9th, 2023

Collections

Bright Sparks: five light-filled homes for sale September 20th, 2023

Collections

Love at First Sight: homes with spectacular views for sale September 6th, 2023

Collections

Planned to Perfection: six meticulously designed modernist flats August 23rd, 2023

Collections

Plot Twist: seven plots of land with planning permission for sale August 10th, 2023

Collections

Pride and Joy: the best family homes for sale July 27th, 2023

Collections

Hot Spots: six homes that come alive in summer July 12th, 2023

Collections

Take Root: nine homes with gorgeous gardens for sale June 13th, 2023

Collections

New Wave: seven coastal homes for sale in Kent and Sussex May 29th, 2023

Collections

Good as New: the best contemporary homes for sale May 15th, 2023

Collections

Scene Stealers: seven rural homes with spectacular surroundings April 20th, 2023

Collections

Step Outside: six top-tier terraces in London homes for sale April 6th, 2023

Collections

Modern Life: six remarkable modernist homes on the market March 8th, 2023

Collections

Top Ten: your favourite neighbourhood guides of 2022 December 21st, 2022

Collections

Top Ten: the most loved listings of 2022 December 20th, 2022

Collections

Top Ten: the most inspiring interiors stories of 2022 December 19th, 2022

Collections

History Lessons: the best period homes for sale November 8th, 2022
Step Up: staircase design ideas for your next project (2024)

References

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Recommended Articles
Article information

Author: Barbera Armstrong

Last Updated:

Views: 6543

Rating: 4.9 / 5 (59 voted)

Reviews: 82% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Barbera Armstrong

Birthday: 1992-09-12

Address: Suite 993 99852 Daugherty Causeway, Ritchiehaven, VT 49630

Phone: +5026838435397

Job: National Engineer

Hobby: Listening to music, Board games, Photography, Ice skating, LARPing, Kite flying, Rugby

Introduction: My name is Barbera Armstrong, I am a lovely, delightful, cooperative, funny, enchanting, vivacious, tender person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.