How to Make Your Personal Statement Through Stair Balusters

Apart from the security aspect, banisters have an important role in jazzing up the home interiors. This article explains the different styles available and the various materials used for making handrails.

Stair banisters are railings at the side of staircases that serve the important function of preventing serious injury or death from falling.

They are ubiquitous, and we encounter them almost everyday, and everywhere. From the simple pipe mounted on the wall to prevent falls, to the complex structures, styles and materials are diverse and numerous.

The type of stair banisters used in homes and buildings can accentuate every style of architecture.

Though often used interchangeably with ‘handrail,’ the term ‘banister’ technically refers to stairways, and there has always been some kind of confusion with its exact meaning.

Of Balustrades And Newel Posts

The upper rail of the banisters is supported by a number of upright posts known as balusters.

Many castles, manor houses, museums and public buildings often have massive balustrades – made from cut stone or concrete. Balustrades are one of the oldest forms of banisters.

Today, styles and materials are quite modern and lightweight, unlike the stone and concrete of yore. The larger columns or posts at the end of the stair banisters are known as newel posts.

The Styles In Stair Banisters

Your staircase, often the first thing a visitor to your home will see, makes a stunning centerpiece for your home, especially if the styles and materials used go well with your architecture and interior decor.

When you are considering home improvements, you normally do not think of your staircase, despite the fact that you may be able to create stunning effects.

The beautiful flight of stairs, going up into your upper floors, with its stunning handrails styles, can add a unique feature to your home. There are infinite possibilities of designing your own style, after being inspired from the numerous designs and materials available. With the endless styles and materials to choose from, you can create a work of art by designing your own banister.

Wood

Wood has always been a very popular material for making staircases and banisters. There is a variety of beautifully crafted stair banisters, balustrades and handrails that will always complement your existing staircase system.

Wooden stair banisters, whether in antique or contemporary styles, will always add an appealing style to your home. Keeping in mind the safety features, the wooden banisters with their elegant and classic craftsmanship, will be structurally sound.

To select the wood that will go with your home’s existing décor, you have a wide selection of

• Red Oak,
• Brazilian Cherry (Jatoba)
• Hickory
• Walnut
• Mahogany
• Poplar
• White Oak
• Maple
• Beech, among others, to choose from.

In your newer homes, you can have your banisters styled with balusters in contemporary designs, with turnings that are plain (smooth), fluted, reeded, twisted or octagonal. Such balusters can be topped with handrails complementing its style.

Even today, you can pick up complete antique staircases with complete and complementing stair banisters, balusters and handrails, in wood, stone, and other materials. You can pick up such antique pieces and build your home around this impressive feature.

Wrought Iron

Wrought iron was always thought of as a material used for out door purposes – what with its water resistant and durable properties.

This material was not only highly decorative, but had practical uses for outdoor railings, and balconies. This outdoor stairways material is now suddenly, a very popular material for custom designing stair banisters and balusters inside homes, too.

Wrought iron is not a new material for banisters, and has been in use since the 16th and 17th centuries, in the French and Italian villas. In combination with the sweeping  staircases of limestone, wrought iron banisters were enduring and elegant. Where the all wood stair banisters gave a feeling of tradition and a sense of order, the wrought iron banisters seemed more fanciful.

However, the versatility of wrought iron made it easier to work it into intricate designs for balusters for stair banisters. One very popular style, today, is to have a wooden banister handrail with wrought iron balusters.

This gives a unique and modern look, without being expensive. Wood has always been consistently popular, and with the trend towards wrought iron with its myriad of new designs, the possibilities for balustrades seem endless.

Concern For Space

With modern houses, there is always a concern for space. In such a case, there is an option of spiral, or a helical, staircase along with its spiraling banister. You can design from the plainest to the most ornate banister for your spiral or helical staircase.

You can also build a beautiful stair banister around a staircase that is simply turned around, or curved. It does not matter whether your railing is all wood, a combination of wood and wrought iron, or all iron.

As long as they gel well with your decor, they make an elegant addition to your home’s overall atmosphere, and make a personal statement.