A few weeks ago, I took the plunge and painted the hand rails on my stairs black. I loved the way they looked, but I was stumped. I couldn’t decide whether to leave the newel posts white or paint them black too.
So I went to Facebook and Instagram for some second opinions. And I got plenty! Most people said to leave them white, but the people who did tell me to paint them black had good arguments as to why I should, and some even sent me pictures! Well, all of that advice really helped me to make up my mind, so after living with them the way they were for a couple of weeks, I took the bigger plunge and painted my newel posts black too!
May I also add that LC wanted me to paint them black. And he hardly ever has an opinion one way or the other. That’s what I like about him. He pretty much gives me free reign to do whatever the heck I want to around here. He trusts my vision, because he always likes the way it turns out. So he has learned from experience to trust the expert! Ha!
So, I got to painting. Now, with the hand rails, they were not previously painted, so I sanded them down a bit first. But the newel posts were white, so I cleaned them and let them dry first. The hand rails took 3 coats of paint, while the newel posts took four. Yeah, I was a little perturbed at that 4th coat.
But the 4th coat did the trick! And I quite like the way they turned out! I still need to apply a top coat like I did on the hand rails. Actually I think I going to do two coats, because these things get a lot of wear and tear. Before I painted them, they were pretty beat up looking.
In case you were wondering, I used Behr premium plus paint in the color Broadway. I love the color, and I also used it on my front door and my kitchen door. I love the look so much that I have big plans to paint other doors in the house black too. Seriously, it is one of the best choices I have ever made, next to marrying LC. It shows no dirt! And that makes me smile. Say hello to Tom.
Everything else is going to get a fresh coat of white. Someday! And the walls in the stairwell are on my to do list for Thanksgiving Break. I probably won’t get them finished, but I am going to do the parts of the wall that I can reach on my own. The ceilings are very high, and this little lady is afraid of heights.
You can see that at the top of the stairs, you can go straights into the kitchen, go right into the living room, which has some nice high ceilings, and the doorway to the right is the dining room. Pretty standard layout for a split level home. Did I ever tell you about how I always said I would never live in a split level home? Yeah, I was wrong.
I feel like the black newel posts ground the stair case. Before, the black hand rails kind of appeared to be floating. Now, they seem anchored.
Once these walls are painted and the rest of the railings and stair risers are painted too, this house is going to have a completely different feel when you walk in the door.
I might argue that it will be the most dramatic transformation yet since we moved in! But the kitchen cabinets were quite the transformation themselves. So they will be giving my entry way a run for it’s money.
Already though, when I walk in the front door, I feel more at home here. More like I actually live here and this house reflects me and my family. Know what I mean?
In case you have noticed the new shoe cabinet at the bottom of my stairs in any of these pictures, you can read more about it here.
What do you think of my black newel posts? Have you been painting any stair rails lately? It’s not the best time in the world, but what a change! Here is a before and right now picture for you.
Quite a transformation, if I do say so myself, and I am only about 1/4 of the way there, so I am feeling pretty darn good at this point!
Happy Monday to you! Enjoy your day!
Link Parties:
The Dedicated House
Rain On A Tin Roof
Between Naps On The Porch
A Stroll Through Life
Uncommon Designs
View From 510
Home Stories A to Z
Savvy Southern Style
DIY By Design
The Happy Housie
Liz Marie Blog
The Shabby Nest
Remodelaholic
I actually like both! I think it depends on your personal preference. I’m in the process of having our stairs redone (I’m definitely not courageous enough to do it all myself). I’ve gone back and forth about my decision to leave the new boxes newel posts white or mocha (we’re having our handrail in mocha and the balusters/spindles in white) and whether or not to have the wood board underneath the balusters (closed stringer) as white or stained mocha. I think I’m going to go with the white newel posts, white balusters with white board underneath, and the railing in mocha. Even though I think the mocha newel posts would help to anchor the staircase, I also know how dark our entryway can be so I’d want to lighten up that area esp since the rest of our floors will be in mocha.