Iron stair rails

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In the early 2000s, I remember going into a house for sale and noting that the house had an iron railing.  It was not a totally foreign concept to me; the contemporary house that I lived in as a teenager had an iron railing. However, at that time, wood railings seemed to be more common in the houses I was seeing. 

This is the real estate picture from that same house – I saved it to my files because I thought the stair rail had such a nice look to it.  I actually saved a lot of pictures from this home, because I thought that the layout was really wonderful.

Although I have certainly given a lot of input to my architect, including pictures of things I like and general ideas about the feel that I want in the new house, I never really mentioned anything about the railing for the stairs.  When we started to discuss the stairs and their design, my architect had an iron railing in the plans.  It just seems to fit best with the style of house that we are doing.

Once the design direction for the railing was set, I started to notice all sorts of beautiful iron railings used in homes that I admire.  This one in particular is quite stunning.  The handrail part seems quite thick (perhaps it is painted wood?), and I love the curly, calligraphy like details on the rails.   I also love a beautiful window on a landing, which we will also have in our stair design.  Architecture by Bill Litchfield, photo credit Tom Namey.

A beautiful iron stair rail in a home with interiors by Katie Stassi.  I love a nice curved stair, but they are more expensive to build. We are doing straight stair design with a curve in the turn.

Iron on stair rails can become a major design element, and a work of art unto itself.  There is something so beautiful and graphic about this design in a home by Richard Drummond Davis Associates, an architectural firm in Dallas (check out their website for more beautiful house pictures) . 

A Tudor style house from the Tracery Interiors portfolio carries the Gothic design element of the home into the beautiful railing on this stair.

Another window at the landing of the stairs, this one in a home by architect William Hefner.  The stair rail carries through the subtle art deco feel in some of the design elements of this home.

One of my favorite iron stair rails, in a home with architecture by Rodolfo Castro (project architect while working at Summerour & Associates). The design is clean lined and so beautiful.

Another one of my favorite pictures (there is the big window at the turn of the stairs again), with a detailed ironwork design in the stairs.

This is more like how we are doing our stairs (but not the railings – ours will be much simpler)– straight but with a curve at the turn.  These stairs appear to be made out of limestone, which is quite a luxurious touch (and definitely not in my budget!).  I featured this house on my blog last year – it is on the market, and was a Veranda cover home.  The front door is positioned between two floors, which can be clearly seen in this picture. Thanks to Trouvais for posting this on her blog.  Image from Veranda April 2006. Architecture by Pak-Heydt.

I am not sure where this image came from , but the stair design really caught my eye, as did the elaborate iron railing.  Note the stone stairs again.

This beautiful staircase appeared on Architect Design’s blog quite some time ago, and it has been in my ‘favorites file’ for some time now.  I love the delicate and unique design on the railing.

I came across this image from the December 2007 Architectural Digest featuring a home with interiors by Thomas Pheasant.  The dramatic iron stair rail adds such a bold graphic quality to the space (as does the statement lighting!).

Another exquisite iron railing, in Suzanne Kasler’s former home.

A clean lined and sculptural iron railing in a home designed by architect Stan Dixon.

Another glorious iron railing in a home designed by Stan Dixon.  I love the way the railing tapers off into a little outward facing curl.

I have seen this iron design in pictures of homes from 19th century France, such as this beautiful home seen on the Trouvais blog.

Jim Howard used a similar design in a home he recently designed in Sea Island, Georgia. The home was featured on the cover of House Beautiful earlier this year.

Recently, when trying to clean out a closet that contains about 200 magazines, I came across this beautiful, beautiful railing.  It is in that interesting design seen in the previous two pictures (which can be found in many late 19th century French designs), but appears to combine wood and iron together.  Architecture by Ken Tate.

 

A one of a kind stair rail design by Andrew Crawford,  an Atlanta based artist who creates masterful pieces in iron.   Check out his website for more inspiration.  This railing is from a home in Sea Island, and clearly pays homage to the sea grasses that abound in this coastal region.  

Another case of stair rail as art: there are 32 animals that are fully developed on both sides of the rail.  This exquisite rail took three people over six months to create.  Interestingly, there are no rodents, spiders, or snakes in the design because the owners did not want to frighten small children!  Iron rail crafted by Clare Yellin and Chris Tierney, from Traditional Home November 2002.

 

There is quite a sculptural beauty in an iron stair rail; this one is simple and elegant, and yet still has great impact.  John Minshaw Designs – via VT Interiors.

Readers, what is your preference? Do you like iron stair rails and railings, or are you a wood rail fan?

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