We believe every element of a home is worth our attention. I like to think of the experience of entering a home and moving through it for the first time. Later on, we might experience it daily and routinely just like an old and familiar friend. It’s worth considering how elements such as entries, greeting spaces, transitions between spaces and the outdoors, and stair access between floor levels can affect the day to day life of a home and the memories we build over time.

Stair cases are often overlooked and designed as an afterthought. They are designed to be moved through and perceived as transitional spaces not destinations in themselves. But the act of climbing or descending the stairs can be celebrated by providing thoughtful details access to views from a changing perspective, light quality, treads and railing treatments—each detail designed with artful craftsmanship.

Stair design can complement the home’s architecture by blending in, contrasting, or drawing the eye to a central focal point, either the stair itself or some element at each end. Following are a couple of examples from the very rustic to modern. Some express the structure while others are very minimal with little visible means of support. Other examples showcase how the stairs are integrated within the fabric of the building. Or the stair itself can be showcased as a work of sculpture.

In its own way, each of these approaches honors the rhythms and routines of daily life by creating beauty in the moments in-between.