I have a friend with a staircase a bit like this. Great for storing things.

Hi, There are a number of ways in which the area under a staircase can be utilized. In case of a cramped house or space restrictions, this space can be used for providing storage, services or even a powder room as elaborated below : In case there are no space constraints and all the other areas are taken care of, the space below the stairs can be used for add ons such as a library, study, cellar or a minibar. In case there are any dogs in the house, this area serves as a spacious and compact kennel too : Apart from this, if the space is to be treated solely considering aesthetics, it can be livened up using a bit of indoor landscaping, sculptures and water body : Hope these ideas help. Do let us know what you decided to choose. All the best! Regards, RnD Atelier Nagpur

Hi Anuragini, Well we usually decorate all the "livable" spaces of our home and often skip the transitional ones. Revamping these with a little bit of creativity adds immensely to the entire aesthetics of the home space. Here are a few suggestions - 1. Adding an accent piece such as a huge wall clock or a wall sculpture can really add drama to the staircase space, bringing it into the limelight. Travel collectibles such as masks from all the countries you have been too or little mementos collected as you travel also make up for a very interesting display. They give the otherwise drab wall a huge face-lift. 3. Photographs of your family, their travels, their achievements are always a great option to decorate the staircase wall with. This way you can relive those memories and they serve as good conversation starters too. For a more softer look you may opt for wallpapers as well. These days they come in all colours, patterns and textures providing a lot of options to choose from. You can go for the regular damask ones if you want to play safe as they are not very loud and act as a good background to photo frames, mirrors etc. If you want to make a statement you may opt for rather bold colours with simple geometric patterns as elaborated below. Hope these ideas help you. Do let us know what you plan to do and if we can help you further. Regards, RnD Atelier, Nagpur Mob. No. - +91 7387096228

Agree with JSH Architects. Alternate materials you can use are larger tiles that can be cut to cover the entire tread of the stair, concrete finish, and solid wood (which may be slightly high on maintenance but looks beautiful. Also expensive). The answer lies in your interior palette and design. You can use pretty much anything if your handrail material is black-painted mild steel. If it is chrome (SS) and glass, then stone or tiles are better options.