Making An Entrance

Inspiration

Making An Entrance

The hallway is the first space to welcome us home and where first impressions are made. From greeting guests to setting the tone for your interior, it deserves thoughtful design. Explore ideas and tips for choosing the perfect stair runner to make a stylish entrance.

Mila Terracotta stair runner – made in collaboration with A Rum Fellow | project by Vaughan Design and Development | Photography by Chris Snook

How to choose the right stair runner for your home.

Hallways are often overlooked, transitional spaces – functional passageways that can sometimes be an afterthought when it comes to home styling. We think of them differently. Choosing one of our runners for your stairs is an easy and eye-catching way to transform a hallway from busy thoroughfare to welcoming focal point of the home. From varying light conditions to size and adjoining rooms, finding the right design to suit a space can be daunting, so here are a few steps to consider.

Be bold, inject colour.

The hallway is a space where we can dare to be a bit bolder. Whether through bold paint choices or an eye-catching stair runner, introducing colour is the best way to add personality and individuality to your home.

As the main focal point of a hallway, the staircase is a great place to build a cohesive scheme. A brightly patterned runner instantly creates a bold welcome and uplifting energy, while carrying colour throughout different levels of the home. Painting woodwork on stairs in a contrasting or complementary tone to the stair runner is an effortless way of creating a striking look that allows colour to flow seamlessly between different rooms and spaces.

Ready to embrace colour? Visit our website to order up to four free flatweave samples to test on your stairs and paintwork. For inspiration, browse our gallery and see how others have styled their spaces.

Masai Emerald features a high contrast herringbone and rib weave combine strong pattern and colour for a show stopping statement stairs. — Masai Emerald

Morella Amber – made in collaboration with A Rum Fellow

Mila Gold Stair Runner — Mila Gold – made in collaboration with A Rum Fellow

Set the tone.

The runner you choose can help define the aesthetic and feel of your home, and is a great place to start when beginning a new project. Whether you decide on a calming, neutral scheme or something more bold and eye-catching, matching a runner based with the colour palette is a subtle and elegant way to create cohesiveness. Not only can it connect spaces together, but lifting tones and textures from your runner and echoing these in other areas of the home, builds subtle links from room to room.

If you already have chosen your design or a runner in place, and are looking to elevate your staircase further, stair rods offer an elegant option to tie a scheme together. Choosing to match existing hardware with stair rods builds a subtle link within a scheme, and echoing metalwork like brass, iron or steel highlights an attention to detail and appreciation towards original features.

Dart Midnight | Dark Antique Bronze stair rods

Redefining spaces.

In homes where entrances lack presence or space is at a premium, consider transforming them into more purposeful areas. A striped hallway runner can add direction and flow through narrower passageways, or for larger entrance halls, look to our hand tufted rugs to create an allocated zone within the space whilst injecting luxurious texture underfoot.

In busy, well-used areas, placing an upholstered bench in the hallway offers both practicality and interest. It provides a convenient spot to sit and put on shoes, while also introducing a touch of pattern and colour that helps enliven and break up a space that can often be challenging to decorate. Adding an accent chair with one of our flatweave cushions, or investing in practical built-in storage can also transform a hallway.

The Dune hand tufted rug is a balance of mass and void, where drifts of tonal colours in an intricate texture meet a corner of solid colour. Photographed in a classic home interior. — Dune Hand tufted rug

Penrose Rug Contemporary Interior Design — Penrose Hand tufted Rug

Other elements to consider.

Runner widths and finishing details

Our flatweave is supple and flexible in nature, meaning there are a number of versatile fitting options for all types of stairs. From an awkwardly-shaped curved bullnose step to winding staircases, an experienced installer will know how to find the right installation solution for your stairs.

In addition to the style of your staircase, choosing the right width of runner for it is key, and we advise a 5cm gap on either side of your runner. With a selection of various width options available, we also offer a bespoke service if your chosen design is not available in the required size. For more information and advice about flatweave installation, visit our technical gallery.

Stairs leading to Landing spaces

Timeless border designs like Hanbury, Dart, Flaxman and Trent are great options for stairs, with their co-ordinating ground designs the perfect pairing for landing areas in schemes looking to connect these transient spaces together. Another option is using the same design on both stairs and landing, creating a bold and elegant flow of cohesive pattern throughout the home.

‘Border’ design Hanbury Stone and ‘ground’ Byron Stone

Fulham stone fully fitted on stairs and landing

If you are looking to transform your hallway, discover our full flatweave collections here. To find your nearest stockist, click here, or for a one to one appointment at our London Studio or Herefordshire Showroom, visit our contact page and get in touch with our knowledgeable team for more information. For further inspiration, you can find our brochures available to download online, or order a printed copy to your home.