The space under a staircase gets wasted in most houses. Usually it is a cupboard door, a hoover behind it, and the vague plan to sort it out one day. This project at Chantry Close in Hartley was the day that finally happened.

Alongside the storage, the balustrade needed replacing too. It had been there long enough.

Design first

The unit was drawn up in SketchUp before anything was cut, with column positions, drawer counts and door placement all agreed with the client before a single piece of timber moved. Some people think that step is unnecessary. Those people tend to pay for it later.

The storage unit

The carcass is MDF with shaker fronts throughout. The two centre columns each have a stack of push-to-open drawers on soft-close undermounted runners, which keeps the front clean and handle-free but still practical to use day to day.

The third column was a bit trickier. The shape of the space ruled out drawer runners, so that section was finished with a hinged shaker door and a push-to-open catch instead. From the front it still reads as part of the same run, which was the main thing.

The larger end panel has a pull-out coat rail. Most hallways could do with one. Most hallways do not have one.

The balustrade

The old balustrade came out and was replaced with pine handrails and base rails, round matt black metal spindles and a wall rail on matt black brackets. The spindle profile was kept plain on purpose. Ornate spindles have a way of looking dated before the paint is dry.

Handover

Everything was handed over to the decorators at completion, ready to be primed and drench coated in one colour. Once that is done, the matt black ironmongery will be the only thing that stands out from the rest of the scheme. That was the plan from the start.