Designing A Railing

The possibilities are endless. Over the years, I’ve gone through phases where the inspiration to a design railing, crowds out all other thoughts and pushes me to pick up a pen. The images I created almost 30 years ago still move me and make me wonder, “When will I ever have the time to create these things and where will they be put to use?” At this point in my life, I’m considering just making them for the hell of it. And I just might.

The railing shown above was designed and built for a townhouse in Jersey City, NJ. My old stomping grounds. The client wanted to develop an Oriental theme in her guest bedroom and contacted me, because I had built her wine cabinet several years earlier out of black walnut (Also shown on this site).

The room itself benefitted from a lot of natural light and was open and airy. It had access to two terraces on either side of the building and when you stepped outside, it made you feel like you were in the tree tops. So the idea of an Oriental theme seemed quite natural.

This little railing sat at the top of the stairs, just before one entered her guest bedroom. The design the client chose was one of many, but wasn’t my best. I think some of my other options were better, and would look great if made of black walnut with bronze accent pieces.

In addition to this railing, I made a companion that graces the stairs heading to the upper terrace. It’s slightly longer and looks similar. But in order to build it, I had to re-create the client’s stairs in my shop in Beacon. This was the only way I could make sure the new railing would fit into the existing conditions. And with few minor adjustments, it slid beautifully into place.

I only wish I had a decent photo it to share.