Actually I think carpet on stairs is more slippery than bare. We have never had an issue with bare stairs being slippery but did with carpeted stairs. I also love the look of stairs without the runners.

I think carpet is more slippery than bare, too. The stairs in our new house are finished similar to those in your inspiration picture. I think the carpeted stairs in the house we are living in now are slicker and have less traction.

I love your stairs, redroze. And your dark floors too! I've got your Redroze's Renos pages bookmarked because of your bathrooms and kitchen and have gone back to them often for inspiration and reference. It is great seeing more of your house.

We have wood stair treads and love them. No small kids around but big guys with big feet and the golden boy does fine on them. (We built the house and have been in almost three years and the dog is 10 now)

Thank you everyone, I had no idea that carper was slippier than hardwood!! I guess it makes sense. I'm assuming you wear socks and/or barefeet in the house like DH and I? Or are you indoor shoe-wearers?

Joly - I hope you don't mind if I save your photos. Your spindles are so similar to the kind that we want! Your stairs look amazing. I'll be adding new photos soon to the blog of our wall unit in the family room. We're also ordering dining chairs. Very exciting! Oh, and the nursery of course. It will be mainly white, grey and taupe, but the crib bedding and accents will be purple. We're not sure if we're having a boy or a girl but I think purple will work for either.

Lv_r_golden - I lv_your_golden too. What a sweetie pie. Gorgeous iron railings - we'd go with iron if we could find a style that worked with ours. I find they're either ornate or simple, nothing in between.

WE have hardwood stairs without runners too. Removed the carpet probably 5 years ago. Painted the treads black and the risers white. I always thought I'd eventually put down a runner, but now doubt that I ever will. No one has ever fallen(watch, I probably jinxed myself). The only negative is they it is much louder when walking up and down the steps with shoes on. Normally not a problem, except early in the morning when others are still sleeping.

We just got ours redone and I am thrilled! We changed to white risers, but have had hardwood steps for 10 years. The only slips that have occured happened on the very bottom step and I think it was because it was difficult to see the difference between the bottom step and the main floor.

Jolynna - I noticed your spindles are two per stair. May I ask how much space is between each spindle, and how deep each step is? I know that our current ones are not within code, as the space between them can actually get a small child's head stuck in it. I thought that getting slightly thicker spindles would solve that problem but maybe we need to do two spindles per step, rather than the current one.

lv r golden..I love your stairs.. How did you do the tile look? Is it painted?? Would love details.

Thank you redroze and dinobambino.

We are very happy with the iron, it is also on the exterior decks as well as an overlook area above the entry so we see it a lot.

The tile on the risers is the floor travertine. The tile guys cut the larger pieces and used a repeating pattern. It looks lighter in the picture (and does look like it could be painted) but in real life it looks the same.

Definitely more falls on the stairs when ours were carpeted.

This will probably be debated endlessly, and I think it just boils down to personal preference. I like the stairs with a runner. We've had ours carpeted for almost 20 years and can only recall one slip; it was me, holding a cup of coffee, I think I was just distracted for some reason. I did recall at the time that I was glad the stairs were carpeted; it only resulted in slipping down to the next step, and only a couple of drops of coffee on the very stain-forgiving runner. We definitely like the quietness of the carpeted stairs, and I like the way the stairs look with the runner. But it's honestly personal preference; many people seem to love it both ways.

I can't speak to the slippery factor of carpeted stairs since I have wood, but think about teaching your toddler to walk up and down stairs. Right about now I wish I had carpet.

While I do like the look of the hardwood without a runner, we ended up putting a runner on ours. Why? For the very reason jjam mentioned, the noise was an issue. It was our tiny 5'2" 110 pound daughter, who as a teenager would arrive home at midnight and thump up and down the stairs. Drove us nuts!

I'd say go without the runner and try it. You can always add one later.

We replaced our carpeted stairs last year when we put in hardwoods throughout the house. We did a satin finish on our hardwood since we have 2 dogs who like to play "nascar".

So I would also take into account the finish on the stairs. I would think high gloss would be more slippery.

We have had one fall down the stairs...me! Our fox terrier is like a kid and LOVES to leave his toys on the stairs. I was taking the stairs too fast, not using the railing b/c I had my hands full..diet coke and all!

I slipped on the third stair from the top on his tennis ball and slid all the way to the foyer! So about 12 stairs! I probably wouldn't have slipped if I hadn't had socks on. They seem to make it much more hazardous!

Our dogs take the stairs at top speed though and haven't fallen, but then again I am known as "grace" when I have my clumsy days! Prior to hardwood..i'd tripped on my dress pants and tumbled down the carpeted stairs as well.

The hardwood hurts much less and doesn't leave carpet burn!

Our front stair is hardwood; we had it installed before we moved in when the children were two years-old and nine months-old. Our back stair and the stair to the basement are carpeted (we haven't changed them).

The children are now five years-old and four years-old: our older child has never had a problem on either stair but our young son and our dog have on the hardwood. The dog, when she is excited about being the first one upstairs, has slipped on the wood; our sweet boy, when he is wearing socks or footed pjs, either needs to be carried down the stairs or he'll scoot down on his bottom. (going up is not a problem)

We are a shoes-off family so we're either barefoot, in socks or indoor slippers (I wear Crocs inside).

When our little friends come over to play many of them remark how cold our floor is, and that's because most of them have exclusively carpeted homes. It's not an issue for us but it's a comment I hear all winter long.

We have three cats and and our amazing therapy dog: on our gorgeous dark floors EVERYTHING shows up, and cleaning the stairs is a pain. I wipe the stairs down, tread by tread, with a Swiffer duster and then vacuum it all up at the bottom. We've someone come to clean every week but those animals still shed hair, etc. in the meanwhile. Broadloom would be easier because it'd hide the hair, but this morning I was greeted with cat barf and it sure is easier to clean up on a wood surface!

To me the biggest pain about the stairs with children is just going up and down. We had changing tables on both main floors to cut down my cursing ... although I know I'll never have osteoporosis from all my child-carrying! My younger child is 35lbs and my older 38lbs, and I still regularly carry them up the stairs (if they're snoozing or, for my younger cuddle-monkey special needs son, because he needs me). My upper arms are gorgeous!

I wanted a runner on the hardwood stair but we chose to wait and see. Three years later ... and visually I still want a runner but practically it's probably easier at this stage and with our young family's needs to not have one. I've been weaving away so when the time comes we'll have the most stunning runner ever from all my work!

Ouch, sorry to hear about the long fall Dana!

Rmkitchen - Of course you would have my dream stairs. I love the molding you did on the inner curve of the stairs. Your spindles (and Jolyanna's) are very similar to the style we we're going for. Thanks for sharing your story. I have pet allergies so we don't have to worry about pet hair on our dark floors.

I think, to Bonnie's point, we'll go with the full hardwood for now, then a runner later if needed. Thanks everyone!

Rmkitchen - did you do your railings darker than your stair treads? And I'm assuming you did your treads a satin finish similar to your floors...are the railing glossy or satin? Thanks in advance!

I have carpet on my stairs which is coming up as soon as we finish repainting the entryway. I hate how dirt collects on the carpet, difficult to keep clean and yes, slippery. I have 3 kids, now ages 9, 11, 12. Can't tell you how many falls we've had as they've grown. Always have a mat with padding at the bottom of our stairs. Can't say whether or not the plain hardwood will be more slippery, but that's how ours will be. You'll want gates at the top and bottom of your stairs until your kids get older.

i think it's what you're used to...and also what you do or don't have on your feet. i think you're equally safe on either with bare feet. new heeled shoes with a leather sole are DEFINITELY slippery on carpet!! (we have a runner on the steps...i know!) but, a friend of ours recently had her carpet removed and the stairs finished and did not put down a runner...i had socks on and found them to be VERY slippery coming down! i noticed she was wearing slippers. she said her dog slipped while running down them a few times, but learned how to come down them safely after a few falls...i'm sure i would learn how to come down them safely with socks on eventually. i think your kids will learn faster and more safely than anyone how to navigate whatever you decide! i personally would want bare feet or shoes to come down the steps with a baby in my arms until i was SURE i was used to it and i wouldn't slip with socks!

Beautiful stairways everyone.

Okay, I have a question for all you immaculate scuff free white painted riser people...don't you get scuff marks on the white paint?

My risers are always full of scuff marks. I magic eraser them off monthly and have to repaint yearly to deal with this. Am I doing something wrong?

We have hardwood stairs with no runners and we're also a no shoes house. Outdoor shoes are not used.

I find that using strictly indoor shoes is safer than slippers. I'm wearing Privos, now. They have a soft rubber sole and are very comfortable.

I grew up in a house with hardwood stairs. I distinctly recall running up and down those stairs as a child. We would usually be barefoot or wearing socks although shoes were allowed in the house. (But what child wears shoes when she doesn't have to?) The only time I slipped was when I had knee surgery and I had one leg in a brace (unable to bend the knee) and was wearing slippery surgery socks. Actually, I had 2 knee surgeries and after both managed to slip on the stairs pretty badly.

My current home has carpeted stairs. I have fallen down them (only living in the home 4 years) without any kind of brace hindering me. I think good quality carpet helps. The carpet in my home is cheap (previous owners installed it) and seems more slippery than the good quality carpet my parents have. It did hurt more falling on the wood stairs, but that was possibly because I was already in a great deal of pain and banged my knee on the way down.

The only other consideration is that my dog (who has experience on carpeted stairs and very little on wood stairs) is scared of my parents' wood stairs. She will only go down them with assistance and gets very nervous and skittery which makes matters worse. She gets nervous but does much better going up. Just something to consider if you have a dog.

We had carpeted stairs when the kids were babies and yes, I never wore socks on the steps because I skidded once before the kids were born. The kids grew up with the carpeted stairs and they never fell, and in fact used to wiggle down the stairs on their tummies feet first! We thought about leaving our stairs just treads when we took up the carpet and refinished the stairs, but we put down a runner.
Igloo is right always hold a rail wwhen on the stairs with a little one carpet or no. Duct tape outfit optional.;)
While we had the bare stairs- the noise of footsteps and dogs going up and down stairs was awful. It is so much more pleasant having the footfalls muffled.And if someone would trip- the edges of the stairs are softened.
And we all know about socks- we wear slippers or go barefoot. Cooper and Bailey are always barepawed so they are good to go.

This has been a timely thread as I just picked out carpet runner material a few days ago. After reading this, now I'm undecided. The main reason I wanted the runner was safety but it seems more people find carpet slippery. I did have a runner in our last house and slipped a few times but didn't think to blame the runner. I wonder if fewer of us slip on wood stairs because we're just more careful on them? I know I am!

I think we'll try living with the bare wood for awhile see how it goes. If our dog is discouraged from using the uncarpeted stairs, so much the better!

Hi red, congrats on the baby!

I have slipped down my carpeted steps. Family thinks I'm getting old, they just don't understand the slippery carpet and socks thing...now I have proof.

My best friend was holding her baby in her arms when she too slipped down her staircase, baby was fine, although there was the dent in the heating vent at the bottom of the stairs that remained as a "memory"...I think it is still there today (they moved out about 18 years ago). The baby is 22 today.

(off topic--did you ever get a chance to see what I did with my backsplash after all my fretting?)

We have uncarpeted stairs, same look as your inspiration pic. We didn't do it but I know you can purchase a finish which has a slip resistant additive to it. Check Ben Moore or SW.

my one dd has been the only one who has slipped on the stairs...both as a hs'ler and adult...

i guess since my mother fell on carpeted stairs when i was a child, it made me very careful...my sil also made sure our handrail was very secure...

pesonally i hated the carpeting and removed it soon as i discovered we had oak treads...

So many beautiful staircases and interesting stories but the thing that really grabbed me -

Bonnieann925 made it EASIER for her teenage to sneak in or out of the house. How cool is that?

Jean
who prefers uncarpeted stairs but not because she's worried about her DH quietly sneaking out of the house. Carpeting or not, the man is like a bull in a china shop.

About scuffs on white risers...Mr. Clean Magic Erasers.

About carpet...in my experience, easier to fall down. I have a pretty little scar on my upper lip as a result of falling on a carpeted stair with a cat in my arms. He was only reacting instinctively, and my lip was the first thing in the path of his front paw. Luckily, his claws were razor sharp, and the ER doctor had some plastic surgery experience! If anyone notices it, I just smile mysteriously and say, "Fencing accident..."

Carpeted stairs can also not be slippery, and be a detriment. I was at my aunts house and her stairs were carpeted, regular old wall to wall carpet. I was 18 years old, had running shoes on. Flying down the steps to answer the door, my shoes literally stuck (gripped) the rug, and I went flying forward on to the tile floor in the entryway. Long story short, 2 days later I had to have surgery on my elbow to replace my radial head (the very bony portion of your elbow) that had shattered when I hit the tile floor. This was 26 years ago and I still remember it like it was yesterday.

Another note, for those in the no carpet camp...going down stairs with no carpet and socks on, I slipped and fell in to a sitting position. Literally bounced down 4 steps to the bottom. Fractured my tailbone. Husband was at the firehouse, had to call him to come home...of course he brings the big red truck with his captain, etc. I was still in my pajamas at the time.

So I'm undecided about which is better or worse...and have the broken bones to remind me! Maybe I just need to stay away from stairs. Hard to do though since I live in a house with 5 different levels.

Redroze - congratulations! Your stairs are gorgeous.

You mentioned you were concerned about the distance between the spindles on the railing. My dad was worried about the same thing at our old house. He came over one day while I was at work and attached this black plastic mesh to the railing with plastic zip ties.

No, it isn't pretty. But it is temporary, was inexpensive, didn't damage anything, and will be easy to remove when the boys are big enough. And if it keeps us all from worrying about a little guy falling through, it's OK for now.

I think what he used was probably intended for use as a garden fence. It's kind of like a black plastic chicken wire. Like I said, not pretty - but temporary.

Don't forget gates top and bottom! We attached a piece of wood to our pretty spindles to anchor the gate, figuring they would not be strong enough to resist a little kid standing at the top or bottom shaking the gate back and forth (I think we were right). Again, it is not a pretty solution, but it won't be there for long.

Thanks beekeeperswife!! No I did not see your backsplash, I had wondered what you decided to do with it..let me check in on the Kitchens Forum now. I haven't been very actively checking with all the baby stuff going on!! I'm not even a mom yet and already busier!

Neat, I didn't know about the slip resistant additive. We're doing a satin finish on the treads, not glossy, so we should be good.

Bronwynsmom - You must be related to my husband who lives and dies for Mr. Clean magic erasers. He'll be happy to hear of yet another wonderful use for it.

Those of you who have had falls - please be careful!!

Latimore - thank you!

ANd gates - yes we'll get the gates. Never knew I'd need them since we don't have dogs...but those babies...little terrors I tell ya.

THANK YOU!!!

A little late here, but we moved into our new house about 2 years ago and didn't have runners on the hardwood stairs(Brazilian Cherry) until about 6 months ago. While I loved the look without a runner, it was too slippery for us. I have 2 DD aged 5 and under and we did have a fall or 2 (luckily no one was hurt). We ended up with a wool runner (not carpet) and it has made a big difference. The runner was tacked up under the lip of each step to ensure that there is no slipping. My old house had carpet on the entire step and it did get slippery (It was not tacked under).

I've had carpet on my stairs for 25 years, and no one (5 of us) has ever slipped or fallen.

Another vote for NO RUNNER.
I find runners to be dangerous. Slippery.
With hardwood your feet land on a solid flat surface. The only time they feel slippery is if you wear socks..

"We're doing a satin finish on the treads, not glossy, so we should be good"

In case there is confusion, the non-slip additive is intended for use w/any sheen, gloss or satin.

Wow, I am so surprised to hear so many people say that carpet runners are slippery! Here is my experience -- we have runners on all the stairs in our house and none of us has ever fallen on them.

But here is my 'baby' story. In our first house, we had hardwood stairs with no runner. One year for Christmas, my MIL knitted socks for everyone. The day after Christmas, I was wearing my cute new socks on my uncarpeted stairs and carrying my 8 month old son. Down I went, all the way down the stairs, somehow (I seriously am not sure how!) protecting my son from any injury but I ended up with a concussion and a bunch of bruises. We went to the carpet store ASAP and had a runner installed and no one ever fell after that! Obviously part of my problem was those fuzzy new socks, but I wear socks most of the time in the house, and for me, it's just too scary to walk down uncarpeted stairs in socks.

Having said that, we are renovating our beach cottage and I'm going to at least START with uncarpeted steps because at that house, we're usually barefoot! And, no more babies in the house...

I usually fall UP the steps, which is very hard on your pretty little shins....

Now I have a carpeted stair story.

There was an elegant elderly couple in my childhood neighborhood; he a judge, she a portrait painter; both of them very tall, with excellent carriage, and adorable personalities.

One day, she was upstairs putting on her hat to go to a luncheon with her garden club, and she saw a crib mattress that her daughter was coming to pick up later in the day. So to get it down the stairs most efficiently, she positioned it at the top of the stairs, sat down on it, and rode it down the stairs, in her crepe afternoon dress and her white gloves and her flowered hat.

At that moment, the taxi driver arrived at the front door, which was of course open except for the screen door. Just as he raised his hand to knock on the door, his perfectly proper passenger came sailing across the front hall on the baby mattress. Without a word of explanation, she stood up, settled her skirts, said "Good morning!" and went right out the door.

I can only imagine the expression on his face.

LOVE all these stories!! Stairs are much more dangerous than I ever imagined!!!

Oh my goodness, redroze - congrats on the baby!!!! so happy for you!

I agree, stairs can be dangerous regardless of finishing touches. we did a runner after our builder toppled down his wooden stairs while carrying his infant. yikes! either way, just hold on as you walk up or down! we also wanted the extra sound proofing. we've been happy to have our runner so far for with the little ones. we are barefoot (or socks) in our home. You can always add the runner later if you want.

congrats again!

What about actually FALLING DOWN the stairs, not slipping and falling while on them. In other words, a child sleepwalks, and literally falls down an entire flight of stairs. I would have to think that in this case, carpeted is certainly better than wood. I am investigating a runner at the moment, purely because of the worry of someone falling all the way down 13 wooden stairs. I would love some insight on this!

Safemommy did you end up getting a runner?

I didn't! I ended up hearing so many stories of stair accidents with carpeted stairs--also can be slippery with socks. So I decided the safety issues wasn't as big as I thought, and I love my uncarpeted stairs!

Safemommy - Good to know! I was thinking about getting a runner for safety too! So interesting that it’s actually more slippery. I prefer the look without it. But now my only concern is the dog...maybe she doesn’t need to go down those stairs.

My parents (70’s) have removable rubber mats on their wood stairs. It’s actually for the dog but maybe that would work for you and baby. Kids adjust to their environment pretty easily so I wouldn’t worry about the stairs once walking. You’ll have a gate until your child can safely navigate the stairs. It’s you - pregnant or holding a baby, exhausted, frustrated, or moving too fast that is the risk of a fall. Keep a hand on the railing is probably the best advice.