Your line about "who makes the cut" has really struck a nerve with me. Let me explain. I have the strong opinion that you can do whatever you want with the photos (ie. "who makes the cut"). What you see and how you feel from the displays is all you. A display with a topic theme, color theme, or whatever theme is going to be fabulous as long as you go with your heart and your gut. I had a terrible MIL (EX now!) who actually took the time to inventory WHO was displayed in photos, HOW they were displayed, and concocted her own storylines on why I elected to leave out certain people, include others, and have some more prominent than others. She had the gall to have "sit-down talks" with me several times about my choices in displayed photos. She started sending photos with little post-it notes on where they would "look nice" & which one's I should change out. It gnawed at her to no end that I changed nothing despite her passive-aggressive instructions. I hope your family and/or friends are not the likes of the old hag I used to deal with. You should never, EVER have to explain the reasonings (themes, etc) of photos and why you display what you do. Don't want to bring a downer to this & hope I'm not making you think harder into it. This just brought back some bad memories and it's really too bad it had to go that way. End of therapeutic vent. Gayle

I love art on stair ways and landings, it creates curiosity and a sense of mystery about what is unseen in the rest of the home. Original art is compelling and to my thinking well worth the investment, so I think an oil painting would be great in that spot. With art the best way is to buy what "speaks" to you so if you are uncertain and close to a city with an art museum they often have lend/lease programs where for a relatively small fee you can select an original piece to hang for a month or so. These are not pieces from their collection, but from (usually) local artists. If you like the piece the option to buy is available. It gives you a chance to see what you enjoy. From there you can look to similar prints, if that's what the budget allows, or seek out artists at city art walks, open studio days, or even local art schools. Some savvy interior decorators I know even find great stuff at thrift stores. If you decide to go with a mirror and chest, then adding a beautiful lamp and a large vase with fresh flowers, to reflect in the glass, would be lovely as well.

Ah, now I see the pictures. It is a tricky space, but I think you can get the drama you want. So many options will come your way from other readers. A strong tactic would be to choose a rich wall color that you love. Right now you are tending toward a monochrome sepia tone in everything. Years ago, someone told me that a dark space can sometimes be made really dramatic by making it darker, and I've used that advice several times with wonderful results. Over the years I've redeemed dark spaces with rich red, cobalt blue, emerald green, paprika, eggplant purple, deep rose, etc. Every house seems to have a hopelessly dark spot. The first brush-strokes of paint always make me gasp in horror at what I've chosen, but when done and the furnishing put back in place, the effect has always been deeply satisfying. Textiles can be the hardest to find. Perhaps start with a fabric you love for the bench and choose a color from it for the wall. The bench is small, incidental, so don't be shy; choose something that makes your heart sing, and don't worry about it being too this or too that, or what others will think. This is for you! Of course, lighting is important, both for safety in a stairwell and for enhancing the effect. I notice in your sample photo of a house you admire, there are black shades. These are extremely effective in enriching the whole effect, something you can do with chandeliers or table lamps or yes, even on wall sconces. Take your time, picture all sorts of options, and then plunge in. It's mostly just a can of paint and a single day of painting. And, if you don't like it, it is just a single day to paint over it with a new color (which I confess I've done a few times on the way to getting a color right). Best wishes for coming up with something you love, and I hope this message is followed by lots of creative ideas from others. :-)

sookmomof4 Oh I am with you - I despise beige and tan anything. I had a helluva time finding it after I discovered the sample in a local shop because it was originally a Shaw carpet with the pattern name of Castelana,, but just before I had finally decided on it Shaw sent that whole carpet line over to Anderson Tuftex and renamed it - drove me NUTS trying to figure it out. I wanted a matching solid in the room above the stairs - I had to have an exact match so I spent hours and hours trying to find the solid carpet that matched the color. Anyhoo...the carpet is Tuftex Ascend, in Zircon. https://andersontuftex.com/carpet/details/ascend-zz030/zircon-00542 My matching solid is Tuftex Glide, in Silver Lining. https://andersontuftex.com/carpet/details/glide-zz033/silver-lining-00541 Yeah...different color names. But EXACTLY the same color. Why on earth they try to make things so confusing I don't know.