I had the exact railing in my San Diego condo, built in 1984. If you have a Habitat for Humanity in your city/nearby city, give that a try. Many people donate when they are doing renovations, and you could get lucky. An architectural salvage store might also be another source~I think there's one in Chicago that has an on line store, but you'll need to pay shipping. Lastly, craigslist under free/general/household. Maybe the recycling center in your area where $$$ are given for various metals. Hope you have good luck with one of these!

So my husband is thinking simple vertical looks pretty good after all :-). I'm laughing because I had ordered custom shades from a company that custom colors their own patterns in whatever color you want. I had approved a swatch but when the shades came in, the color was definitely a more blue/green shade than what I had approved. Apparently they decided to match the original fan deck swatch of theirs and not the color I actually approved. I was all set for them to replace it since the color was off. However the store then offered to take off the tax on my whole order (to the tune of almost $600). Between that and the new rug that picked up the same green color, I suddenly loved the new color shades. Funny about that! And I'm the only one who would ever notice the difference.

The style isn't my cup of tea, but in a way, I kind of like those stairs. If they were mine, you'd have a tough time convincing me to tear them out and replace them with something generic, modern, and bland, even though it might be safer. The lack of a landing doesn't seem grossly hazardous to me, but then I've lived with stairs that curve like that in other houses (it seems to be a mid-century thing), and I'm still here. I think. If the stairs were code compliant when they were built, they're "grandfathered." Current-code requirements kick in with some kinds of modifications, though. No idea whether modifying the railings would trigger that. I agree that the railings need a little upgrading, especially if you have little ones. Heavy tempered glass sounds good.

Thanks so much everyone. I agree that the horizontal railing would likely 'fight' with the grid pattern; however it seems like there are a couple of situations where these two things have been used together successfully. I appreciate the comments about dusting. I think that settles it for me!! I generally try to stick to things that will stay clean easily so I'm not sure why I didn't think of that with this grid wall idea. I guess I got caught up in only the look. I am interested to know why horizontal railings are dangerous for kids. Is it because they can climb onto and over them? I do not have children, but do have nieces and nephews. Is the horizontal railing just a current fad that will be dated soon? For those of you who asked what style the rest of our house will be, we are trying to sort that out by making some of these design decisions. We are going extremely bold with a dark green kitchen with dark grout white subway tile backsplash (looking to create a moody cafe vibe) and we will have a brick fireplace in the living room, but otherwise will likely go fairly neutral with the rest with quite a bit of artwork on the white (I think) walls. We are hoping to go for a European-type vibe overall. (which I know is quite a broad idea). We are not interior designers but are doing our best to create a home we will love!!