Ballusters must be spaced so that a ball 4" in diameter can't pass through. That's so babies can't fall through ballusters. Most stairs have 2-3 per tread. Our treads are on the short side, so we could do 2. Boy, that's a fuzzy photo. Sorry about that. Here's a more focused one. I (uncharacteristically) did not take many "during" photos. But my step-by-step is basically: 1. Rip out carpet, railing, newel post, and ballusters. Sell the latter for $20. 2. There were cheap pine tread and risers, and they extended beyond the edge of the stairs, so I ripped them out and replaced with stained oak treads and painted poplar risers. 3. I put stained cove molding below the treads to make them look beefier and prettier. 4. I cut a stringer board to go on the outside edge to cover up the drywall edge. 5. I hand cut the curved white cut-outs from 1/8" poplar to cover the edge of the risers. Miter cutting the corners of the skirt board to meet the risers just wasn't in my skill (and tool) set. 6. We attached the railing and ballusters (googling "install iron ballusters" gives a good run-down of the process). Here's a couple close-ups of the trim-out.

I just happened to think; but these would only work if they were taller, I saw an idea on tv where they made a dining room buffet, by sawing them in half lengthwise, attaching those 2 up against the wall, then using 2 more whole ones for the front, with a tabletop (make your own, or use one off something else), sitting on top. Looked really cute. Of course, you could use these anywhere you wanted a table against a wall, not just a dining room. Computer desk comes to mind. Sorry, I got off the subject of using the 1 ft. tall ones! Oh yes, I've seen one used as a lamp, but you'd have to drill a hole all the way through it, and put a base on the bottom, you could use a square or round piece of wood, and put all the lamp wiring, harp, and shade. Similar to:

We did hardwood treads in a stain very close to the color of our laminate. We decided to do the risers in the same white of our kitchen cabinets and trim. The spindles are black. We’re very happy with it all. Hope this helps!

People are pretty cavalier here about suggesting a change in spacing, which would require new holes in both bannister and steps, and could be a real challenge. Do you think you could achieve something acceptable to you by just painting the current spindles (maybe white or black)? Getting a professional to do anything to stairs quicky becomes $$$...