✨ Interior images are AI-generated. Items shown are similar to those in the video.

Contemporáneo

Upholstered under-stair nook with a lit arch and terracotta cushions

Here the space under the stairs isn't clad in timber — it's fully upholstered. Vertical channel tufting in undyed fabric wraps the back and the seat as one continuous curve, outlined by an LED strip that traces the arch from top to bottom. Opposite, floating treads lit from beneath and a glass balustrade let the view through, so the nook reads as a soft piece of furniture set into a wood wall.

EscaleraBajo escaleraTapizadoCanaléArco de luzTerracotaEscalera flotanteGalería de láminasAlfombra de pelo altoContemporáneo

Design keys

The recess is upholstered rather than panelled: vertical channel tufting in undyed fabric covering back and seat as a single continuous piece.
The outline follows an arch with curved sides instead of the stair triangle, rounding off the low corner and removing the dead-end feeling.
An LED strip runs along the inner edge of the arch, hidden in the joint between the upholstery and the timber frame.
White floating treads each carry a downlight beneath, drawing a staircase of light across the wood wall.
A glass balustrade with a brass handrail lets hallway light through to the nook instead of cutting it off.
Terracotta appears in three cushions and in the flower print to the right — the only colour over a base of cream and oak.

Furniture and decor in this design

Items shown are similar to those in the video, not necessarily identical.

Terracotta velvet cushion covers

Velvet covers in a rust tone, the only colour over the nook's undyed upholstery. Three in the same shade work better than three different ones — the repetition is what makes them read as a decision. In a thoroughfare, zipped covers you can wash are worth it.

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Flower-shaped decorative cushion

A petal-shaped cushion in cream that breaks the row of rectangles and brings the nook its bit of humour. It works because it's the only shaped piece — two or three of them in a row tips from wink to nursery. Place it off-centre rather than dead centre on the bench.

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Framed print set for a gallery wall

A pair of prints in pale frames with wide mounts: one floral in rust tones picking up the cushions, one typographic. Mixing image and text keeps the wall from looking like a sample board. Slim pale frames over timber — a dark frame sinks into the panelling and vanishes.

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High-pile rug in undyed cream

A soft undyed rug that deadens the polished hallway floor, where every step echoes. In the same tone as the upholstery, the nook and the floor read as a single zone. In a thoroughfare add a non-slip underlay — on polished porcelain it slides.

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LED strip with bendable aluminium channel

A warm strip housed in a flexible channel, which is what lets it follow the arch with no visible breaks. With rigid profile cut at mitres the curve becomes a series of straight runs. Get an opal diffuser — without one you see the diodes one by one against pale upholstery.

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How to get this look at home

Upholstery costs more than panelling, so keep it to the backrest and leave the surrounding wall in timber or paint. Upholstering the whole recess multiplies the cost without showing in the photograph.
Choose stain-treated fabric and, if you can, a removable cover on the seat. This is a hallway piece that takes bags, coats and children all day long.
The arch needs a bendable aluminium channel for the LED. With straight profile cut at mitres you see the segments, and the curve loses exactly what made it worth doing.
Budget version: a straight upholstered bench with cushions cut to fit gives you the same use. The curve is the expensive part, and it's an aesthetic extra rather than a functional one.
Hang the prints to the wall's vertical, not the staircase diagonal. Lining frames up with the treads sounds right on paper, but on the wall it reads as though they're crooked.

FAQ

Can you upholster the space under a staircase?

You can, and you hear the difference: textile absorbs the echo a hard hallway staircase throws back. What needs planning is cleaning, since this is a thoroughfare where everything brushes past. Use a tight-weave performance fabric, avoid pale velvet on the seat, and take the backrest a shade darker than the photo suggests.

How do you arrange a gallery wall next to a staircase?

Align the frames to each other vertically and horizontally, not to the pitch of the treads. The staircase already supplies a strong diagonal, and a second one in the artwork makes the wall look unstable. A shared axis at the eye level of someone standing works better than trying to follow the climb.

How much upkeep does a glass balustrade need?

Fingerprints, above all with children about: clean it every few days with glass cleaner and a microfibre cloth, avoiding abrasives that scratch the polished edge. In exchange it doesn't collect dust the way spindles do and it lets light through, which is exactly what an internal stairwell needs.

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Upholstered under-stair nook with a lit arch and terracotta cushions

Design keys

Furniture and decor in this design

How to get this look at home

FAQ

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