STEAMTOWN HOUSE - SPIRAL STAIRCASE, BALCONY STEPS, LIGHTED CHANDELIER & SPY SCOPE

Welcome back to the house on Irongate Street.  Looks like Helena has made more improvements.

A spiral staircase is necessary to go from the first to the second floor.

It starts on the first floor and spirals up to the front of the second.  The staircase design is versatile and can be used outside of the house (as in this example) or inside the house by cutting an opening in the ceiling.  For this project, I chose to locate the staircase outside so I would have more room for furniture. 

The staircase has beautiful fretwork details.  The good news is that it’s a kit, yeah for kits! 

There are so many things you can do to add a railing.  In this example, I’ve used wooden table legs as the spindles and cut pieces of wood chair railing as connectors. 

And for those who need a staircase for a different project, there is an add-on stair kit with extra steps that can be used to extend the staircase or add your own dowel and build a shorter staircase.  There is so much flexibility with these kits.  In future projects, I’ll be remaking this staircase, demonstrating other styles and railing options (this isn't the only house I will be building).

Upstairs you’ll find a lovely lighted chandelier.  Helena thought the room needed some bling and this chandelier fit the bill.   Notice how the light casts shadows on the ceiling.

 

You’ll be surprised at how easy it is to make.  I used two different-sized rings (an earring and a keychain ring) connected with a chain.  Hung on each ring are lots of 1-inch glass bugle beads.  The light comes from two sets of mini fairy lights.  There is a hole in the ceiling where the strings of lights are inserted through a plastic straw down into the chandelier.  The roof hides the batteries and switch, allowing easy access to turn the lights on and off.   But don’t worry; I’ll walk you through the assembly in the video tutorial.

Helena’s spy scope is on the balcony, a necessity for any explorer.  Again I have used one of my favorite construction materials, various sizes of plastic straws; yep, the scope and legs are made from straws.  

The cool rusted platform is made from Finnabair Mechanical Metals sets.  They come pre-rusted and in various shapes.  You’re going to see me use these repeatedly in future projects.  In this project, I also used them for the base of the staircase. 

 

One of the Finnabair wheels and brass fluted dangles are used for controls, and a bronze flourish (folded) is used to connect the scope to the base.

When you first saw the house, you might have wondered, “how in the world do you get up to the balcony.”  In the video, I’ll show you how to build a custom set of steps.  I’ve included the template (at the bottom of the post).

You might have noticed at the end of the last project post, I indicated that decorating the second floor would be the next post.  For timing reasons, I decided to flip the posts and deal with the staircase, chandelier, etc., first, and the next post (I promise) will be decorating the second floor.  Besides, there is no way to get up there without a staircase.

Below you'll find the video tutorial, a link to a picture gallery, the balcony step template, and the complete supply list.

VIDEO TUTORIAL

OTHER VIDEOS IN THIS SERIES

Steamtown Two Story House Construction

Steampunk Explorer's Study

Steampunk Boudoir

Steampunk Elevator & Telescope

BALCONY STAIRS TEMPLATE

Click here to jump to the supplies carried by Alpha Stamps

DETAILED SUPPLY LIST

Spiral Staircase Kit

Chesterville Hargrave Scrapbook Paper – Balcony Stairs

Set of Wooden Table Legs – Spiral Staircase

Wood Trim – Chair Rail – Spiral Staircase

Symmetrical Bronze Flourish – Spiral Staircase

15mm Antique Bronze Filigree Bead Cap – Spiral Staircase

Finnabair Mechanicals Metals – Rustic Washers – Spiral Staircase

Architectural Trims Set Download – Chandelier - Medallion

Mini String of Fairy Lights - Chandelier

1 Inch Glass Bugle Beads or Dollhouse Straws – Chandelier

Antique Gold Square Filigree - Chandelier

Vintaj Metals Patinas – Victorian Gold - Chandelier