I'm finding your question a bit confusing (probably my fault), but if you're asking if you should make picture 1 look like picture 2, I'd say absolutely you should.

Sorry. It might be confusing. We are getting rid if the yellowed railing and updating with white and the dark wood. Do we stain the posts the dark like the rail or paint them white like the spindles?

Um, yes. I wasn't much use, was I? Liking the yellowed railing like that. Old-fashioned girl. Two sharp slaps to the chops. I think Eileen has it. Do that for a start, and then see if you like the results. Certainly the white newel posts look unhappy.

Newel posts look best when they match the rail. Nice updated look you've created.

If they are already painted, you can't stain it without taking the paint off first, obviously. It can be a pain in the neck. I think it looks very nice as it is.

I'm with others that say newel posts look best when they match the rails.

Irech227... if you wish to change the look.... you should paint it.

Yes you have the right idea. I did the same thing to our staircase. had decorators talk me into it and it look very updated. I would also paint the bottom post the dark color too. Just leave the spindles white. Looks good.

Might want to consider removing the carpet from wrapping over the outside edge of the treads also. Not trying to criticize but that is a very 80's look. My guess is that the treads under the carpet are pine or even wafer board and that is why the carpet wraps. May want to look at iron balusters (spindles) also. Here is an example of what it could look like.

The newell post and the banister should always be stained. The spindles can be stained or painted. I like painted best with light colored wood banister and newel post, but if you are staining that dark color, then the spindles should also be dark.
I agree with Summit Stairs and Millwork about the carpet wrap. Has a dated look.

I just finished designing my house and went with all white except for treads which I did the dark wood and made the walls Kitting Needles color by Sherman Williams and WOW it is gorgeous and everyone loves the colors.

I love the black and white and would love to do the same! How did you prep the yellow railing for staining? My current rail is the same yellow. Do you sand first then stain? How many coats and do you put some kind of protective coating on top?

Here's mine,what you've done looks Great! I wanted the least amount of the pine stain, so I painted the newel post.

I would suggest you consider replacing the 3" newel with a box newel. This would upgrade your balustrade significantly. Newels and treads should always match the rail finish. Risers and stringers can match or be painted. I agree with the above statements regarding carpet. If carpet is desired, a runner should be used. Any carpet may be used as most carpet companies will do edge binding.

I agree with the newel post being the same color as the rail. I know it might make it look like there is too much of the dark color, but the newel is the first thing people touch when entering the staircase and with the white, it may look dirty after a while and you will have to paint again, but with the dark color it will hide the dirt more. Looks really nice though. Hey, if you want to keep the carpet it looks fine. It will be a lot of work to take the carpet off and stain and poly the treads.

I like painted white posts/spindles and dark newel and railing. You can stain or paint the newel/railing (black would look very striking).

The post would look beautiful matching your railing, but like Eva Gloss said, you would have to strip the paint in order to stain it. You have done a beautiful job transforming it from the outdated upstairs railing. I like the white spindles with the dark stain railing, looks much classier than before and your wall paint color is nice also.

I live in a very nice, 11-unit townhouse complex. Each home is very different with a unifying Georgian exterior. My neighbor's, glam, sexy, bachelor-pad, party house has a black painted bannister. My traditional, downsized family home...stained. So, it depends on your home and your personal style.

Thanks for all the input! Your comments and suggestions have been super helpful!
@ Summit Stairs and Mill Work... My goal is to someday replace the tile with hardwood and incorporate it up the sides of the stairs and replace the spindles with iron balusters. I just couldn't handle the yellow color wood any longer.

I think the dark color to match the rail would look nice too. Then, the white spindles would contrast everything a little bit more and give it a fancier look.

I like Karen's Custom Decorating stairs; looks very classy. The thing is: if you are trying to lighten up the staircase, use the white for the spindles and post, and trim down the carpet on the stairs or remove it completely and paint the edges white. I think the carpet gives it too much of a dark line on the bottom and breaks up the look. I think iron balusters would overpower the look of your stairs, unless they were of a white color. And tile up the sides of the stairs would be too much. But it all depends on the look you are going for. And it is so personal. :)

Definitely stain to match, or paint black.

I recently stained my railings a dark brown leaving the spindles white. Prior to that I had the railings painted white. Maybe seeing it both ways will help you decide which look better suits your taste. Wish I had better photos but this is what I have to offer for now.

I actually like the all white look, it is more cheerful, but I can also see you might have to clean them pretty often. But having the newel posts and the handrail dark goes better with your dark carpeting. It would look lighter if you had a lighter colour patterned carpet which will not show dirt.

I have the exact type of pine stained staircase. I love the iron spindles you can buy at homedepot but they are pricey. I will eventually do that but in the meantime love the black posts with handrail look.

We recently painted our stair rails and risers; everything was oak and looked dated! We live in New England so the black top rail and white pickets/newel posts are a classic and refreshing change.

The black rail is super and YES, definetly paint the newel posts black too, as they are an extension of the railing. We like to use The Fine Paints of Europe for jobs like this especially Holland Lak, a very durable high gloss finish. The contrast of the white spindlrs is great.

In my opinion, painting the stair risers really opened up the look of the stairs as well.

Go for the painted spindles

To Karen's custom
I like your new picture I am going to paint mine!

Update!!! Thanks for everyones advice. We switched out the posts with new box newels and stained them and the rails. It made a huge difference!!!

Wow! Beautiful transformation!

brand and size of the new box newels? i can't find that style. thanks.

Irech227

Can you please share the name/finish/brand for the black colors for railings and white for spindles?

Thanks