Seattle Stair & Design Gets Signed

Since Seattle Stair & Design was founded over thirty years ago, it has had several homes. For the past eleven years, we have occupied a 10,000 square foot studio in SODO. The expansive space has been ideal for our unique trade and provides a home to both our shop and showroom.

The synergy between the bustling shop and eclectic showroom is exceptionally captivating- the rich scent of freshly milled wood fills the space, while the beat of a clattering lathe provides a natural soundtrack.  In effort to expand the warmth and collaboration that lies within Seattle Stair & Design to the exterior, we sought out local artists and craftspeople to design a new sign for the building.

We advertised the opportunity via Craigslist and were met with many talented candidates. Most compelling was the work of Sven Sundbaum of Old Kustom Signs and Graphics, whose mixed media approach to signage captures the spirit of Seattle Stair & Design.

Sundbaum's mixed media approach to our sign incorporates  a hand painted mural,  metal lettering, and three dimensional flourishes.

Front View

Side View 

Seattle Stair and The Last Frontier II: Conquering the Challenge of a Curved Handrail

Previously this week, we shared a visual tour of Seattle Stair & Design's voyage to the awe-inspiring shores of Juneau, Alaska. Snow-capped peaks and  mussel-encrusted shores set an illustrious backdrop for the crafting of a custom-built cherry handrail laminated and curved onsite. 

The mobility of Seattle Stair & Design's shop built stairs and stair parts is one of the most unique aspects to the company. Over the past thirty years, Seattle Stair & Design's founder Shawn Christman has fine-tuned the process.  Every project provides Seattle Stair & Design the opportunity to expand their reach and capabilities through problem-solving and experience.

 The Juneau project was no different and presented a unique challenge: create a curved handrail and newels for a pre-existing staircase in a city over one thousand miles away.

The number of variables involved in constructing a curved handrail that rises, curves, and fits into a pre-existing space supersedes most handrail projects, propelling Shawn and Christian to laminate and construct the handrail onsite. The process is documented below.

Christian and Shawn flew to Juneau, Alaska with a plane full of materials. Christian assembles a bracket onsite.

Shawn mixes the glue that will bond the cherry planks to form one, stacked handrail.

Shawn and Christian use rollers to distribute the glue across the surface of the cherry planks.

The planks are stacked to form a solid beam. Shawn lifts it up the stairs, which have been outfitted with brackets. The brackets provide both a guide to the curve and a place to clamp the handrail in place.

Shawn and Christian bend the handrail into place.

Once the handrail has been bent to shape, it is clamped to the brackets. The clamps secure the handrail until the glue dries.

After the glue sets, the handrail is transported back to our shop in Seattle for custom profiling. 

Today, we shipped the finished handrail to Juneau where it will be installed.

Mary Anne Carter

Assistant Director of Marketing

Seattle Stair and The Last Frontier

 In previous years, Jackson Hole, Maui, California, and Japan have been among the long distance destinations of Seattle Stair & Design's shop built stairs. Last week, owner Shawn Christman and craftsman Christian Leach trekked past the uncharted territories of Canada to America's Last Frontier: Alaska.

Join us on a visual tour of Seattle Stair & Design's experience in Alaska. 

Seattle Stair & Design's Shawn Christman pilots the flight to Alaska with flight instructor Howard Wolvington and Seattle Stair & Design craftsman Christian Leach. 

Alaska's stunning terrain, nestled in a blanket of fog.

Rugged, snow-capped mountains are visible from every vantage point in Alaska.

The meandering waters of Alaska call to mind the delicate winding of a curved staircase and handrail.

Colonies of mussels adorn Alaska's beaches.

Lush greenery, piercing blue waters, and snow-capped peaks provide an arresting backdrop to the job site. 

Shawn Christman and Christian Leach begin the site lamination process on a custom profiled curved cherry handrail.

For more photos of Seattle Stair & Design's Alaskan adventure, please view our Facebook album. 

Mary Anne Carter

Assistant Director of Marketing

Charming Stairs- Big Trees on Meares Island

 

What a wonderful journey. On a vacation to Vancouver Island I had the good fortune to go on a lovely kayak trip though the Islands and inlets around Tofino, Canada. Besides seeing an eagle swoop down from a tree and grab a little lunch from the sea just 50 feet from my kayak, one of my favorite parts of the trip was seeing the Big Trees.

On an UNESCO protected island only accessible by boat down the loveliest boardwalk constructed by local First Nation Peoples from naturally felled lumber, visitors get to experience some of Canada largest trees. One of the largest (a circumference of 38 feet) on this walk is called simply “big tree” and is said to be around 1,500-2,000 years old. Imagine that in the European “dark ages” this tree was already quite large. This tree has held not only what we see today as an entire mini-ecosystem in its branches and structure but through time and circumstance … it has held generations of these ecosystems. This tree was one of many I saw on this trip and holds a powerful moment in my heart.

And on the trip to this tree … the boardwalk is a strong and stable feature providing its own wonder. After landing the kayaks we crawled up what seemed to be a sketchy trail to only have it suddenly awe us with a set of stairs out of Tolkien’s- Middle Earth! These stairs have a total rise of approximately 30 feet and make me smile just to think of them. I take my hat off to the creative and tenacious craftsmen that built and maintain these stairs.  

 David Shuler

Barkitecture in Stop Motion

Whether or not you attended Luxe Magazine's Barkitecture Event last Thursday, you can enjoy this stop-motion glimpse of Team AOME's Furry Tail Tower being constructed right here at Seattle Stair & Design.

The Furry Tail Tower is still on the market, so contact us if your royal pup is deserving of this fantastical home!

Mary Anne Carter
Assistant Director of Marketing