Creating Spanish Style Homes®

Spanish Staircase Collection 1

Go behind-the-scenes to an exterior Spanish staircase project in Santa Barbara, CA.  Transforming ugly concrete steps to a gorgeous Spanish-style showpiece!

a Painter Rolls Black Paint on an Iron Railing in Front of a Santa Barbara Ca Spanish Style Home and Landscape That is Being Renovated
Old Santa Barbara Staircase with Sandstone Walls and a Black Iron Railing Leads Up to a Spanish Home on the Riviera.
Old Santa Barbara Staircase with Sandstone Walls

Many years ago, the house was being sold as a fixer upper. The old staircase (above) was dark and dingy and needed some re-imagining. You can see how some potential buyers may not have had the energy to tackle something like this.  

a Young Painter Restores an Iron Railing at the Top of a Spanish Tile Staircase of a Santa Barbara, California Home.
Painter Restores an Iron Railing

But years later, with careful thought and planning- artistic improvements turned an ugly duckling into a graceful swan. Here, a Santa Barbara painter applies the first coat of black paint to red primer on the iron railings being restored.

One of the first steps in re-imagining a beautiful Santa Barbara style Spanish staircase was to remove the outdated tiles adhered to the original concrete steps.

Santa Barbara Spanish Home Renovation

Demo can be like an archeological dig. Sometimes you can discover interesting things, like layers of remodels. Once outdated tiles were removed up by the front door entrance, we found cast concrete steps painted a terra cotta red color. Presumably, some family or painter made it a project- many decades ago.

a Before Photo of Exterior Residential Spanish Stairs Being Renovated in Santa Barbara, California
Spanish Stairs Before Renovation

The homeowner is a professional artist, and we immediately hit it off during our many collaborative design meetings together. Here, we look at thin and thick Terra Cotta clay tiles- new options for the stair treads.

a Large Quantity of Handmade Rectangular Terra Cotta Clay Floor Tiles Stacked in Neat Rows at a Spanish Home Renovation Job Site in Santa Barbara, Ca
Partial Delivery of Terra Cotta Clay Floor Tiles
a Close Up of Stained Terra Cotta Clay Stair Treads with Spanish Deco Tiles on an Exterior Staircase at a Spanish Home in Santa Barbara, California.
Stained Terra Cotta Clay Stair Treads with Spanish Deco Tiles
a Spanish Style Staircase Under Construction in Santa Barbara, California.  the Photo Shows Stained and Unstained Terra Cotta Clay Tiles in One Image.
Staining Terra Cotta Clay Stair Tread Tiles

The original color of the handmade terra cotta clay tiles was more red than desired. With stain, the tile setting crew was able to create a brown red color which looks really nice with deco tiles. You can see the difference between the unstained clay stair treads with the newly stained ones, above.

a Spanish Staircase Under Construction in Santa Barbara, Ca.  Terra Cotta Clay Floor Tiles in the Foreground of the Image, Ready for Installation
Spanish Staircase Under Construction in Santa Barbara

Above: A wild mix of clay tiles- but all are the same material. Some in the stack were stained and many unstained. The installed ones on the patio in the foreground are not yet stained.

a Santa Barbara Stone Mason Chisels Local Sandstone Rock, Refining It into a Stone Garden Wall in Front of a Spanish Style Home Renovation in the Riviera Neighborhood of Santa Barbara, California
Santa Barbara Stone Mason

Here, a favorite stone mason shapes small sandstone boulders and crafts them into a Santa Barbara sandstone garden wall. A perfect design element to incorporate into any classic Spanish home on the American Riviera.

a Beautiful Dark Stained Spanish Entry Gate Made of Wood Planks and with a Copper Cap is in the Foreground of a Spanish Tile Staircase Leading Up to a Spanish House in the Riviera Neighborhood of Santa Barbara, California
a Spanish Gate and Staircase in Santa Barbara

Take a cruise through any part of Santa Barbara’s Riviera neighborhood and you will see stone walls throughout the many landscapes.

When grading land and property within the foothill neighborhoods of Santa Barbara- sandstone rocks will inevitably be unearthed. Historically, rather than pay to have them removed- Retaining walls, firepits, garden walls and borders are built with them.

a Remodeled Modern Spanish Home in Santa Barbara, California Has a Staircase of Spanish Tile Leading Up to the Front Door.
Modern Spanish Home in Santa Barbara

These Spanish stairs start at the street, and work their way up through sandstone walls and all the way to the front door. Who said a Stairmaster can’t be beautiful?

a Santa Barbara Painter Applies Black Paint to an Iron Railing with a Roller.  a Beautiful Spanish Tile Staircase Leading Up to the Front Door of a Spanish Home is in the Background.
Painter Rolls Black Paint on the Iron Railing

Meanwhile, a painter restores the Spanish railing with black paint applied with a paint roller.

Spanish-style products on Amazon, and my project overviews where they were installed.

I have a lot of great images of this completed Santa Barbara Spanish staircase, but here are some more favorites.

a Modern Spanish Home in Santa Barbara, California Has a Steep Staircase of Steps Leading Up to It.
Modern Spanish Home in Santa Barbara
a Two Story Spanish House in Santa Barbara, California Has an Impressive Staircase Leading Up to the Front Door.
2 Story Spanish House in Santa Barbara Ca

I love these shots- captured on a day when everything seemed to be finally coming together!

a Santa Barbara Spanish Style Staircase Leads Up Through a Drought Tolerant Front Yard Landscape and to the Front Door of a Modern Spanish Home.
a Santa Barbara Spanish Staircase
a Close Up of a Santa Barbara Tiled Staircase Has Stained Terra Cotta Clay Treads and Decorative Spanish Tile Risers.  an Iron Railing Casts Shadows on the Stairs.
Classic Santa Barbara Tiled Staircase

The late afternoon sun catches the custom wrought iron railing to cast shadows on to the stairs.

a Small Black and White Dog Looks Up at a Spanish Tile Staircase in Santa Barbara, California
Small Dog Admires the Beautiful Tile Display
a Custom Spanish Railing Sits Above a Short Plaster Wall and Next to a Spanish Deco Tile Stairs in Santa Barbara, California.
Custom Spanish Railing with Santa Barbara Stairs
Jeff Doubét Book on Amazon
Creating Spanish Style Homes®