Agree with all above. First think what you need the extra space for - you have lots of options. Also remember it is a walk through, so a 'public' space. If used as a study would be best if not too messy or private.

If there is a storage cupboard underneath the stairs, then I think its best to let go of the open risers. At the end of the day when it comes to stairs, I think you need to make simple decisions, don't complicate it. Sometimes spaces fuss over stairs and they can look great, but they are very impractical, expensive and dangerous. I think if you live in a house with no kids and no elderly, then you can lash out and go for something with more design risk. I think the timber stair profile shown in your picture looks great, and would work well with your vertical timber beam balustrade. However timber stairs can be noisy and quite slippery. If you are using carpet upstairs then you could consider running carpet all the way down the stairs. Don't do the half half thing. In order to finish the edge of the stairs neatly, I would edge the stairs with the plaster finish continuing from the cupboard wall, all the way up to the edge of the stairs and making an edge profile for the carpet to be neatly tucked into. By doing this you could still get the stepping silhouette which would look very cool. Then the beams could run off the plaster surface and not the edge of the carpet. Ultimately carpet may be annoying to have to vacuum, but it is a lot quieter, considerably cheaper and safer than timber stairs. Hope that helps. Good luck with it.

The only problem I see with placing plants anywhere near the steps, if leaves fall and are not cleared away, they will rot and become an eyesore as well as slippery if stepped on. Also it may reduce the space as the plant/s grow, as you use the steps. I think placing screens against the grey wall in a fancy pattern would look nice and is basically maintenance free. I would also paint the steps, maybe in the same shade as the screens, though I would leave the railing as it is closer to the window and you don't want to make it the feature.

Hi everyone, thank you all so much for your comments- each one has been really helpful & thank you to those who have complimented the work. I still fluctuate with whether I love it or not, but as jdublya says, i think its just a mid reno freak out! My original colour choice was a dark brown, but unfortunately following other suggestions, it ended up being black. Anywho I will continue to push through with all the other plans- light grey walls, white door frames and doors, and black handles. Then have a think about wall art - frames etc. Once all of that is done i will post an update and let you know if we decide to change anything with the stairs. Also thought I'd mention that the colour of the flooring on the first level has come out a lot more red than it actually appears in real life. I am quite excited to finish the project but of course with limited funds, 3 kids, 2 dogs and a kitten it takes a lot of time! Sit tight, will update as and when :) Thanks again all, your encouragement is encouraging ;-)