My parents' old house had a wonderful oak front staircase that my six siblings and I used to race up and down, taking them two or three at a time, with only a casual hold on the railing. I don't know how we managed to never slip or fall. Now, the timber backstairs were steep, and had narrow treads and were poorly lit. We NEVER ran up or down them, but held tightly to the railing and hoped to heck we managed to stay upright. As an adult, my previous home had carpeted stairs, which I slipped on (wearing socks) and fell down twice, though thankfully I was closer to the bottom than the top. My current home has timber stairs with three narrow stainless steel runners stood on edge and inset horizontally across the front of each tread (this is supposed to help reduce risk of slips). I doubt I will get over the anxiety of taking another tumble, so I never go down them wearing socks, and if barefoot, I hold onto the railing for dear life and take it nice and slow. So far so good.

Both ideas are great. I never store my shoes in bedroom wardrobes. I have an inbuilt wardrobe in the laundry and two sections are for shoe storage. As soon as everyone comes home the shoes are taken off and left in the laundry so they can aerate and then they get put away in their clear plastic labelled boxes or the hanging shoe shelves (for everyday shoes eg sneakers, work shoes etc.)

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.

I really like the storage ideas, suggested here; as we ha d a small flat, which had a built-in storage area under the stairs. Looked good and was very useful and practical. If you don't need a storage, I can imagine a cosy reading corner; a comfy sofa, where you can either sit or lie down, scatter cushions...if enough space, you can put a bookshelf behind the sofa. As a powerpoint already there, you can stand a nice-looking, practical lamp; for reading or to create a pleasant atmosphere :) Good luck!