- Jul 10, 2023
Trend Watch: Horizontal Railings
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Try out this look for a stylish twist on classic vertical spindles.
Thanks to their sleek design and view-enhancing layout, horizontal railings have long been used for outdoor settings: surrounding back patios, lining the staircase that leads down to the yard or enhancing the front porch. Used indoors, however, this stylish look also has plenty to offer your interior design.
Interior horizontal railings suit modern or contemporary looks perfectly. A sleek form and clean lines keep the visual flow of a space open and emphasize airiness—the ideal pairing with a sophisticated modernist interior design. It’s no wonder homeowners, designers and builders are embracing their options and looking beyond vertical spindle installations for their railings. It’s official: the horizontal look is hot.
Horizontal railings are dramatic and statement-making—perfect if you’re looking for something as bold as it is beautiful. It’s already incredibly popular in Europe, Australia, and the U.S., where cable and horizontal bars are used in residential and commercial projects alike and found both indoors and outside.
Find some inspiration right here for how to incorporate this sophisticated look into your own home
HORIZONTAL RAILINGS: INSPIRING LOOKS
Photo Source: Bezdan
These horizontal metal lengths combine with a white oak staircase for a beautiful contrast of natural materials.
Photo Source: Bezdan
Horizontal metal lengths or cross tubes can easily be installed directly into wood posts. The white newel post and contrasting dark wood handrail creates a sleek, modern railing with a nautical style.
Photo Source: Bezdan
Cable railing continues to be a top choice for horizontal infill on interior and exterior guards for minimal interruption to views and easy maintenance. For Canadian homeowners, horizontal infill is gaining popularity as jurisdictions accept code adoptions for this type of guard rail.
Photo Source: Bezdan
The cable hardware adds a modern element to this contemporary open riser staircase.
Photo Source: Bezdan
This installation uses rectangular spindles horizontally in a wood handrail for a high-contrast look that works just right in this minimalist space.
Photo Source: Bezdan
The black balusters pop against the white oak wood. A plain round spindle is ideal for installing with wood posts and handrails.
Photo Source: Bezdan
Black still rules for railing hardware like these fascia mount cable posts and fittings in black stainless PVD, adding an eye-catching element to this modern farmhouse-style home.
Photo Source: Wall Street Journal
Geometric style adds visual interest in this custom fabricated railing with an industrial chic vibe.
GET THE LOOK
For these dramatic modern railing installations, designers are using options in finishes and materials that can enhance a room’s design.
For this sophisticated style, any spindle can work: no special products needed. Plain, unadorned designs work best to allow this unique railing layout to shine, but if you’re up for a more ornate look, decorative or ornamental products can add function with an extra layer of style. Though a more ornate spindle can turn your staircase from sleek and modern into one with a more traditional feel, there’s no wrong way to incorporate horizontal railings to match your own personal style.
Another way to customize your horizontal railing is by creating patterns using spacing and shape. Depending on how far apart you space the vertical support posts, the look of your railing can be vastly different, creating square segments or rectangular ones (see the photos above) to suit your taste.
PRODUCT PICKS
A 60” length spindle is ideal for horizontal guards with wood posts.
Stainless steel round spindles offer a sleek option for horizontal railings, but they’re certainly not the only possibility.
More and more designs are including square and rectangular form spindles installed horizontally.
To really experiment with this look, break the mold with a geometric-style baluster that adds a layer of visual interest, like the geometric shaped spindle shown above.
In this case the cross tube railing infill is offset using terminals to create a dramatic, modern look for guard rail, perfect if you’re looking for some visual interest on stairs or decks.
Black cable hardware components are taking center stage. Bold and beautiful when paired with white or light wood posts or sleek and subtle with black posts, fittings, and cable infill.
WHAT STYLE WILL YOU CHOOSE?
Safe, practical, and beautiful, horizontal guards are a fantastic way to elevate any space, inside or out. Designers are embracing these designs and how this style can enhance our places for both work and play. As more jurisdictions adopt the code changes set out by the National Building Code 2015, horizontal guards will rapidly be the installation choice for stairs, balconies, decks, and fences in Canada.
