Wailea Custom Cherry Staircase

Project Highlight Video

Cherry switchback staircase with low-iron glass guard, seen from the dining room

The new switchback staircase from the dining room: solid select cherry stringers, posts and rails with low-iron tempered glass panels in cherry stops, so light passes through the stair. It replaced the original stair. Wailea, Maui.

Both flights of the switchback stair with continuous cherry rails and glass

Both flights of the finished switchback: cherry posts and handrails running continuously through the turn, with low-iron glass panels letting light through the whole stair. Wailea, Maui.

Cherry newel post with pyramid cap and glass guard at the top of the stair

The top of the stair: a solid cherry newel post with a pyramid cap, low-iron glass panels in cherry stops, and a wall-mounted cherry handrail on black brackets. Wailea, Maui.

Staircase structure going in: engineered lumber stringers and plywood sub-base

The new stair framed in high-grade engineered lumber and plywood, the structure that the prefinished cherry is fastened to from behind. Floors and walls stay protected throughout. Wailea, Maui.

Underside of the stair: plywood skin and structural brackets before cherry cladd

The stair structure from below, with plywood screwed to the engineered stringers and a steel bracket at the base. All of this is hidden once the prefinished cherry goes on. Wailea, Maui.

Adhesive laid on the stringer before the cherry skirt board goes on

Construction adhesive applied to the plywood stringer face, ready for the prefinished cherry skirt. The cherry is bonded and fastened from behind, so no nail or screw ever shows on the face. Wailea, Maui.

Steel strap fitted to a cherry rail component before installation

A steel strap mortised flush into the underside of a solid cherry stair component on the bench, so it can be fastened from below with nothing showing once it is in place. Wailea, Maui.

Lamello Invis drilling jig for magnet-driven hidden connectors

The drilling jig for the Lamello Invis system, used to place the male and female halves of these concealed, magnet-driven connectors in the cherry posts and rails. Once the joint is closed, the connector is tightened from outside the wood by a magnetic drive, leaving no holes or hardware on any face. Wailea, Maui.

Setting handrail pitch with levels and clamps before fastening

Dialing in the rail angle: levels and clamps hold the line between the cherry posts so the handrail pitch matches the stair exactly before anything is fastened. Wailea, Maui.

Cherry handrail end prepared for a concealed rail bolt

The end of a solid cherry handrail, drilled for a concealed rail bolt so the rail joins its post with no visible hardware. Shims and protective tape sit ready on the bench. Wailea, Maui.

Post-and-rail transition at the landing, clamped during glue-up

The handrail wrapping the newel post at the switchback landing, clamped while it sets. Getting this post-and-rail transition to read as one continuous line was one of the hardest parts of the stair. Wailea, Maui.

First cherry tread set, the rest of the flight still protected

The first solid cherry tread installed between the cherry skirts, with the treads above still covered in protection while work continues. Wailea, Maui.

Single-piece cherry landing floor meeting the skirt and next flight

The switchback landing: its cherry floor was installed as a single piece, meeting the skirt and the first step of the next flight with clean, tight lines. Wailea, Maui.

Cherry glass stops holding the low-iron glass guard at the stringer

Detail of the solid cherry glass stops that hold the low-iron tempered glass panels at the stringer, mitered and fitted with no visible fasteners. Wailea, Maui.

Upper flight of the cherry staircase from the landing

The upper flight seen from the landing: solid cherry treads and risers, the landing newel post, and the glass guard with its cherry handrail. Wailea, Maui.

Underside of the stair: cherry-clad soffit and stringer edge

Low view of the stair from below: the cherry stringer edge and the clad underside, finished as carefully as the treads even though few people will ever look. Wailea, Maui.

Wall-side cherry handrail and glass guard climbing toward the landing post

The wall-side cherry handrail and the glass guard rising together toward the landing newel post, with the cherry-clad underside of the upper flight above. Wailea, Maui.

Custom cherry switchback staircase under a wood ceiling, Wailea home

The finished staircase as a statement piece: solid select cherry throughout, low-iron glass guards for natural light, and no visible fasteners, set under the home’s wood ceiling. Wailea, Maui.

Front view of the cherry staircase: twin newel posts, rails and glass guard

Straight on at the base of the stair: twin solid cherry newel posts with flat caps, a wall-side handrail, and the glass guard on the open side. Wailea, Maui.

Landing newel post where the handrail wraps and turns to the upper flight

The finished post-and-rail transition at the landing: the cherry handrail wraps the newel post and turns up the next flight as one continuous line. Wailea, Maui.

Solid cherry staircase with wall-mounted handrail and glass guard, Wailea

The finished lower flight: solid select cherry treads, risers and handrails, prefinished with a traffic-rated conversion varnish, beside a low-iron tempered glass guard. No visible fasteners. Wailea, Maui.

Switchback stair sub-base: plywood treads and center stringer at the turn

Looking down the switchback during framing: plywood sub-treads on engineered stringers, with the center stringer where the two flights turn at the landing. The cherry finish goes over this later. Wailea, Maui.

Structural steel bracket at the stringer base beside a cherry newel post

A commercially available structural bracket, adapted to anchor the base of the engineered stringer, set right beside the solid cherry newel post. The cherry cladding covers it completely. Wailea, Maui.

Steel connector plates joining stair members, marked on centerline

Commercially available steel connector plates, adapted to join two stair members at an angle, screwed to the hidden faces and laid out on a marked centerline. Once assembled, none of it is visible. Wailea, Maui.

Solid blocking set in the wall for a post at the upper landing

Solid wood blocking let into the wall at the upper landing, under the wood ceiling, to give the guard post and rail a solid anchor with no surface fasteners. Wailea, Maui.

Cherry newel post end fitted with Lamello Invis connector halves

The end of a solid cherry newel post fitted with Lamello Invis connector halves. The joint is pulled tight by a magnetic drive from outside the wood, so the post connects with no visible fasteners. Prefinished faces are taped for protection. Wailea, Maui.

Cherry stringer cladding clamped in place, glass guard and rail installed above

The cherry cladding on the stringer, glued and clamped while it sets, with the glass guard and handrail already in place above. Tape marks keep layout lines off the prefinished faces. Wailea, Maui.

Cherry handrail end with a Festool Domino mortise, aligned to a laser line

A solid cherry handrail end with a mortise cut by the Festool Domino joiner, ready for a loose tenon, lined up on a laser line where it meets the next component. The tenon locks the joint from inside, so nothing shows on the finished rail. Wailea, Maui.

Glass guard and cherry cladding going on, with bar clamps holding the skirt

Mid-install: low-iron glass panels set in the guard while the cherry skirt is clamped to the stringer. Floors stay covered with protection board the whole time. Wailea, Maui.

Furniture-grade joint where cherry skirt, tread and riser meet

Close-up of solid select cherry where the skirt, tread and riser meet: tight joints, matched grain and no visible fasteners, the furniture-grade standard the owners asked for. Wailea, Maui.

Looking down at the landing: one-piece cherry floor and curved handrail return

From above, the one-piece cherry landing floor and the wall-side handrail, with its curved cherry return at the turn. Wailea, Maui.

Cherry newel post meeting treads and floor, no fasteners in sight

A solid cherry post where it meets the treads and the floor: crisp edges, matched grain, and nothing on the surface to show how it is held. Wailea, Maui.

Cherry stringer meeting the floor: a clean scribe with no trim to hide it

Where the cherry stringer meets the tile floor: a clean, tight fit with matched grain and no shoe molding or filler covering the joint. Wailea, Maui.

Top of the stair at the upper bedroom: cherry cap rail and handrail return

Arriving at the upper level: the cherry cap rail on the half wall and the curved handrail return, opening onto the bedroom with ocean views. Wailea, Maui.

Looking down the stairwell from the top: cherry cap rail over the switchback

The view from the top of the stairwell: the cherry cap rail in the foreground and the switchback landing and handrails below, lit by the wall sconce. Wailea, Maui.