About us – Newel posts and stair parts
Spindlewood Woodturning, situated in Somerset, was founded in 1981. The fully equipped workshop now supplies businesses throughout Europe and the United States with newel post stair parts, doors, staircase accessories, mouldings, timber and flooring.
With so much woodturning experience, the business has built an unrivalled portfolio of timber newel designs that would complement any architectural project. The portfolio is based on traditional styles, but it has been modernised to make it more versatile.
We have extensive expertise working in the timber trade with architects, project managers, builders, and environmentalists.
For volume work, copy lathes, barley twist machines, and other complex woodworking machinery have mostly replaced hand turning. However, we have created a reputation for quality, efficiency, and competitive pricing by employing very experienced people to hand-turn to client requirements.
The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification is the “gold standard” for timber sourced from forests that are responsibly managed, socially beneficial, environmentally conscious, and commercially successful.
Timber from well-managed sources, such as FSC® certified forests, is a natural, renewable answer to global environmental issues including climate change, ecosystem damage, and landscape deterioration brought on by rising human demand.
For all of our timber items, we provide a unique matching service; we can make spindles to match your current ones. If you have any broken or damaged spindles, please contact us so that we can make an exact replacement for you. We manufacture high-quality spindles, newel post pieces, columns, and a variety of other items. We have a variety of styles to fit any home, from traditional to modern and contemporary.
If you can’t view a suitable design when you shop on our website, we’ll gladly use our 40 years of knowledge to help you meet your needs. Similarly, if you like a newel illustration you see in a magazine or on the internet, we can make a sample from it from timber and produce it on one of our copy lathes.
We have the machinery at Spindlewood to make very big turnings and columns. Our adapted lathes have a diameter capacity of 600mm and a distance between centres of 6m. We use the majority of the timber columns and huge turnings we make for architectural restoration, garden architecture, pergolas, and structural support.
Turned green oak timber columns are a popular concept, especially in the construction of oak timber framed buildings and garden structures, but hardwood timber and softwood timber ones can also be utilised in building conservation and architectural projects, provided they are properly maintained.
We don’t just create timber staircase parts at Spindlewood; we also do a lot of specialised work with specialist tools. We’ve worked on projects for film studios, Hampton Court Palace, and restoration projects such as the Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre in London, for which we won the coveted Wood Award. The Waverley design award was also given to us. We’ve appeared on Grand Designs a few times throughout the years, with our most recent appearance being in the house that won house of the year.
We’ve also completed a number of unique display projects, like a 4m pair of wooden chopsticks for a restaurant and a turned wooden cannon model. We can handle a wide range of uncommon and specialised work, and no job is too small or too huge for us.
Stair posts, table legs, four poster bed posts, knobs, and hand turned chair legs are among the custom furniture turnings we can make for particular designs and styles. The majority of it will be unique and handcrafted. To produce turned goods from cad drawings or sketches, we collaborate closely with cabinet makers and furniture firms.
We can work to tight tolerances on precision turned work to produce a high-quality finished product when assembling beautiful furniture.
Balusters and porch posts can be utilised to enhance a home’s appearance. We can create bespoke newel or baluster designs to match the style and age of the building, or we can reproduce an existing design to match. Balusters are a robust and sturdy short decorative pillar that may be used to make a statement in any architectural feature.
Porch posts give structural support as well as being a stylish method to dress up your porch and create a bold statement at the front of your home. They’re also a fantastic addition to the garden.
If you’d like to talk about your own newel ideas with us about specialist woodturning, please contact us on 01278 453 665 or send us an email to info@spindlewoodturning.co.uk. Alternatively, you can complete an online form here or visit us in person at The Old Bakery 8 Edward Street, Bridgwater, Somerset TA6 5ET.
Why do they call them newel posts?
The French word “newel” may have come from the Gallo-Roman “nucale”, which comes from the Latin word “nux”, meaning “nut.” The carpentry term is from 1833 that means “a tall and more or less ornate pillar at the top or bottom of staircases” (newel-post in this sense is from 1798).
Other sources say that the word “newel” comes from the Latin word nodus, which means knot or knob. That word changed over time, becoming nodellus in Medieval Latin and then nouel in Old French before becoming the word we know today. Many residential railings include a spherical knob on top of the newel post, so it’s not surprising that the name “newel” came from the word “knob.”
Newel stair parts are upright posts around which the steps of a circular staircase wind; consequently, the major post at the foot of a staircase, or the secondary ones at the landings, in stairs with straight flights. Also known as a newel post.
Are these posts a structural component? The newel post fulfills two critical purposes. It is, first and foremost, a part of the staircase’s structural design. Because one (or both) sides of a staircase cannot always be fixed to the wall, the newel post serves as a load-bearing element that supports that side.
Because a newel provides such support, this will make any staircase last a lot longer than staircases without a newel. Not only does it look aesthetically pleasing but it will also add value and security to your home compared to stairs with a flimsy staircase that doesn’t have newel stair parts.
What does the newel post do?
A newel post can also refer to an upright post that supports the handrail of a stair bannister (commonly referred to as a “newel post”). It is the main post at the bottom of a staircase with straight steps, but the name can also refer to the intermediate posts on landings and the top of a staircase. A newel provides support and strength to your stairs, and are fixed using bolts or adhesives, ensuring they are safe and trustworthy.
A stain or paint can be applied to a timber-constructed newel to ensure it matches your existing staircase if you do not require a whole new staircase can be built.
What is the difference between a baluster and a newel?
Balusters and newels are sometimes confused, although the two are not interchangeable. For starters, a railing requires more balusters since they are normally set closer together, usually within a few inches of each other, to avoid gaps that could jeopardise the safety of users. While balusters give structural support, they also serve to bridge gaps between each newel, making your stairs safer. In the end, both stairway accessories are necessary — they merely serve different purposes.
In short, a baluster is a short column used in a group to support a rail, as seen on the side of a stairway; a bannister, whereas a newel is a robust pillar at the top or bottom of a flight of stairs that supports the handrail.
Is a newel post necessary?
Newel posts are taller and thicker than spindles or balusters, and they serve as a rail support. Newel posts keep the handrail straight and solid, rather than wobbly and flimsy. Where the stairway changes directions – whether it’s a new flight of stairs or a full 90-degree turn – newel posts should be installed.
While the primary role of newel posts is structural, they also serve as ornamental elements. Newel posts can serve as appealing accents because they sit at the beginning, end, and often the corners of the railing. You can choose a more classic newel post for a timeless design or a modern shape for a more contemporary look when installing your staircase.
Newel posts serve a practical purpose, but they’re also eye-catching architectural components with their own special appeal. Many old buildings have lost their original newel posts and balustrades in the name of modernity, according to Architectural Observer; nevertheless, if you keep an eye out, you can often identify historic newel posts and balustrades in older structures if you keep an eye out. For example, Greek Revival, Gothic Revival, and Italianate accents are common in homes erected in the 1850s — think of large Southern plantation homes or ornate newel posts that punctuate sweeping stairwells at historic theatres. It’s tough to deny the particular charm of elaborate newel posts once you notice them.
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