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I have a newly installed winding staircase in my house as part of a loft extension. The newel posts have notches in them, as shown in the pictures.

My first question is: why are the notches there? I’ve not seen this before, and not knowing a name for them means I can’t Google for answers.

The second question is, what can be done to hide them or make them more attractive? I’ve considered using filler or sanding them down. Is there a standard approach to this problem, or is it just a matter of taste?

Photo of jewel post

Second view showing that there are 2 notches

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  • They look like mistake cuts...
    – JACK
    Commented Jul 19, 2020 at 12:09
  • Could it be a notch for a gate?
    – Lee Sam
    Commented Jul 19, 2020 at 14:18
  • If that is a new install using recycled materials, it was the installers' very poor choice of material preparation....
    – Jack
    Commented Jul 19, 2020 at 15:12
  • unrelated to the your question, but I have to ask - are those pictures real or are they a painting? looks like a painting to me.
    – rothloup
    Commented Jul 19, 2020 at 15:26
  • The ones on the sides look like a second board was attached to the post that was too short to reach all the way to the top.
    – Dan Is Fiddling By Firelight
    Commented Jul 19, 2020 at 15:30

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I believe that those notches are just right angle cuts in the facing boards to avoid the line of the ceiling. It's sloppy work. Ideally, those boards should have gone another 6-8 inches up to where the plaster meets the left edge of the boards and tapered to match the line of the plaster.

You can add a couple of (roughly knife blade shaped) pieces of the same thickness of wood to the top to finish it. It's fiddly work (probably why it was avoided in the first place), but if it's done carefully and it will be painted, it should look much more graceful.

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  • ... which is exactly what I did. Marking this as correct for the benefit of anyone seeing this question in future.
    – jsm
    Commented Jan 31, 2023 at 15:47

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