Making an Old Set of Stairs Look New

I promised another home post and dang it if I’m not going to deliver. I bring you… (drum roll) my finished staircase.

What do you think? Check out the before and you’ll probably be thinking a whole lot more.

How about that carpet? I’m guessing you love the paint job as well. Seriously, I am not kidding when I say that every single inch of this house needs some form of love. I actually finished the stairs last Christmas, but I didn’t want to post for all to see until I finished the handrail. If it weren’t for the blog, the darn thing would probably still be sitting in my crawl space. You guys inspired me to finally finish. 🙂

If you’ve ever thought about removing carpet from your stairs, I encourage you to do it! It’s not a complicated project. It’s just requires a little time and dedication.

Start by removing the carpet. Note to self, be prepared to spend time pulling staples out from the treads. Lots and lots and LOTS of staples. Next up, fill in any holes with wood filler and then you sand. And sand. And sand. Little feet will be pattering up and down those stairs so you want them smooth and free from snags.

Here’s a picture after I finished sanding.

And in case you’re wondering what’s going on with the paint, that’s what happens after a coat of Citri-strip. You buy it at Home Depot and it’s awesome. It took three applications but eventually got every last little bit of paint off that railing.

So you’ve filled all your holes and sanded. Now it’s time for the fun part. Painting and staining! I painted the risers first and stained second. Here are my stairs primed and ready for painting.

Followed by staining. I did every other riser so that we could still go up and down while the work was being done.

Three coats of polyurethane and you’re done! I also caulked all the edges just keep out the cold air (these stairs back up to our garage) and give it a more finished look.

So what do you think? Major improvement?