Stairs Make Over

We have just about remodeled our entire house. Well not really, we just always take on large projects. Our most resent project has been our stairs.  When we bought our house 11 years it had very light carpet throughout, yes even the stairs.  Well over time and 6 people, which has grown to be 11 people, running up and down them, you can imagine what they looked like. I unfortunately can’t find the before picture that I took, but trust me they were not a pretty thing to see. Even after shampooing they were not clean.  In fact they almost looked better bare wood.

We had several different ideas for the process, but they all depended on what was under the carpet.
When we found that as we suspected, the treads (the part you step on) was just constructions grade wood covered with paint and dry wall mud, refinishing them was out of the question. We had some laminate flooring left from another part of the house that we thought might work, but what was available for the front edges didn’t work.  There goes that idea.  Next idea we just rip out the treads and buy new ones.

So that is exactly what we did. 
Using some inexpensive pine boards we made make shift treads while we finished the new ones.

Along with the new stairs we wanted to trim up the side a put Bead Board and wainscot the solid wall.  We used the pre-primed tongue and groove package.  They were easier cut and handle than the 4″ X 8″ sheets.

John designed and made the moldings and trims that fit the craftsman style of our house.

After two coats of  Ultra Pure White, Semi Gloss paint our new stairs look like this. 

Remodeling is hard work and at least at our house, is a long term, but very rewarding project.  Most of the time we are learning as we go.  If John and I can do it, so can you. Dig in!!
Mary Ellen

If you are new to Spindles we would love for you to subscribe to our e-mail updates or follow us on FacebookPinterest, or Twitter.
You might also enjoy trying these other DIY projects:

Laundry Room Make Over

Window Makeover
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...

21 thoughts on “Stairs Make Over

  1. Hi! Visiting via The Sits Girls–wonderful project. The stairs look great! Ours were carpeted when we moved in and we ripped up our carpet too. Treads are oak and risers are painted white, so it looked pretty good. Oak had some staining that I’ve never gotten around to sanding. Oh, and our railing is unfinished pine that is now almost black with grime. Wanted to clean, stain, and finish, but never got around to THAT either! You’ve inspired me to get a move on 🙂

  2. WOW!!!! I’m a sucker for beadboard! We used it on our re-purposed cabinet doors in our kitchen reno!! This turned out beautiful!!!

    Shelly
    minettesmaze.blogspot.com

  3. Do you have a real wood floor at the bottom of the stairs? We want to redo our main hallway, and we aren’t sure if we want real wood or floating laminate.

    1. The floor at the bottom is real wood. It is a cherry wood probably not #1 grade because it has all different colors, but it is beautiful. Thank you for looking in on us. Please come again.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

CommentLuv badge