How to Modernize Stair Railing

3 Materials
$125
3 Days
Medium
Some people would love the scroll stairway railing that we had in our house but it wasn't for us. I have a modern aesthetic and it just wasn't working. After getting a few quotes to replace the stair railing (at over 6k!), I knew replacing the railing wasn't an option. So, with lots of elbow grease we decided to see if we could change the existing railing. You have got to see this BEFORE/AFTER!
We had the scroll stairway railing on three different sets of stairs in our house. During our entryway makeover (see the full see the before/after of our entryway here), we knew we wanted to make a change to it.
First things first, we took off the railing. Then, we took a good look at the scroll work. One side of the scroll had a much smaller connection point. We decided to try to grind that side off first (where it connected). Using an angle grinder and safety gloves/glasses, we got to work.
The trick to grinding the scrolls off was to go slow. You don't want to hurry this process because you could accidentally grind into the metal that you want to keep. All scrolls will be different, but for these, there were four different areas on each scroll that had to be worked on. After we got the hang of it, it took about 15 min per scroll to grind.
Next, we sanded the entire piece. Our railing had been painted before, so we wanted to make sure the new paint adhered well. We used an orbital sander over the whole railing.


After that, we came back with a cleaning attachment on our drill. This helped get in the little crevices.
Next, we prepped for paint and then painted. It might look a bit scary in this picture, but the circle railing was study on the wood and ladder.


We wanted to get each piece up so that we didn't have to flip them in the painting process.


We decided to use enamel spray paint. It took about 22 cans and a few hours to get them all coated.
All in all, we love the end result! It's such a great change from what we had and fits so much better in our entryway now. Make sure to stop by the blog to see lots more picture, details and exact sources for the tools we used (click HERE to see all that)! How about one more before/after?
Before: Outdated railing, light, doors and more.
After: Refreshed railing, light, decor, doors and more!



I smile every single time I go by! It fits my style so much better now. So, tell me... what do you think?!
Suggested materials:
  • Angle grinder
  • Paint
  • Sanding pad
Ashley@Biggerthanthethreeofus
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
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  • Sandra Sandra on Jul 10, 2017

    I liked the original design better for a home; might have repainted them. That being said, the new looks sheek . did you find a way to use the designs elsewhere? I am redoing an old house and am finding ways to relocate some things for better purpose .

  • Amy Bouwmeester Amy Bouwmeester on Jul 10, 2017

    What did you finish the top with? I had a similar railing in my home that had a hard plastic 'handle'. I cut the plastic wrapped handle off, chiseled the scroll off, sandblasted the white paint, and spray painted the railing 2 years ago. I'm still trying to determine if my efforts were worth it since I need to finish off the top and quotes are almost as much as a new hand railing!

    Did you leave the hard plastic wrap on?

  • Laura Laura on Oct 17, 2017

    I have railings that have about 10 coats of paint on them and it looks terrible. I want to strip it all off and leave the original railings, suggestions?

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  • Stephanie Alesana King Stephanie Alesana King on Jan 16, 2018

    Wow! This looks fantasti! I love your choice in chandelier as well. It all looks very clean. Thank you so much for sharing.

  • Annie Duren Annie Duren on Jan 16, 2018

    FABULOUS !!!!!!. I am so impressed, I never comment on these but I felt the need to do so on yours. GREAT JOB 😊

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