First, I painted the stairwell and installed the board and batten to give the stairwell more character and charm.

Then, I ripped up the carpet. Since our staircase was built out of particleboard, I needed completely new treads and risers.

I installed beadboard as the risers and painted them ultra white in a semi-gloss finish. Then, I cut down Retrotreads (found at Lowe's) to size and installed them. I chose to stain the finished treads in Rustoleum's "Kona" wood stain in a semi-gloss finish.

Instead of re-installing the same wooden balusters as before, I decided to make the staircase extra special by installing IronPro wrought iron balusters. I also installed a chunkier newell post to add more character.

Once finished, I stained the existing railings the same brown as the treads and applied two coats of polyurethane to increase durability.

I applied two coats of polyurethane to the treads, as well. I chose a semi-gloss finish so that the treads would shine and provide maximum durability to a home with three dogs.

I absolutely love my new staircase and am so proud of the fact that I completed it all by myself. You can, too! A full, step-by-step tutorial and additional photos may be found at my blog link below.