Do It Yourself Staircase Makeover

by FrugElegance

This is a large project that is extremely labor intensive but the skills can be handled by most if you can just take the time to do it. Plus, you will save so much money.
This post is about how & why we did this project ourselves when we tend to do more quick & easy projects... with honest opinions about the process & the products used.

do it yourself staircase makeover, stairs

Its a beautiful staircase but the honey color doesn't really go with the house. With new carpeting being installed, its a great time to change the wood color.

With so much sanding, we were getting a little silly. It’s the most time consuming part of the project. Do it with a friend, so you will have more fun!!

Progress being made, see the difference from one side to the other..

The number one thing to know about sanding- Always sand in the direction of the wood grain.

Carol's husband Randy has the smooth touch to do a steady brush stroke across the banister. We are in love with gel stain & this color. At first we tried brazilian rosewood but it was too purple the winner was Hickory. Love the rich brown color.

We hope you will come to the Original blog post where we have so many more before & after pictures. As well as more details DIY details & product information.

Enjoyed the project?

You can do it! Saved to your projects

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1 question

M.rivera on Oct 23, 2017

where did you buy the metal spindles, and how expensive this project was?m looks so beautiful

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4 comments

William on Jan 11, 2017
They came out beautiful and elegant. Stripper was definitely not necessary. Putting on the gel stain with a clean cloth would have been easier and quicker ( that is what I do with gel stain). Also you can blend the stain with the cloth as it get saturated with the stain. Being SILLY breaks the monotony during the sanding =:) You did an excellent job. I hope you were patting each other on the backs several times for a job well done with a few high fives =:) =:)

1 Reply
- FrugElegance on Jan 12, 2017
  Yes totally correct William, gel stain can be applied with a cloth. We do it like that for our Front Door Update post (also on Hometalk & blog) and we love how that project came out too. Its so thick & easy to work with vs regular stain. Thanks so much William!!
  
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Haysha S. on Jan 12, 2017
Looks like you did a beautiful job!

1 Reply
- FrugElegance on Jan 12, 2017
  Thank you so very much Haysha! **FYI, FruGirl Randi, here- I grew up in Oceanside.. pretty close to you ;-)
  
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