DIY Staircase Makeover!!
Updated: Apr 7, 2021
So one of my very talented friends, owner and operator of Metamorphosis Interior Design, pulled off an amazing DIY home makeover and I feel like it's totally worth sharing. She stepped in for a guest blog spot (woohoo!) to break down how she ripped up her old carpet, treated the wood beneath and painted a staircase in her house that was giving her nothing but aggadah. Watch out now!! Lady with a power tool!
Check out Kim's step by step instructions on her DIY Staircase Makeover! She even blessed us with a materials list so there's no guess work left!
"So, You’ve been staring at that old dingy carpet on your stairs for months, possibly years. Wondering how much work it would be to rip the carpet out and refinish the stairs underneath. How much would it cost to hire a guy? Probably a lot more than $500! What if you could do it yourself for less than $200? With some basic tools and a little creativity you can transform your home too! Here's a little before shot so you know what we're working with.
First, you’ll need to remove the carpet. This step requires a carpet knife (or razor blade), a flat head screwdriver and pliers. Starting at the top, use the carpet knife or razor blade to cut the carpet and the pliers to get a corner piece up from the carpet tacks. Once you’ve got one piece up, the carpet should roll up in one long piece. It should, but of course it doesn’t always. After the carpet is disposed of, you will need to remove all of the carpet tacks. This is by far the biggest pain in the ass and requires the most patience. Every time I thought I was done I would find another tack that I had missed. I highly recommend taking lots of breaks during the tack removal process to avoid cramping......and cursing.
Now that all the tacks are finally removed, you can start the next step, Sanding! I used a DeWalt 3-Amp Orbital Sander. Each step was sanded twice; once with a medium grit and the second time with a fine grit. Again, this is a process, so pace yourself. Once you've finished, be sure to vacuum up all of the dust left behind from sanding. Wipe each step with a damp rag as well to ensure you got it all since any dust left over could totally screw up your paint job.
*Tip: Attach your vacuum to the end of the sander so you can suck up the dust while you’re sanding for less of a mess to clean up later.
Once the steps are smooth you can start priming them. Luckily primer dries pretty quickly and I was able to give the stairs 2 coats of primer in the same day. The risers on my steps were plywood and an eyesore so I purchased new risers from Lowe’s...this step is not necessary if your risers are in good shape and can be painted. I didn't want to risk getting finish paint on the riser, so I painted the backs of the steps, including the front edge of each tread, before I installed them. The risers I purchased aren't available anymore but here's a link to something similar. If you do purchase risers, they will need to be installed with a nail gun before you can continue on to the next step of the process. Using the nail gun to attach the risers was super fun and my favorite part!
Now all that’s left to do is paint! I used Sherwin Williams Emerald Trim paint for the white risers. The higher the gloss, the easier it will be to clean when your kids kick them, by the way! For the actual stair treads I used Valspar Porch, Floor & Patio paint in Dark Grey. Painting was tricky because my kids still needed to use the stairs to get to their bedrooms. The process took several days because I was only able to paint one side of the stairs at a time. All I heard was “Mom!!! Which side can we walk on?????”
I decided to paint the railing for good measure and after 2 weeks I had transformed my ugly staircase into something beautiful, that I was really proud of!
After 5 years in our home I had finally redone the stairs and I was able to do it myself! I couldn’t have been happier with how this DIY Staircase Makeover turned out! Then, 2 weeks later, my husband was offered a position clear across the country and we put our house up for sale. Do you know that my little $200 quarantine project raised the value of our home by $10,000?!?!?!?!
I don't know about you guys but this little reno looks like it was worth every bit of time and energy! Kim and her family just moved into a new house, so if you want to keep up with more of her DIY and Design projects, which I highly recommend, check out her Instagram here!
If you think you might like to guest blog for The Good Design Company, shoot me an email! Cant wait to hear from ya!
