Wow what a huge difference! They look MUCH better than before. Just reading that huge list of what you're thanking makes me tired. What a lot of work!

Pretty kity, too.

It looks beautiful! Take a bow, girl. :)

Of course ---- I just LOVE the painted look!!! :)

LOL!!! :)

Well done indeed!

Jan at Rosemary Cottage (who adores painted wood .....)

Very pretty. Can you tell me what paint you used for the banister? Beautiful cat. You might also want to tell how you keep that flower arrangement on that pedestal table with "Sylvester" there.

Thanks guys!

Greatgollymolly - All the dark paint on the railings and treads is the SW Woodsy Brown color in SW Porch and Floor Enamel.
His name is actually Sylvester. Real original there, huh? :) We have three cats and somehow we lucked out and they're very well behaved. They act more like dogs.

Congratulations on completing such a challenging project. Nice color...the dark looks so much better.

I love the re-do. I think it looks more elegant/timeless and probably will be much easier to clean (which may help offset all the work put it finishing them, lol).

Good for you...it looks WONDERFUL!

Bravo. Your hard work really paid off.

It's perfect! I envy your energy. You have improved your home by leaps and bounds. Nice work.

WOW, Shee, that turned out FANTASTIC! I don't know if it looks this good in real life, but in the pics the paint looks just like our dark stained railings! I'd never have guessed that was paint! I'd love to see what it looks like looking up from your basement. I'm curious how the treads look because I'd love to rip our carpeting out too someday. Congrats on a GREAT job!!! You should be proud!

Shee, it looks great! I would love to see the steps looking up from the basement too! Very inspiring!

What a great job. That looks so much better and more elegant to my eye.
A very nice DIY.

Yes, those steps are very, very purdy!!

What a transformation you have wrought! It looks beautiful, and by your description of how you proceeded, one assumes that it will last and last. I am in awe of your energy, and how well you thought it out.

This little kitty sends greetings to Sylvester, who is clearly her long lost relative...

You are amazing, girl!

Very classy! I want to paint my ugly stairs but I am intimidated because I use the stairs to get to my bedroom and only bathroom. How long did it take for you to be able to step on them?

Hoosier - I think it actually does look that good IRL. The floor piece that sits on the carpet at the top is the most noticeable that it's oak depending on how the light hits but for the most part it really covered up the grain well. The newel looks smooth as glass. I thought of your stairs when I was finished. I'm glad you noticed. :)

Kmcg - Here's a shot from the basement. The walls needs cleaned from the sanding dust.
{{!gwi}}

Not real pretty with all the tape but I refuse to walk on them for at least a month. I'll have to take a close up shot of the treads later. I had a lot of holes to fill but everything turned out pretty smooth. That BIN primer really is da bomb too. I know it's for knot holes but it really works well. I tried it first on a nightstand before attempting the stairs and the stand still looks great.

Ha, I had the primer tinted (purple) because of the dark brown and wow, was it ever a hideous looking mess until I get the brown paint on. So glad I went with the brown paint instead of black.

Bronwynsmom - Aww... your kitty is looking like a relative! That fox head on the wall is really neat!

Diymadness - Ooo... if that's the only way to the bathroom I don't know how you'd do it. The whole process took a week. If I didn't have to wait on drying times I would've been done in a few days. I waited 2 days before doing the 2nd coat of brown paint. Wore socks and it was a little tacky but the 2nd coat of paint took care of any smudges. I don't think it would be good at all to walk on them yet. Not with shoes anyhow. We're going to wait a month. Do you have a lot of steps?

DH thought I was a little crazy and was very anti when I first mentioned this project to him... He really likes it now. :)

Thanks for the compliments!

Shee you did great! That is the prettiest brown paint I have ever seen - I agree with hoosiergirl, it looks like a dark rich stain in the pics. Woodsy Brown will become the "new" brown on here for painting vanities, etc because of you!

Show us your steps. Did you do the risers in white?

Tuesday

Shee, the fox head was something I couldn't resist...he holds a ball of kitchen twine, the free end of which which comes out of his mouth, and that little glint of metal you can barely see is the handles of a little pair of scissors which, when sitting in their little hole atop his nose, look like a pair of reading glasses. How could I say no to that???

Diymadness, although it would double the time required, have you considered doing every other step, waiting a month, and doing the others? Are you able to take two at a time easily without danger of falling? (Aside...it's pretty good exercise for your little bum!) You can put a piece of blue or green painter's tape on the alternate risers to remind you which ones to step on while you are in process.

Good job Shee. It is coming along nicely.

Bronwynsmom - I still want to call you Brownysmom!
I feel like I should know this but what is kitchen twine used for? Like the stuff around bread bags? I see both that and the scissors since you mentioned it.

I can't believe I didn't think to mention every other step to Diymadness. I did consider doing that with mine. That's the way to go!

beautiful job shee! I love the paint oak is eh to me as you might have guessed.
I hope u have enough supplies to stay downstairs until the paint cures --- could be a lonnnng month ;)

Gorgeous! What a great idea, & you did such a fine job with your painting. You are such a detail person.
Huge upgrade! Love it!

Now for your treatment of the cats..."the cats were fine...I put them in the spare room....they were fine napping on the bed."

Oh, really? Sounds like cruel, harsh animal abuse to me! Confining cats to a spare bedroom! Sheesharee, I'm surprised at you! LOL! (Such a cute kitty in the pics...& your cats are so lucky to have a mom like you!)

Good job, Shee!

I use kitchen twine for tying bundles of herbs to make bouquets garnis, or anything used to add flavor bundled into a piece of cheesecloth that I want to snatch back out of the broth or the roasting pan afterwards, and for tying roasting chickens' legs together, and for tying any butterflied meat that is stuffed and rolled, and for tying up a pork loin into a uniform shape so it cooks evenly, and tying the fat layer back onto a rack of lamb or a rib roast...plus all sorts of solutions to problems that seem to require string!

It has more presence in the dark color brown with white spindles--it looks more substantial. Very nice.

Amazing job! Give yourself a pat on the back and crack open the wine!!

Gorgeous, sheesharee!!! You accomplish so much and it all comes out so beautifully!! You make me tired and I am just looking at the pictures, I don't know how you do it!!

Nice work, you will smile every time you see those beautiful steps!!

Shee, your stairs look great, and you must be proud of all your hard work to get them that way. Love the brown color and I'm sure you're going to be happy when you can finally use them!

OK, now I'm jealous!!! My stairs lead to the showers, no way can do unless I send DH out of town and use the pool or the neighbor's shower, LOL!

It looks great!

Stinky - Ha, I know! I see you noticed I purposely made sure to add that they were fine. I was hoping nobody here would accuse me of being cruel. I'll admit the one you're seeing in the photos acted like it was torture staying in there because he's nosey. Kept pawing at the door. He's always my helper with any project. See. Here's just a few shots.

Helping paint painting crown...
{{!gwi}}
Being impatient with me to hang a picture...
{{!gwi}}
Helping with the stairs...
{{!gwi}}
He's just being cute in this one so I had to post it.
{{!gwi}}

Bronwyn - Ohhhhhh... Feeling silly. Can you tell I'm not much of a chef? :)

Green - LOL! "Bye hunny see you in a month." Then pack your bags and head for the neighbors. :)

wowza - gorgeous stairs - You did an awesome job!! Love the color. Stairs must be on the brain, I just painted mine grey (after my floor guy said nothin could be done with the many many nails that had been pounded in to them over the last 90 yrs) and wallpapered the risers - it was totally tedious but gratifying project. I was worried about them being slippery but local paint store recommended Sharkgrip and that stuff is easy to use and awesome. Gorgeous kitty!

Laura - I LOVE the wallpapered risers! Looks really nice!

Oooooooo.. SharkGrip. I didn't know that existed or I would've bought some. DH is concerned about slipping on the steps. I was too but read here by so many that carpet is more slippery. Carpet may be but it's still going to hurt more if I biff it down the wood stairs!

The brown paint is specifically "porch & floor" but does anyone thing a coat of oil or water based poly will help add more protection or is that overkill?

Shee, at the risk of appearing to be a couple of crazy cat women, I couldn't resist popping this one in here, after the last one of Sylvester. They MUST be related!

Tummies up!

Shee, thanks for posting more pics of your fur baby! He is absolutely adorable! It does look like he may have been separated at birth from Bronwynsmom's Sylvester! What a precious pic of him!
(Pretty chair too...obviously it's quite comfortable!)