How We Refinished Our Staircase - Without Sanding!

Written by Julie Metaxas, KW Home Staging & Redesign

This is a quick post to give some courage and inspriation to those who may be considering refinishing their dated oak staircase.  This is simply one tried and true option -- as I know there are many out there.  After doing it ourselves, I can definitely say I would recommend this method -- after considering the unique features and requirements of your particular project, of course! 

We followed the methods and suggestions from this particular blog: http://www.practicallyspoiled.com/2014/10/23/how-to-gel-stain-oak-banisters/ 

...and we're extremely happy with the way it turned out, and have no concerns with how it's holding up either!

Incase you're wondering, here are the products we used (for the gel stain components used on the stair treads, spindles, railing, and posts):

What We Used
(for the gel stain components used on the stair treads, spindles, railing, and posts)

So now, you HAVE to CHECK THIS OUT! 

Before & After & Along the Way 

Realtor.ca Listing Photo from when we purchased the home in 2017
(however you may guess this photo was taken in 1977!)

And here it began: 8 months into our move (as renovations go... many months later than planned)... Ripping up the carpet!

This is me applying the gel stain... With my husband's old (clean) sock on my hand.  We went through several of these in the end.

Some photos of the process...

After gel stain coat #1

After gel stain coat #3

Painting (priming) proved much more difficult than it seemed and I was worried I wouldn't be able to get a nice professional finish.  To the rescue, a pro painter for the finishing coats!

Some more Before & Afters...

Before

After

Before

After

Source Guide:
Paint: Sherwin-Williams SW7006 Extra White (primer: Sherwin-Williams Extreme Bond Primer)
Carpet: Tuftex | Only Natural in Carbon | https://www.tuftexcarpets.com
Carpet purchase and installation: S.L. Marcella Carpets in Waterloo http://www.marcellacarpets.ca
Painter: Debbie Ennis, Creative Walls 519-573-6359
The How-To: http://www.practicallyspoiled.com/2014/10/23/how-to-gel-stain-oak-banisters/