We painted our stairway! I will share the before and after pictures, the products and paint colors I used, what I would and would not do again, and how I decorated the final space. 
When we bought our 1800’s fixer upper farmhouse, we knew we were in for a lot of work. What I didn’t realize was just how much of an impact paint alone can make! Although this project was a smaller space, it did take some time to complete due to the multiple layers and dry times. I will go through all of that in more detail, but let’s start with some before pictures!
Prep Work
I am so glad that I took these before pictures to remind myself just how far we have come. It may be a small space, but this project has made a huge impact in our home and gives me hope for what the rest of the house will eventually look like. In order to properly prep the area, we patched and sanded holes, removed fixtures, and scuffed the surfaces. Since the previous paint was worn off in several areas, I decided to use Bulls Eye 123 Primer Plus on the walls and stairs to seal it all in and smooth out some of the lines.
Tip: I linked the product so you can see the label, but I would recommend purchasing it from Lowe’s to save money. Also, I highly recommend getting the PLUS, as I found it to be well worth the extra couple of dollars. Lowe’s carries the PLUS version, my HD did not. Next, it was time to paint!
Paint Colors
The hardest part about this project was deciding on paint colors. Since I knew I wanted to use the same colors throughout the rest of the house the pressure was on! I ended up using Sherwin Williams High Reflective White in Satin for the trim, Sherwin Williams Pure White in Eggshell for the walls, and Benjamin Moore Edgecomb Gray mixed in Behr Porch & Patio Floor Paint in low luster. I am so happy with my color choices, and I have to thank Kylie M. Interiors because her detailed blog posts helped me so much to narrow down colors and make the best choice for our home.
Learn From My Experience
After the two coats of floor paint was dry I decided to seal it for added protection. I am not recommending the sealer I used because after it dried I noticed cracks in the surface. On the step that I applied a thicker coat of sealer the cracking is so bad that the paint is actually lifting a bit. Since the floor paint is meant for floors and does not require a sealer, I would not recommend using one at this point. I am currently painting the floors in the dining room and I will not be applying a sealer over the floor paint.
The Fun Part: Decorating
Lastly, I was able to decorate. I wanted to keep the space simple with minimal added detail. After all, the original breadboard should be the star of the show here. The light fixture came with the house but I did replace the frosted floral glass globe with a simple white schoolhouse style globe that I picked up from a thrift store for $1. I also hung a vintage sheep print that I found at the same thrift store for $12 and I love how the gold frame ties in the gold base of the lighting. To fill the empty corner I simply placed a plant in a vintage wood bucket and set it on a plant stand that my friend recently gave to me.
That completed the stairway project! Painting the bead board took awhile but the hardest part about this project was waiting for each coat of paint to thoroughly dry before moving onto the next. I have to give a huge shout out to my mom for helping me so much with this project. I could not have done it without her!
I hope you enjoyed learning more about our farmhouse stairway project. If you have any other questions please feel free to leave them in the comments or ask me on Instagram where I share even more behind the scenes and day to day life on the farm. Thank you so much for taking the time to stop by the blog!
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Looks fantastic!
Thank you!