Staircase Remodel-Ripping up the carpet

There is a picture of a staircase that I have loved for years from the cover of Atlanta Homes Mag.  I have dreamed of a staircase like this.  It is so classic and still comfy with that southern farmhouse feel.

I seriously love everything about this picture. The creamy white stairs with a dark ebony railing and wood plank walls...love...love...love! 

But my staircase is far from this picture...

...mine are not classy nor farmhouse...they are just blah builder grade, covered in carpet with blah colored railings.

It is time to stop dreaming and start doing

...and that is when the carpet came off...

Initially afraid of what I'd find underneath, Ric and I just started ripping that carpet off.

What we found was solid pine stairs...(with 6 inches of white overspray from when the builders painted the trim and spills of some type of adhesive all over the stairs...but nothing a sander can't fix)

A few treads were cracked so Ric replaced those with new ones.

The landing was the only place that was not solid wood, so we took all the pressed wood board out and built a wood landing. (Ric also added additional supports under the floor cause there was only one.)

Our sweet dogs had also chewed some of the carpet on the corner of the step up for the hallway, so we went ahead and cut the carpet back and put a tread in its place.  (it was cheaper than replacing all the carpet in the hallway) ;)

Lets sum things up so far....

*Ripped up carpet- removed tack strips, and about a million staples

*Replaced stair treads that were cracked

*Built new landing and step

*Filled holes and sanded

...now on to the railings...

First step-Sanding!

(my house has been covered in a layer of dust for a week)

It will soo be worth it though!

I sanded all the railings by hand with a 100 grit fine sand paper-you don't need to sand much, just enough to remove the gloss.

After cleaning them we started staining.

We used Varathane stain in Ebony. (love this stain)

You can see the before on the railing going down the stairs...such a difference already

I love how it is turning out!!

Of course as usual our projects tend to grow as we go. We have decided to also add beadboard to the risers. We just started that yesterday...can't wait to share the progress. 

Stay tuned for the rest of the remodel

(seriously love this pic) :)

DIY: Pantry Door Tutorial

Due to the overwhelming response to the amazing door that Ric built for our kitchen pantry, I have asked him to give all of you a step by step tutorial.

He did not use a pattern or another tutorial just good ole' fashion handy man knowledge ;)

Please welcome my other half to the blog world...(applause!!)

Take it away babe:

Hi,
There was no exact science to the build.  It just evolved as I went...so I will do my best to give you a step by step "how to." Sorry for the lack of pictures, but I hammered it out while Sue was out on another "shopping trip". lol!   Lets start with the list of materials needed.

Materials List:

*All wood was cedar- I used 2x6's and 1x4's
*Gorilla wood glue
*Half inch dowel rods
*3 gate hinges
*1 door pull
*1 closet door ball catch for the latch
*Stain (Watco Danish Oil Dark Walnut Stain is the one we used)

Tools:

*Table saw
*Miter saw
*Planer
*Doweling jig
*Drill and spade bit
*Wood clamps- wide enough to clamp your door frame
*Finish Nailer
*Dremel

**I started by taking the original door off and used it as my guide for measurements-*Our door is a 24" interior door**

Step 1: Prepare all wood pieces for construction

*Plain all the 2x6 cedar down to 1 3/8" thickness (this is the thickness of an interior door)
*Cut 2 of them to 80" lengths (or whatever length the height of your door is)
*With the table saw I ripped the 80" length boards to 4 1/2" wide
*For the top, middle and bottom pieces I cut them to 14 3/4" length, these will stay at 5 1/2" wide (this is the frame of the door for a 24" wide interior door) 
*For the top, middle and bottom pieces- I used the table saw and cut a 3/4" notch on the back of the boards for the 1x4 slates to sit into...top piece only has one notch on the bottom, middle has a notch on the top and bottom, and the bottom piece has one notch on the top.
*Plain the 1x4 cedar down to 1/2" thickness (for the slats)
*With the table saw I ripped the 1/2" thick slat boards to fit into the frame.
*With the table saw I put the blade on abt a 45 degree angle and cut the sides to create the grooves between the slats
*For the X in the front- plain 1x4's down to 5/8" thickness


Step 2: Construction of door
Measurements of construction- our door is 80" tall, 23 3/4" wide...middle section of door is 33 1/4" from the bottom of the door

*Assemble the frame- with the doweling jig with a 1/2" drill bit
-Using the doweling jig and gorilla wood glue, I put 3 -1/2" dowels per side of the top, middle and bottom pieces connecting the 2 80" long cedar boards to create the frame of the door. 
-Clamp the frame together and let it dry (you can work on the door while it is drying)

*Assemble the slats
-Slats are already cut and ripped to fit- so just cut to length and fit them into the 3/4" notches on the back of the door (I cut a small 1/4" filler strip to nail the slats to the door...once you lay the slats in the frame you should have roughly a 1/4" gap)

*Assemble the X on the front
- Easiest way to cut your angles for the X is to lay a 1x4 across the bottom box of your door-line up the right side of the board with the top corner and line up the left side of the board with the bottom corner. Use a pencil to mark your angle on both edges of the board. (cut both boards the same) With the opposite 1x4 of the X, and make marks where it intersects the other board of the X.
-Using a miter saw line up your angles with your pencil marks and make your cuts
-Using a finish nailer- assemble your X

*Step 3: Sand and Stain- We used the Watco Dark Walnut Stain

*Step 4: Hardware
-I used the old hinges on the new door- and used the old door as a guide to trace the old hinge spots and used a dremel to cut them out.
-Attach your hinges and hang your door
-I then cut 3 gate hinges and matched them up to the existing door hinges for the barn door look
-For the door handle we used a garage door pull from Home Depot and inserted a closet door ball catch for the latch.

Total it took about 8hours from thinking it out to having it completed....and Sue still wasn't home from shopping yet...???  haa

Feel free to post any questions...like I said, sorry for the lack of pictures...I didn't know I would be doing a "DIY" tutorial.  If..(aka "when") I get suckered into doing another one I'll be more detailed. :)

Thanks-
Ric

Party Time!!

With 3 boys, ages 12,10,and 9...you can imagine that we have exhausted the boy party theme ideas. But, looking back we have definitely had some fun parties....

SURFER PARTY:

FALCONS FOOTBALL PARTY:

ATLANTA BRAVES BASEBALL PARTY:

The list of themes goes on and on...from

Superhero

Hip Hop

Skateboard

Camping

Monster Truck

Planes, Trains and Automobiles

 Pirate

...just to name a few...

With all these boy themes under my belt, coming up with a new idea is not always easy.  So I was overjoyed when Landin came to me and asked if he could have a Minecraft party.  (his new favorite xbox game)  I was thrilled with the idea!! This was such a fun party to plan!!

I have 5 months before the next kiddos birthday...and he already picked a theme...I think it may be my favorite party to plan.....DUCK DYNASTY!  Can't wait to see how it turns out

What have been your favorite party themes?