Painting a Stairwell is a Pain

Our house productivity has been in full force lately. So much so that taking pictures and writing a blog post is the last thing on my mind, but there is so much stuff to blog about that I'm going to power through!
 
This post may not be too exciting, but it shows our progress and the fact that we are no longer using the guest bedroom as our sleeping cave while we tackle the upstairs. The painting in the master bedroom is complete, so we can finally catch some Zs on the second floor. 
 

I do not miss this...

 

Progress... fresh and clean! 

 

It's VERY barren right now- Tons more to do... the list is long- but it already feels like such a retreat and it's a huge contrast from those green walls and dark trim. It's nice that our "attic-space" bedroom doesn't feel dark at all and really is somewhere to escape to.... It didn't hurt that we finally broke out our down comforter and nice sheets we got for wedding presents. The bed still has a way to go (headboard and pillows anyone?), but it sure is comfortable.

 

 
You'll also notice a dresser or two.... We made over some IKEA Tarva dressers and Rast nightstands that I'll have to get to in another post. Still trying to settle on some good hardware before I post the makeover pictures of those. It is pretty awesome that I now have working drawers and somewhere to fit all of my clothes. I feel so grown up! I'm not missing my yard sale dresser at all, mom!
 
The most annoying part of the second floor so far has been painting the stairwell. It looks so small- but it was so annoying. Taping each and every step is for the birds.
 

 That gaping hole is the crawl space- We removed the door for painting. 

 

Proof that I do actually work and not just take pictures- I swear!

So serious...

 

 Took off the closet doors for a separate paint job- plastic to protect the clothing...

 

The stairs were quite a mess to begin with- ceiling and walls needed some major patching and it was just plain dirty. Below is the world's worst picture illustrating this...
 

I'm not even embarrassed anymore...

 

We patched and gave it a nice fresh coat of white paint. I eventually want to do wainscoting all the way up to the ceiling- but it isn't necessary right now. Just giving it a new coat has made a huge difference. I'm hoping to eventually add some framed pictures going up the stairwell- but all in due time.

 

Also- we will eventually remove the "outdoor" railing situation going on here. It's gonna stay for now- but I've been looking into ideas.

 

Below are some side-by-side before and afters:

 

 

We ran out of white paint- so we still have to paint the crawl space door and install it.

So I guess it's 99% done... 

 

 

 Old plaster walls are hard to work with- We used eggshell finish to TRY to minimize

the look of the uneven walls. Avoid using any gloss if this is the case for you.

 

 

 Minimal changes, but feels much more clean.

 

  

 

Since getting the walls painted, we've been furiously working on repainting and finishing the closet doors. Below you will see a sneak peak in all of the room's "progress" glory. The doors have been one of my favorite changes to the space so far- more to come in another post- hopefully sooner rather than later!

 

 

 
-Tricia