A budget staircase makeover

This is not the budget staircase I am referring to; this is an inspriation picture of what I would like my stairs to look like. I love painted wood stairs and I love the look of a runner. The runner would also add a little padding for kid's falls every now and then. I want to add some board and batten to the wall though and then hang my kids artwork going all the way up the stairs. This is the 5 year plan...

This is the plan for now. There is no time or money for the stair makover project right now, so I disguised my staircase with a $19.95 wood screen door from Home Depot (I got it for $15 because it was a little damaged). I then painted it black and added a crystal knob from Hobby Lobby. This "quick fix" has worked so well!

The carpet on these stairs needs changed, the walls need painted, and there are constantly piles of toys/clothes etc. that kids are supposed to take up with them (but they rarely do). Now that the door is on, I get to enjoy the look and sound of the slamming screen door and forget about that ugly staircase. Someday I will get to have my wood stairs, but for now, I'm loving my new screen door! I might never take it down!

The inspiration for the screen door came from Layla at The Lettered Cottage. I love how they used an old screen door in their dining room. It adds so much character.