When I bought my house in September 2007, the stairway up to the second floor was a hideous mess. The stairs were covered with worn out, filthy green carpeting and the wood paneling surrounding it made everything feel claustrophobic. The fact that a small wall mounted hurricane style light was the only illumination didn't help anything either. Not only did it look bad, but it was also not up to code with no hand rail and a head clearance issue. 
After moving in, the whole stairway was gutted. The wood paneling was saved and cut down for trim in the back bedrooms, but everything else ended up in the dumpster. There were wood treads under the carpet, but they had been notched when the wood paneling was installed so they needed to be replaced. The plaster behind wood paneling was crumbling so that was torn out and new drywall was installed. For fun I picked a tomato red color for the walls. Drywall also replaced the ceiling tiles and crown molding gave it another special touch.
Instead of the closed in look that the old walls of paneling made, using balusters along the stairs made everything more open and airy. Adding a handrail and angling the ceiling brought everything up to code. I found a pretty light fixture for a steal at the Pottery Barn Outlet and installed it over the stairs to brighten things up.
The top of the stairs has a great little space for some decorating. Currently, I have an easel that I bought at Ikea holding a black and white picture that I took of a woman preparing fish in Chuuk, Micronesia. I was on a set of stairs looking over the woman when I took the photo so I thought it subtly tied in. To the right of the picture I have three sets of vintage fishing buoys that I picked up at a flea market in Florida. I love their bright colors and how they have worn with age. A small wooden stool that I bought at a flea market in Japan and a chocolate and cream houndstooth check rug from Pier 1 finish off the top of my stairs.
I love how cheerful and bright my stairway is and the difference between now and when I bought my home is like night and day.
