I have been in the stair business for many years and helped thousands of people design and build their staircase from scratch. However, I must confess that I have never taken the time to work on my own stairs. My wife of 14 years kindly reminded me of this early in the year and "of course", I quickly forgot about it. Months later I asked her what she wanted for Christmas and she said "Please Re-DO our stairs!". So, I finally took it to heart and got started.

Now, I could retro-fit our staircase with iron balusters, flat panel box newels, stair treads and handrail, but I work with so many excellent carpenters that it wouldn't make sense to do it myself. So, this note is to everyone who decides to hire a stair builder that is very good at their trade.

*First Lesson - Remember that your staircase is a work of art. It is like a painting or sculpture created by an artist. And, your installer is the artist. Treat him like and artist and he will create a wonderful work of art. If you get too involved in his business and tell him what to do too many times, you will stifle his creativity and most likely receive an inferior product. If he or she tells you what he thinks will look best - Trust him.

*Second Lesson - Make sure you have all the stair parts you need before your installer starts the job. You don't want to get caught in the cycle of re-ordering every time he needs something that he forgot when he bid the job.

*Third & Final Lesson - Pick out all the stair parts you like first. You will get the best price and find the best quality if you do it yourself. You can do it all on-line in the comfort of your own home. I used all Stair Warehouse products and I am very pleased.