Print edition: 
Your home should rise up to greet you, lifestyle experts preach. Sprucing up the stairway is a simple start. "Stairs are architectural details that should be played up," said Karol Nickell, editor in chief of Fresh Home magazine. "But they often get ignored because they're passageways. People forget that they're the transition between the public and private places in the home, which makes them important."
To say Patricia Shackelford of Kansas City, Mo., felt uplifted when a striped runner was recently installed on her stairway is an understatement.
"Is it possible that the installation of a carpet runner would offer such joy? Can you imagine your heart skipping, not a beat, but just skipping?" Shackelford wrote in her blog, Mrs. Blandings.
It took installers about half a day to staple two rugs to the stairs as runners. The project cost about $750.
When you take into account the various elements of a staircase, the ways to add a little spring to your step increase accordingly.
For example, Nickell suggests painting the risers — the part of the step your toe touches — a contrasting color.
"It would also improve safety, because it's easier to see each step as you go up," Nickell said.
In front entrances, the skirting of the staircase — the border to which the side of the stairs is attached— is often painted the same color as the molding, but it could be painted a new color.
"You could even stencil in a traditional support bracket and paint it a bright color like lime green," Nickell said. "And when you got sick of it, you could just paint over it."
Another idea Nickell likes is using carpet tiles, which are easy for do-it-yourselfers to install.
"There are so many colors and textures, and they're very low profile and flexible to work with," she said. "You could almost make a colorful, modern patchwork quilt with your stairs."
Aubrey McClintock of Old Forge, Pa., and her husband, Lee, swapped out their scuffed rubbery stair treads for zebra-print Flor carpet tiles.
"It was a huge change right away," said McClintock, who shows crafting and home projects on her blog, A Daily Obsession. "I really wanted animal prints. I have a thing for them. They're not over the top, but they're fun."
Even though the carpet tiles include adhesive on the backing, McClintock and her husband decided to staple them in place since they're also on the treads — the part of the stairs you step on.
The McClintocks and their poodle mixes Lexi and Esko safely trek up and down the stairs several times a day. The staples are concealed within the nap of the rug.
"I like that if they get really gross, it's easy to pull them and change them out," Aubrey McClintock said. It was a fairly inexpensive change, too, about $100.
Nickell also suggests using thin, lightweight ceramic tiles on risers.
"You could go to home-improvement stores or online for vintage decorative tiles, and it wouldn't cost a lot," she said. "You could do one or two lines per riser in a beautiful color, and they're an instant pick-me-up."
Instead of a carpet runner, you could also try long wall decals for stairs, Fresh Home magazine suggests. One example: the Neu Tree design from www.modernwallgraphics.com ($60 for a 7-foot decal available in 40 colors). If necessary, use a fine paintbrush and an oil-based paint in the same color as the decal to touch up any joints or fill out the design.
The best thing about decals? They can be peeled off without damaging surfaces and reapplied elsewhere.
For a retro modern vibe, Karol Nickell of Fresh Home magazine likes the Charles and Ray Eames crosspatches from www.whatisblik.com. They could be used on the risers and even the treads.
Casey Simmons of Kansas City took tiling her stairs several steps further. About eight years ago, she installed mosaics of tile samples, shells and river rocks from vacations as well as broken dishes to the treads of the stairs leading up from the lower level.
"I love them," said Simmons, co-owner of a store called Stuff. "When I'm talking on the phone I'll go and sit on the rocks. It created a nice nook. They feel great underfoot, too, like those pebbly massagers."
Simmons spent six to 12 hours on each step in yoga-like positions to accomplish the elaborate mosaics. She knows the eclectic, beach bungalow-like look of hers isn't for everyone.
"Someone could do it in one color palette or one style of tile, and it would be sophisticated," she said. "And at the same time, personal."
Now you know
other ways to spiff up your stairwell
* Change out art. Patricia Shackelford of Kansas City took on a craft project for her stairwell, painting canvases two equal colors and using inexpensive frames.
* Improve the lighting. Use a wall sconce or lights that mount into the risers.
* Paint the walls. Shackelford's walls are sunshine yellow, making it feel warm and welcoming like spring, even on a cold winter's day.
