Staircase Refinishing · Town & Country, MO
Staircase Refinishing in Town & Country
Town & Country staircases are often the architectural centerpiece of the home — curved, wide, multi-flight, with custom newel and spindle profiles that cannot be stripped with power tools. Sue Wheeler works through these staircases by hand, preserving every custom detail through the stripping process and applying an even finish across complex geometry.
Town & Country staircases — scale and craft demands
Town & Country is a neighborhood of custom estate homes built across a wide span — 1940s through the present — with woodwork that reflects the ambitions of each era's custom construction. The staircases here are not catalog items. They are architectural features designed to make a statement, and the woodwork reflects that: curved starts, wide treads, non-standard spindle and newel profiles, multi-flight runs with landings.
The craft challenge in refinishing a Town & Country staircase is precisely the complexity that makes the staircase significant. Custom spindle profiles cannot be stripped with sanders or rotary tools without losing the crisp detail that defines the profile. Curved tread noses require a different hand position and more time than a straight run. Wide landings have their own wood movement considerations. Each element of a complex architectural staircase requires an approach calibrated to its specific geometry.
Sue has worked on some of the most significant residential staircases in the St. Louis area — in Town & Country and in comparable markets throughout the region. This is not work that is new to her. She brings 36 years of experience to every architectural staircase she takes on, and the results show in homes that are still on her client roster years and decades later.
Pre-1978 Town & Country homes — those from the 1940s through the early 1970s — require EPA RRP protocol for staircase work. Sue holds the certification and applies full containment on every applicable project.
Staircase refinishing services for Town & Country homes
Curved and architectural staircase refinishing
Town & Country's curved staircases present the full range of refinishing complexity: curved tread noses, sweeping handrails with compound transitions, and starting steps that are often architectural elements in themselves. Sue strips and refinishes each component individually, working slowly through the geometry rather than quickly across the surface. The result is a staircase that looks right at every angle.
Custom spindle and newel profile preservation
Non-standard spindle profiles — whether turned to a custom pattern, carved, or machined — are stripped exclusively by hand. There is no power tool that follows a custom profile without cutting into the wood or losing the crispness of the original detail. Sue works these elements by hand with chemical stripper and appropriate hand tools, preserving the profile exactly as it was made.
Multi-flight and landing refinishing
Large Town & Country homes sometimes have staircases that run across multiple floors with landings between — a scope that requires project management as well as craft. Sue works in sections, maintaining household access throughout, and schedules finish coats to cure properly rather than cutting dry time to compress the schedule. An honest timeline is established at the estimate stage.
Stain matching to adjacent home woodwork
A staircase that is visually connected to paneled hallways, library woodwork, or built-in cabinetry must be stained to read consistently with those elements. Sue develops stain samples against the existing woodwork in the home — working from the staircase's own wood species and the surrounding reference materials — before committing to any color on the full staircase.
Lead paint in Town & Country's older estate homes
Town & Country's older homes — those from the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s — predate the 1978 federal lead paint ban. On any staircase in a pre-1978 home, lead paint must be assumed. Federal law requires EPA RRP Certification for any firm disturbing painted surfaces in these homes. Sue Wheeler is certified and applies full protocol on every applicable staircase project.
Full protocol on pre-1978 staircase work: HEPA vacuum containment, wet stripping methods to prevent airborne dust, sealed disposal of all stripped material, and written documentation provided at completion. Town & Country clients in the neighborhood's older homes should expect this as a standard part of any staircase project.
"Our home on Ladue Road has a two-story curved staircase with hand-turned spindles in a pattern that no longer exists in any catalog. Two contractors told us they could not strip it without losing the profile. Sue stripped it perfectly — every spindle looks exactly as it did originally, just with a finish that looks new. The staircase is the first thing every visitor notices."
Homeowner, Ladue Road, Town & Country
Frequently asked questions
Do you refinish staircases in Town & Country?
Yes. Sue Wheeler has worked on some of the most significant residential staircases in the St. Louis area in neighborhoods like Town & Country. The custom architectural staircases in these homes — curved, wide, multi-flight, with non-standard newel and spindle profiles — represent the most complex refinishing work she does, and it is work she has been doing for 36 years.
My Town & Country home has a custom curved staircase with non-standard spindle profiles — can those details be preserved?
Yes. Preserving non-standard spindle profiles — whether turned, carved, or machined to a custom pattern — through the stripping process is the primary craft challenge on a staircase like this. Sue strips these elements by hand, which is the only method that reliably follows complex profiles without cutting into the wood or losing the crispness of the original detail. Power tools do not work on non-standard profiles.
Can you refinish a staircase that is a central feature of a home's design without disrupting the household for weeks?
Yes, though a significant architectural staircase does require meaningful time. Sue works in a structured sequence that maintains access through the home at every stage — completing one flight or section before moving to the next, and scheduling finish coats to cure overnight rather than extending wet-finish time into household hours. The total duration depends on the staircase's complexity and size, and Sue will give you an honest timeline at the estimate.
Ready to restore your Town & Country staircase?
Free estimate. No obligation. Sue answers every call personally — (314) 367-6054.