Stairs and varnish.

[pilgrim1]

Hi, we moved into a new place last year and I'm looking to remove the old stair carpet and sand down and stain/varnish the stairs, I'm trying to get a similar look to the white painted and wood stairs I've seen around, such as here :- http://www.londonstair.com/gallery.asp#

Two questions really, the first what is the best sanding solution for stairs (the old one's are painted white), second how is this very high shine wood look in these pictures achived? All the bits I've ever varnished have come out quite dull.

My thanks in advance for any advice,

Regards

CC.

 

[Johnboy54]

For a start, they look like new stairs in a new build. No problems there.
You want to turn an old staircase into that?
You'll need loads of patience, a blowtorch, paint stripper and several sanding machines to get into corners.
To get back to bare wood will take an eternity, as previous paints will have soaked through several millimetres. This is probably one reason your attempts look dull.
Another advantage they have is in the types of wood they built it with. You only have the - most likely - pine you've been given. Difficult to create the look they've acheived.
In my home, I wanted the same look around door-frames, but the paint they used from eons ago was like a black tar when I got down to it.
My solution was to make 'veneers' of new wood about 3mm thick with my circular saw, then glue/no nail/nail gun these over the old frames. I stained and varnished them to an acceptable standard.
If you don't have that facility, a woodyard wood cut the veneers for you.
I don't think the finish is your normal stain/varnish finish. Perhaps a proper decorator can tell you how they did it?