Instead of sanding the steps I decided to use denatured alcohol with steel wool to remove most of the old shellac, but not going too crazy. Two coats of amber shellac later and the steps look a lot better. There is some alligatoring going on, but I'm fine with it. I'll be putting a runner on anyway which will hide most of it. Ordered the new runner yesterday, and can't wait to install. I got all of my rug install tools at Harbour Freight which included a pneumatic stapler for only 18 bucks. I should really go there more often.

When I finish putting in the downspout and clapboard on the side, I'll start the front. I need ideas for the front steps now that a new front porch is out of the question. The left pic is as it is now. Steps are falling apart since they were installed improperly before we bought the house. I was thinking of adding a dormer roof as shown to match the rest of the house. Please excuse the very poor photo editing. Did it fast, but you get the idea.