Paint stores and manufacturers have liability insurance. I would file a claim especially since the store said that it was from a 'bad' batch. You should have the paint manufacturer redo the stairs. Ask your attorney. I belong to Pre-paid Legal. That's what I would check into first. Other than that, you will have to refinish the stairs with paint remover and do the whole process of refinishing them. Otherwise they may always 'bug' you. Joan Here is a link that might be useful: DazzlingInteriorDesign

This sequence may be helpful to someone taking out a wall. Addition is 12 x 26. We knocked out 26 feet of bearing wall at front of house. Girder trusses now bear the load. We had a construction company design consultant help us do the plan. Worth the money. DH and his squad of helpers worked from the outside in, but at a difficult day about a year ago, the wall had to come down. Wish I could show you the early work, but Flickr account has put the early photos into storage. The story picks up 5 months into the DIY project... Here is destruction day photo (red painted area is new area) Here is #2 after demo of the wall (note ceiling and floor) It was at this point that we moved the cooking into a camper trailer for 5 months. Here you can see new ceiling (upper right) meeting the old ceiling segments in former kitchen, stairwell, and front stoop. (Don't try to understand geography, just absorb the general concept that ceiling segs are merging.) Here we have removed former ceiling fixtures in original kitchen ceiling and installed wiring for a new light in our new kitchen hall. I've skipped the photos dealing with messing with insulation. This is where we were finishing new ceiling over new lobby. Rented jack scaffold for wallboard. Seam between old and new ceilings is red. Here is the beginning of trying to reconcile ceilings. DH used lots and lots of mud on this seam. This is the ceiling scar which persisted for many many days. Once we began painting, this area developed bubbles. (It's finally done bubbling, we hope.) The diagonal floor was made in 1954. The rest is new, including redone old front hall which now incorporates part of previous garage. Here is the eventual floor--can you find the merged section? You sorta can if you physically walk to the door opening at upper left because the floor had dipped 1.5 inches about a foot from the threshold, but we're generally proud of how things went. By the Install Day for countertops, the ceiling seems to look pretty good. I wish I had more appropriate photos that show the merged ceiling and floor, but I don't.

If the contractor was licensed, you wouldn't be on the internet after the fact asking if the wall was load bearing. He would have pulled the plans as Renovator says, and if it was unclear from the plans, he'd have gotten a structural engineer in to create the construction documents that would be needed to be filed with both the condo association and the local municipality in order to get the permit to alter the wall, the electrical in the wall, the HVAC in the wall, and any other changes that you are making in this renovation. But, I'll also bet that wasn't done either. Neighbors have been known to turn each other in (Not to mention the people on the condo board!), so the thing to do is to march down to the local codes office and throw yourself on their mercy pleading ignorance and swear that you won't be using that contractor who didn't do things correctly. Then, do things correctly by hiring someone who will do the job with the correct sign offs and permits. When you live in a multi family dwelling, that means contractors who are licensed and insured to work in a multi family dwelling and approved by your condo board. DIY is strictly prohibited in multi family dwellings due to the liability issue. If something is done incorrectly, it can affect more than just your unit. And boy would the neighbors love to sue you then!

You have a beautiful home. Here are some Houzz pictures that might give you some thoughts for the trim work: [Traditional Living Room[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-living-room-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_718~s_2107) by Bonita Springs General Contractors Harwick Homes [Contemporary Kitchen[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/contemporary-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2103) by New York Interior Designers & Decorators Shane D. Inman [Traditional Living Room[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-living-room-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_718~s_2107) by Woodbridge Architects & Building Designers Huestis Tucker Architects, LLC [Traditional Living Room[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-living-room-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_718~s_2107) by East Anglia Architects & Building Designers Paul D'Amico - Period Design Do you plan to have some type of cabinetry or storage built in below the cutout, or will it be more like an interior window?