Expert: Eileen Cronk - 3/31/2009

Question
I have a bedroom set that is about 10 year old which is a medium honey
maple color (that's my best guess).  I want to restain it to about a dark walnut.  
It has some routered edges on the drawers and it will take me FOREVER to get
into all those grooves (I don't have a dremel and would rather not get one if
possible to avoid increasing the cost of this project).  If I have already
stripped it with a chemical, cleaned that off, and then sanded the larger flat
surfaces to the raw wood, will the stain look different along those
grooves/edges where I can't seem to get all the way down to the raw wood?  I
know I've taken off the finish but it still has a honey tint to it.  It seems as I'm
trying to get along the routered edge, it's started to look "beat up."  Also,
does "pre-stain" make a difference?  

Thanks for any advise or guidance.

Answer
Hi Lauren
Nice to hear from you.
Congratulations on tackling an entire bedroom set.
This ten year old set will be a great learning experience if its your first attempt at this work.
It sounds like you have done the stripping except for these grooves.
Just get out what will easily come out and forget the rest.
A nut pick is a great tool for cleaning out these grooves by the way.
There is no need for a Dremel.
The stain will look a bit different along the grooves but the grooves were intended to look different.
Just be careful with the sanding. I never recommend sanding unless there is wood damage. And if this is real maple wood you can scratch it with sandpaper. Always remember that the people who made the furniture sanded it to perfection when it was made. You cannot get better than that.
Never use a pre-stain on pieces you strip. Its not necessary and can spoil the aged look.
I am hoping the wood will take the dark stain you want. Its not always possible with a very hard wood like maple.
Get back to me if needed.
Regards
Eileen