Hello. I have a cocktail table, fairly new, which appears to be cherry and stained a medium reddish/orange color. I'd like to change the color to a dark "espresso" color. The table appears to have stain and then a light coat of poly. Is it possible to do this? Would I first lightly sand this, then add a darker stain over it? I'd love to darken it rather than purchasing a new table. Please advise! Thank you. Betty

You will need to use Minwax Polyshades as regular stain will not work over an already finished surface.

Thanks for the info. Would you mind explaining to me what is different about the Polyshade product? How does it work? Is it something on TOP of the wood rather than WITHIN the wood? Do I need to sand the table prior using Polyshades? A little? Or a lot? Thank you! Betty

The polyshade product is polyurethane and stain together as with a table that is already finished you can't use regular stain. A regular stain only works on unfinshed wood. You should sand the table with a fine sanding sponge or steel wool prior to applying the polyshade. Be sure to use a good quality natural bristle to apply the product.