Stripping furniture is best done by hand. It does take longer, but it's easier on the furniture, and on the person doing the work, So if you do decide to have a pro do the work, look for a shop that does the work by hand.

Tools you'll need. Before you begin stripping, you'll need the proper safety equipment and a few tools. To protect yourself when using any stripper, use an organic solvent respirator with new filters, splashproof goggles, chemical-resistant gloves and an apron. To lather the stripper, cut down natural-bristle paintbrushes. "They make good scrubbers," Less expensive synthetic brushes work with some water-based strippers but, they turn to pulp the second they touch solvent.You'll also need a collection of scraping and scrubbing tools to remove the paint/stripper sludge. Use metal scrapers and steel wool, but if you're using a water-based chemical, use plastic knives and abrasive pads; otherwise, metal particles will leave rust stains on the wood.

The work area. Choose a well-ventilated spot when you work. Because many chemicals in strippers are heavier than air, they will sink to the floor and can be difficult to get rid of, so basements are not a good choice. Some of the vapors can also corrode the metal parts of your furnace or water heater. For maximum ventilation, we recommends working in the garage or, better yet, outside.

Do your work on a lipped metal tray that collects the extra stripper into a paint can; you can reuse the stripper until it evaporates. You can cover a worktable with several thick layers of newspaper, removing the top sheet as it gets caked up to expose a fresh working surface.

Taking it off. The speed of the stripping process depends upon the strength of the stripper and the stubbornness of the finish. On this table, the paint began to bubble and blister almost as soon as we brushed on a coat of the liquid-type stripper. "Methylene chloride strippers work fast and eat through almost anything. The chemical breaks the bond between the wood and paint; most finishes will come off in sheets. For tough paints, we carefully scratch the surface of the finish to help the stripper get down to the wood. If you find yourself prying or scraping off the finish though, put on more stripper or you'll damage the wood.

To strip the flat top, we used a putty knife to remove the thick sludge, scrubbed the surface with coarse steel wool and finished up with a second dose of stripper. Carvings and turnings require special attention. We prefer using a scrub brush to work the paint out of all the nooks and crannies on the legs, but coarse twine and wood shavings also work well.

For some vertical surfaces and difficult finishes, we will use a paste-type stripper. "These chemicals work when wet. Pastes have chemical retarders built in to block evaporation, helping them stay wet longer. To further limit evaporation, as well as your exposure to the chemicals, consider wrapping the piece in newspaper, waxpaper or polyethylene sheeting and letting the chemical work overnight. If the stripper dries, you can reactivate it by brushing on a little more, and then scraping it all off.

The only trick to stripping, is to treat every element making up a piece of furniture in exactly the same manner. Because the chemicals and scrubbings affect the ability of the wood to absorb stain and finish, we give every leg the same degree of attention.

Once the paint is off, you'll need to rinse off any remaining stripper; otherwise, the chemical residue will react with the new finish. Commercial stripper rinses are available, but we recommend denatured alcohol or mineral spirits. Water-based strippers can be rinsed off with water but, the water will wind up raising the grain, which will mean more sanding later on.

After it had thoroughly dried, we gave the table a finish sanding. After starting with a power sander, we switched to a small cork-padded block. Power sanders do tend to leave swirl marks that will show when you apply the stain,  Also advises against too much sanding If a piece is getting a surface finish, using 100-grit sandpaper is sufficient.