Staining dining chairs. How?(complete amateur)

[TomArchersSausage]

I have some nice dining chairs. They're a fairly pale colour of wood (no idea what it is) and they're probably lightly varnished.

I'd like them to be a darker colour to match other things in the room. Can I stain them? Never attempted this before. Do I just rub them down with sandpaper or will they have to be sandblasted?

It's obvious I'm a total novice at this, isn't it. Should I attempt it or will I be out of my depth?

I'd sand but I have found liquid staining a bit problematic - it was difficult to get an even coat. I think there are stains in wax form which you rub in which might be less blotchy.

Thanks lala.

I'm wondering if there places that will sand things with a machine? I'm not sure how much sanding I should be doing. Also they could be fiddly as they are high backed with about 8 spindles in them.