How can you remove wood stain and varnish easly without paint stripper?

I have done this on kitchen cabinet doors made from particle board and birch veneer. It was not easy nor fast, but they turned out beautiful, and yes, I was able to get 90% of the stain out.





First I used a water-based stripper. Put it on thickly. This type of stripper has to sit for longer than chemical based ones, so try not to be impatient--maybe go cut the grass. Remove the **** with a plastic putty knife. Wipe off the rest with paper towels. Put another coat of stripper on and do the same thing. After the 2nd coat comes off, I scrubbed the doors down with a water and bleach solution with double-ought steel wool. Don't soak them, just wash like you were wiping off your counter. (you cannot use this method on oak!!! The tannins in the wood will turn black)





Second, I let the doors dry for about 24 hours. Then I started hand sanding with 120 grit, 180 grit, 220 grit, and last was 320 grit. Sometimes you have to sand a little harder in areas where the grain soaked up more of the original stain so you can get an even look.





I ended up with beautiful doors. The color was so pretty that I simply finished them off with four coats of water-based clear finish. (4 coats because they're in a kitchen)





I know you asked for an easy way, but there really isn't one if you want the item to look nice.How can you remove wood stain and varnish easly without paint stripper?
Stain soaks into the wood and is very hard to remove. Paint stripper wont do it. The only way to remove stain is to sand the wood down to below the stain.How can you remove wood stain and varnish easly without paint stripper?
Sanding - the stain will have soaked into the top surface of the wood.