Sanding is Important in Staining Pine or Softwood

I googled questions about mottled stain and found that this is a common problem, especially with softwoods and pine.  I suspect this dresser is softwood and may be pine.  I decided to re-sand the drawers being careful not to press with inconsistent pressure.

RESIST THE TEMPTATION TO BEAR DOWN WITH PRESSURE.

It's not easy if you're impatient like me, but in the end, it's taking me twice the work and twice the time.  I kept even pressure and swept back and forth from one full side to the next instead of a choppy back and forth.  Sweep the entire length of wood then come back evenly.  I sealed, steelwool, stained and I think it looks much better. Credit goes to my son, Blaine, who told me not to apply pressure when I was sanding before I even started.  Yes, I shoulda listened to you.  :)

Dressing up a Dresser

My family has an old dresser that my son wants to use, but he likes a very deep dark chocolate stain rather than the golden early American it currently has.  I sanded it down to the bare wood with an oscillating sander starting with 100 grit and ending with 220 grit. I selected a chocolate stain from Miniwax, but after the first coat, realized the stain was mottled, leaving a terribly unprofessional finish.  What to do? I took one of the bare-wood drawers and one of the one-coat stained drawers to Lowes and they suggested that I seal the wood before I stain.  Credit goes to my mother, Barbara, for suggesting the same thing first. Thanks mom!

I purchased the Miniwax sealer and applied a coat to the bare wood, as directed.  I waited about 15 minutes and used a steelwool to go over the sealer, as directed, and then applied my first coat of stain with a rag.  Problem.  It still came out mottled.  I waited 6 hours, as directed, used steel wool to sand, and applied a second coat as directed.

It still looks mottled.  Stay tuned for next step.