Furniture, Wood and Cabinetry Finishing - Staining previously-stained wicker

I just received a wicker trunk that I had ordered online. I love the style, size and price of the trunk, but the finish is not what I had expected. The color had been listed as "brown" but the actual finish is more like an antiqued finish that mixes a lighter tan and black.

Rather than going through the expense of shipping the trunk it back and purchasing one that will be almost $100 more, I'm thinking about simply staining over the existing finish to change the color. My concern is how well the wicker will take the new stain; the current finish has a slight gloss to it so I am concerned that it might have a clear finish that might prevent the stain from soaking in. Also I read on another site that it's best to use an oil-based stain on wicker; what's the best way to apply it?

Thanks for your help! :)

Do you really want to stain it or do you want to simply paint it? The existing finish will interfer with stain absorbing into the wicker so you would need to strip the finish off first. Trust me, you do not want to strip wicker. I suggest picking an aerosol paint color that works for you and spray painting it. You could brush paint a custom color on but it will be time consuming and you will want to "live with it" for a bit after painting by brush to catch any runs. Before you finish paint it get some aerosol cans of hi adhesion primer sprayed on it first, you need this to make sure the finish coat sticks. Kilz makes one which any paint store can provide you. Good luck.

Thanks for the input; I'm *very* new to all this so it's much appreciated. When I did a search of previous posts on refinishing wicker there was some discussion of lacquer toner instead of stain. It seems like the main reason to use paint over the toner was because the toner wasn't readily available, but I have been able to locate some. I really would much prefer a "stained" appearance for this piece over painted, but if you've "been there done that" and have good reasons why I should avoid using lacquer toner I'd like to know that before I find myself in over my head. :p

Lisa-My post was related to staining it so it doesnt really apply if the wicker has a lacquer toner on it. I beleive the lacquer toner is a semi-transparent product so the existing color will show through the new toner. I do admit that I have no experience with this kind of product so am not much help to you. Sorry and good luck.

Thanks for the feedback. I"ve done some more research and it seems that sometimes wicker is finished with polyurethane, so I think before I do anything I'd better find out what's already on the piece. Thanks for your help.