Painting - Painting Finished Furniture Black

I recently bought a finished bedroom set and would like to paint the dresser black (currently stained oak) to match the headboard/footboard. Do I need to remove the stain to do this even though I'm going to a darker color? Should I paint it or stain it black (assuming you can stain things black - I'm pretty sure the headboard is painted black though)? Is it possible for the dresser to feel smooth and not sticky if I paint it? Could this get really messed up/ruin the dresser or is it a pretty easy project? What steps should I take/products should I buy? Thanks for your help!

Although the stain oak is realitivly maintenace free if you want to paint it black you can. First take the drawers out remove hardware then sand everything you will paint well. Then wash down with a deglosser [will remove any wax left and soften surface so paint will adhere well] use the darke4st oil primer you can get, then top coat with 2 coats of quality oil base enamel. Although spraying will give the best finish a good china bristle brush should be OK. Some get good results with the pads but I don't have any experince using them with paint.

You can stain black but to strip the dresser down then stain and seal would be a lot more work.