I want to refinish the baseboard and molding in our 85 year old home. Unfortunately, the previous owner at some point primed and painted over the existing stain/varnish finish without stripping it off. Furthermore, there's at least 3 coats of paint on the trim. I've tried paint strippers (can't remember the exact brands, unfortunately) but they don't seem to penetrate the paint well enough. I'd prefer to do everything in place since removing some of the pieces is a pain (paneling over plaster/lathe walls). Is there anything that I can use that will help get that paint off? Certain places just flake off huge sections of paint, revealing the nicely finished wood trim underneath. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

I have a wood round pedestal kitchen table with chairs. It's two tone, an ivory colored paint and a mahagony colored surface. I want it a solid dark espresso wood color. It is in perfect condition, I just don't like the color. Do I have to use a chemical stripper or do I sand it, prime it, and paint it? Also when is it appropriate to use an opaque stain vs a regular stain? I had planned to stain the table.