mywebaccts (at) PLUGcomcast.net wrote:

My question has to do with the order of construction, staining and
laquering. Do I first construct the frame and then stain it? Or should
I stain the pieces first and then put them together?

Depends on your materials, your accuracy and your stain.

If everything is perfect, then stain, join, lacquer is fine.

If there's any inaccuracy, then join, stain, lacquer. This allows
better control of the stain over any bare wood splinters / filler.

If your stain blotches into end grain, then you might go back to stain,
join, lacquer -- but then you really need to watch the accuracy or it
will unavoidably look crude.