Using the Ritz dye method you can get it done very quickly.
If you put the dye in a coffee filter and then run denatured alcohol through it to strip the pigment but leave the salts, you end up with a very pure almost instant dry stain. A combination of scarlet, yellow, and a little brown works best in my opinion.
Prep by stripping and lightly sanding the furniture. Put some "stain" on a paper towel or sponge or whatever and wipe the wood. It literally dries almost instant because the alcohol evaporates, but first it causes excellent pentration of the wood, leaving the pigment behind.
From there you can poly it, but I personally have found that amber shellac works better. It too dries almost instantly. Each coat of shellac dries in about 10 minutes. You can lightly steel wool between coats.