A chair functions as a system intended to be stronger than the sum of its parts. This begins with the selection of appropriate woods for each part. I can control this by starting with the tree as it stands in the forest. I can mill, split, and store the wood to control variables that make for the strongest chair I can construct. I try to make smart use of hand tools and power tools in the building process. While I choose to use a power drill to bore all my holes, I also cut and shape chair pieces with edge tools. It might seem quicker to utilize abrasives, but edge tools cut the wood grain rather than tear it. This does a couple of things. It helps maintain the integrity of the grain strength, and it makes for a quieter and less dusty working space, which I think makes for a better built chair in that I focus more on the task in front of me and less on the noisy tool I am impatiently waiting to turn off. It means a surface that might show a tool mark or two, but the benefits gained in spite of an "imperfect" finish are worth it. The chair is then finished with a toxic free milk paint. The paint is then rubbed out to soften it and coated with a variation of "boat soup", which is a concotion in various ratios of varnish, boiled linseed oil, and turpentine. I use Epiphanes marine varnish and ålback organic boiled linseed oil. The varnish isn't totally VOC free, but it dries to a benign finish that offers great durability once cured. Colors are limited by your imagination.