I don't know where to answer your question about the finish on the Adirondack chairs. I'll answer here first. The blue one is the first I made using the New Yankee Workshop design, and for about 5 years I left the cypress to grey naturally. Then I water blasted the dirt off, sanded a little, and then applied an exterior primer followed by a water based sash and trim paint. The smaller ones were later primed with an extrerior water based primer and the new owners painted them white.