We just purchased a carving at an event here called log cabin days (a lot of Amish stuff, hand peeling & hewing demos, auctions, log cabin raising and log home tours) and thought I have seen carvings come up here before in discussion so if anyone has any experience with them, how is the best method of finishing them? Stain, paint, polyurethane? The wood was very wet, should I wait until it dries some or will finishing it when wet help prevent it from cracking too much?