That’s awesome! I did the same a couple of years ago (took about 1 year to complete) and it’s one of the things I’m most proud of, so I hope it feels as fulfilling for you too!
I keep debating between whether to leave the wood visible (with Tru Oil or wipe-on polyurethane), or paint it (lacquer, super labor intensive, slow, expensive), or dye/stain it and use a clear finish on top of that.
I’m personally a fan of leaving the wood visible but the best thing is you can do whatever you want and it’ll be awesome because you made it.