Everything else aside (including budgetary limitations), if you can build fronm cedar or cypress, by
all means, do so. The resin of both woods have natural insect-repelling properties, and cedar has an aromatic quality that simply invites you in the door. Another aspect is the pre-treatment of the log itself - I'd
like to build with standing deadwood, as it helps remove a magnitude of concern over kiln-drying, checking, and settling. OK, I'm prattling, but it ties into the article - if you throw money into something like this without getting into an intimate relationship with the inner working of it, you may do so at your own peril.........
My family built a 3 bedroom two story log cabin kit in 1980. Lived in a very small metal building while doing so. It was interesting. It was beautiful but in the winter it didn’t keep out the cold. We’d lay down two strips of foam between each log, the logs connected dow-like and we pounded 12 inch twisted nails for connection.
It was some kind of work, just moving the logs, especially the higher you got up. Plus a two-story stone fireplace, where I got to haul the stone up the scaffolding for the mason.