A typical Windsor chair
- Windsor chair parts
Crest ears of multiple Windsor chair models are hand carved. Some have volutes or circles carved onto them. You can even have your own design carved on the ears and crest. 
Each Windsor chair spindle is hand shaped using successively more precise tools. After having been rived from the log using a froe, the rough work is done using a drawknife on a shaving mule. The final shaping is done using spokeshaves and scrapers.
As the spindles are hand shaped rather than turned, you may be able to see small flat spots and tool marks, the evidence of handcraftsmanship.
A lot of Windsor models have hand carved hands. If the model you like does not have carvings, you can have them added on most models to suit your tastes and needs. 
Most Windsor seats start with a 2" thick slab of pine or poplar, as it was done 200 years ago. They are then hand shaped into oval, "D" shape or shield shape.
Each one is carved using now forgotten tools such as the gutter adze, the scorp and the travisher.
Windsor chair undercarriage is assembled in two ways: using "H" stretchers, or "box" stretchers - the "box" being more common in later models.
The ends of the legs that fit through the seat are taprered to a 6 degree angle. They are held into the seat using wedges and hot hide glue.
Hot hide glue has a proven track record of nearly 4000 years. It is as strong as modern PVC glues and has the tremendous advantage of being reversible, thus enabling easy repairs if ever needed.