The Cross House

  Walking into the Cross House today it was 27-degrees outside yet clearly warmer IN the house. This is good! Because I recall all too well, and not with fondness, the several years when the house was colder inside than out during the winters. Brrrrrrr. Today, the thermostat was set at 45 and the inside…

    Today was 37-degrees. I thought: Is it possible to work in such weather? Or will fingers freeze? The answer proved Yes, and No. While dressed warmly and with a scarf, no fingers were uncomfortable. The outlook for at least the next two days though is grim. I am certain that 30-degrees WILL result…

Even though I am self-employed, my time is not really my own, at least with regards to the Cross House. Since buying the house in 2014, two Heritage Trust grants have ruled over What Is To Be Done. And When. Like, work is focused on the south facade due to deadlines with the 2017 grant….

            Yes, this all may seem confusing! But without these steps the new wood shingles will not die gracefully into the roof plane. Oh, the horror! This will make more sense as progress images are posted!    

    Amy and Fritz were in town for another event, but Amy said she had to tour the Cross House. The couple owns an 1850 house which they have been working working working on, and they have a blog! They were both highly attuned to details and as we walked from room to room…

  Normally I eschew this kind of decorative item but I liked the finish, the scale (they are big), and the nice relief of the carving. And the price! On the way home I thought: What should I put on them? 1890s vases? Small framed pictures? Then I realized that only ONE thing was ever…

  In this image, the poor condition of the gray shingles is obvious. You can even see how loose they are, rather than being TIGHT to each other. In a high wind, they all sorta flap about. I prefer non-flapping shingles.      

  Normally, Justin and I relocate the scaffolding tower. We take it down, move it, and re-erect it. It is quick and easy. But Justin wasn’t available. So, I thought, how hard can it be to do by myself? The answer? VERY hard. SCARY hard. FREAKY hard. OMG, I was worried that I would have…

  With all this now finished, it is time to take down the metal scaffolding (out of sight, right), and all the wood scaffolding, and shift everything to the left. Ugh!    

  Next, is to paint the cornice above the painted shingles. Then, I will take down the scaffolding tower to the east of the porte-cochère and re-erect it to the west of the porte-cochère. Then I will remove all the shingles between the pair of windows and arched opening.          

  The two clear-glass windows are restored, as are the two stained-glass windows above (now covered with glass “storm” windows which I will remove). I am quite excited that in the not-to-distant future the pair of windows will no longer be surrounded by decay and sadness but by glorious new paint! I am reminded of:…

The Cross House has received two Heritage Trust Fund grants which have allowed work on the exterior which I otherwise would have been unable to fund. This work has largely determined my project schedule since the summer of 2015. The 2017 grant work is already behind schedule because the work anticipated has been profoundly impacted by…