The Cross House

Today is a day I have long awaited. For over three long years. During all this time I have been patient. Waiting. Just waiting. For the time. The time for beauty to emerge. (Really, I should get some sort of patience award.) Well, wanna see what I did today? Scroll way down…      …

  The more and more I get the exterior painted, the more and more I realize that I have been playing it too safe. I have been SO concerned about not having the house look like a painted lady that I have been…too conservative. In studying the 1895 image of the house I belatedly realized…

            It develops that Zac lives only an hour away! So, I invited him for a grand tour of the Cross House and it will be an honor to meet him! Thanks, Zac!!!!!!!!    

Today, I received an email from ZD (slightly modified for clarity): I’ve just recently come across this site and I’ve been binge reading it. Great stuff Ross! I did want to comment on the subject of the exterior colors. I think your scheme looks fantastic. However, as you mention, it’s just missing something. I can tell…

I wonder what color #5 was? That is, if there ever was a color #5. But now I will likely never know.     For three-and-a-half-years, I have poured over the above image, working to glean details from its embodied historic moment in time. It was my great intention to recreate the original colors of…

      On the front of the house, I restored the double set of entry doors by using denatured alcohol. The process was more tedious than difficult, and the old shellac had come off easily. To my surprise though, and distress, denatured alcohol had no effect on the ancient cracked dark finish on the…

    Not everybody is happy though. Ross is not 100% about the eye being all green, and he is pondering options. Others think the “garland band” around the tower should be solid green. I, too, thought this would look good until Alex sent in a Photo-shop rendering…     A solid green band made…

In August, 2014, I started this blog. And had no idea what I was getting myself into. When the blog went online I was told to expect around 500 views a month. “It’s just a blog about an old house in Kansas.” Well, I thought: 500 views? Whoee! As things developed however, this estimate proved…inaccurate….

Yesterday, thanks to Melody, we all got to enjoy looking at variations of the “eye” in the big gable of the Cross House. Should it be left all green? Should some wall color be added? Should more wall color be added? Oh! What to do? What to do! Y’all were all over the place! Some…

      I am fascinated by photo-shop! Wow. Wow! THANKS Melody! These images are incredibly helpful. For, I now know, thanks to Melody, that I do not want to proceed with image #3. This is too busy and veers dangerously close to my biggest fear: having the Cross House look cartoony. I am kinda…

    I think I do like this better. And now I wonder if the flat area between the wide outer ring, and the thin inner ring, should also be the wall color? Or would that start looking too cartoonish (my big fear)?      

  Today I painted the eye green. It had been the wall color. But Ross is not 100% thrilled. I think what is needed is for the flat area surrounding the acanthus leaves to be painted the wall color. This way, the center will look like a elaborate brooch clipped onto the house. Love the…

Two houses south of the 1894 Cross House is house built circa-1910, and at 510 Union. I suspect it was designed by architect Charles Squires, who also designed my house. 510 is now listed for sale! Originally, it was a one-family home but was long ago converted into three units: one in the basement, one…

                                                              The painted garlands look prefect. WHY didn’t I do this three years ago? The eye…looks better. I am not however 100% thrilled and am…

        The mystery curb fascinates me. Why is it there? What purpose does it serve? Well, I love my mysterious curb. Since buying the house in 2014, I weekly weed-wack the curb to glorious visibility.     I read somewhere that Harrison Cross built the three houses next to the Cross House,…

        I slop paint on the glass with no concern to being neat. When the paint is dry, I take a 6-inch putty knife, rest it on the glass and against the glazing, and with a SHARP straight-edge razor, cut away the extraneous paint. The result is…perfection. And quick and easy, too!…