The Cross House

This morning I died and went to heaven. And it is all Bo’s fault. He sent me a link to his wallpaper website, which I have not looked at in some time. Normally, I add a URL link to Bo’s main website when I mention him. But Bo has a separate website for his vintage…

Anybody who has ever restored an old house will know of what I speak: the imprecise line. Few things are worse. For, no matter how beautiful the colors of your walls, no matter how luscious your draperies are, or no matter how artfully designed your decor is, imprecise lines will ruin everything. And what the…

  All the picture rail in the Cross House has been missing since, I think, 1950. After having purchased new picture rail, I thought I was good to go! Then Bo arrived. And I was astonished to learn that there was more to learn about picture rail than seemed possible, and I did a post…

  It was common for rooms in a Victorian-era home to have: A wall paper A frieze paper, normally 20-inches high. [A Bo Sullivan update: “common friezes were 18″, and only the better ones were 20”. Thanks, Bo!] A ceiling paper. In the 1894 Cross House, the 2-story stair-hall has fragments of all three such…

    I cannot ever recall a more Presto! improvement. One coat, which dried very quickly, and I was done. The base looks fabulous! I am so excited! Tonight, when I go to bed, I think I will use some amber shellac as a face moisturizer…  

  And my response to the finished frieze? I LOATHE IT. But I was not sure why. So I sent the above picture to Patricia in New Jersey and asked her opinion. “Can I be honest?” she asked. “”Please!” “I LOATHE IT.” Oh. Patricia instantly zeroed in on the problem. It was not the colors…

          I am using six colors: Copper (metallic) Dark gold (metallic) Silver (metallic) Blue Pearl Pale gold The metallic colors shimmer and change as one takes a promenade* around the room. The effect is striking. Once the whole room is stenciled this effect should be kinda amazing. Next week I will…

        OOPS. This is my fault as, after the stained-glass was restored, I am the one who set the glass into the wood sashes and glazed them. Oddly, I think I like them better upside-down!   WILD & CRAZY UPDATE! Just after writing the above, I looked again at the lower sashes….

            It is hard capturing the restored windows in an image but as one walks around the property they are highly evident, glittering in the light. Me delighted.      

I would like to vent. And beg your indulgence. You see, I want to scream every time I see a fabulous old kitchen torn out. This is usually done for two reasons: Owner wants a modern kitchen. Owner wants a period-correct kitchen. And here is what bugs me: Both are, 99.9% of the time, the…

I did not sleep well last night. Over and over I kept waking up. With a single thought: TRAPPED SQUIRRELS! No matter how much I tried I could only think of one thing: In my beloved Cross House I had, inadvertently, trapped at least three creatures. Three increasingly panicked and terrified and hungry and thirsty…

DATELINE: Tuesday I was able to successfully block up a yawning opening in the attic of the tower, an opening which squirrels had been using forever.   DATELINE: Wednesday I tip-toed up to the top floor, tip-toed over to the tower, and then made a lot of noise. Silence was my reward. There was NO…

    So….I should be happy, right? Nope! While I wanted faded stencils, now that I look back/forth between the two images I think I prefer the “unfaded” version! Yep, I am a nut! I may feel differently tomorrow. Some new supplies/colors have been ordered (gold! Blue!) but will not arrive for a week, so…

          I am using metallic paints, so when you walk through the room the stencils shimmer against the flat walls. The darker colors also change color as you walk through the room as they refract light differently. This is really gorgeous in person. After doing three, I stopped. I am T…

Who would think that fretting over picture rail was even possible? But ever since the Bo visit I have been doing just that. Sigh.             Oh! What to do? What to do! Can you hear me wringing my hands?    

When I purchased the Cross House in 2014, I had no idea it was laced with speaking tubes. Discovering this brought back a flood of memories about my beloved Aunt Mabel, who died when I was six. I wrote about speaking tubes and my Aunt previously. If you missed the post I think you will…

  On Saturday, I gave a tour to Harold, his friends, and his daughter, Anita. When we reached the third floor (one huge open room) I saw something sitting on the otherwise pristine floor. Huh? I bent down. And my heart sank. Shit. Oh shit. Damn fuck shit. Because that small something on the floor…

Previously, I wrote about Harold and Wilma, two of the most fabulous people I have ever known. After buying the Cross House I was eager for them to come and visit for I knew they would adore the house and that the three of us would be like kids let loose in a candy story….

          The sashes are now bare wood inside. I do not know what the original finish was, but the adjacent trim will be sent off for a color analysis, and this will guide me in finishing the sashes. Were they painted? Varnished? It will be fun learning what! Restoring the windows…