I began painting the exterior of the Cross House in 2014, shortly after buying it. This had soooooooooooo not been my intention but I could not find a painter willing to take the job. So, I thought: Well, I’ll just begin and will soon find a painter.

That day never happened.

It is just as well because, as noted recently: I have no regrets how things unfolded, as no painter would have done the kind of work I have done. They would have painted rather than repaired the exterior. And applying paint is but 10% of the work required to properly restore the exterior.

However…in 2014 I was crazed to get some paint on the main, west facade. it seemed important to let people in the city know that something exciting was happening. And, indeed, a year after buying the house, the west facade had been transformed:

 

 

 

My concern, looking back, was more for effect than (dare I admit it?) quality. In short, I took a lot of shortcuts. I know! A scandal!

Also, and this is vital, the house was still very new to me. I really did not fully understand what I had. It is like the difference between knowing somebody for six months as opposed to, say, six years. You will look back on your early awareness and just laugh.

By the time I began work on the north facade, my intimacy with the house was much greater. As such, rather than make things pretty I yearned to make thing right. I had, too, developed a vastly better understanding of the house after two years and recognized just what a jewel I was now a caretaker of.

I don’t mean to suggest that I was doing sloppy work in 2014—Oh, the horror—rather, I was skipping steps that I knew would slow things down. I would however make a mental list of the Skipped Steps knowing that, later, after the exterior was looking good, I could come back to various areas and really do them right. An important consideration was that any skipped-over areas should be accessible.

In not easily accessible areas?

 

 

 

 

 

 

All this brings me to my current focus.

During my first year, THE most exciting project was getting the lost porch columns back in place. More than half were missing. Most of these were discovered in the backyard, lying on the ground (yikes) and under a bunch of other stuff.

The columns were hauled into the dining room where they spent months drying out. Then most went to Dr. Doug who restored what could be restored.

 

 

Exciting as this was, more work was required to make things really right. The original columns looked their age, even after Dr. Doug’s work. They had cracks, dings, and rotted and missing bits. During that first year, I rushed through the work needed knowing that, as the columns were easily accessible, this work could go on the Can Wait Till Later List. Anybody owning an old house has just such a list.

 

 

The left column will soon get its missing upper trim, and it, as with several other columns, are getting their belated fussing.

I also have to laugh in looking at the above image. See the porch railing? That was installed several years ago. But I didn’t paint the back of the horizontal rails! So, another project added to the current To Do list!

Luckily, there’s nothing on the north facade which needs later fussing. With the west facade looking good, I decided that rushing through work was no longer a good idea. So, all the work was done right. Same with the NE corner, and the current work on the south facade.