I have a huge crush on sadly departed Joel Crothers .... and his chest .... and Nathan Forbes' trousers .... and (oh, I better stop there)

Nice try - but we can't really start using each other to keep the game going. 

Aw, shucks! Well, ya can't em all.

Thanks to you I am now picturing Michaelangelo's painting of God bringing life to Adam with Abigail in place of God.... 

If I am remembering correctly, was this after he started being influenced by Nicholas, telling him to "take what he wanted"?

Even so, I doubt Adam would have forced Carolyn to do something she didn't want to do, and given how she feels about him (friendship and pity) and knowing he feels much more strongly for her, I doubt Carolyn would have done the deed as that would have made things infinitely more complicated.

"Barnabas was horrified and repulsed when he looked up at the ceiling in Josette's room and saw that Willie had installed mirrors above the bed."

To attempt to answer my own question, after puzzling over it, perhaps the decision was taken to redo the painting because it is far easier to see the resemblance between Josette and Vicki than in the full body version.

Perhaps in the pilot filming the idea was that both portraits of Barn and Josette were full body to make some kind of connection between them in the viewers mind, but when the series was remounted it was decided to repaint Josette's for the reason above?

Oh, and in one of what must the the silliest of continuity errors ever, In the episode where Barnabas shows VIckie Josette's room for the first time, we see the portrait of Josette, full body, but all subsequent episodes, shots of the SAME PAINTING are of a waist up or head and shoulders portrait!!!! What gives??

Daphne:  Facehugger! Facehugger!