I can't really remember what I said in-game, so I can't confirm/deny that. My preference has always been that people follow the posted rules/guidelines and open a ticket for discussion if they find the rules/guidelines too restrictive or unclear, rather than having everything rest on word of mouth and laissez-faire precedents. I don't intend to be a singular dictator over block use policy whose word determines what's ok and what isn't, but rather to facilitate global, agreed-on stylistic choices for our server's regions and subregions.
I've tried to discourage people from using close-studding in Reach villages, because I don't think it fits with the established style or IRL stylistic influences very well, but I've also generally been lenient on its use in small accentual uses - insofar as it looks good and doesn't seem stylistically out of place. When I last scrutinized the Varner style (after you updated some houses in the village) it didn't seem too objectionable, but I can take another look when I'm in-game next.
I'll add that if Veggie, as your other approving mod, feels there are any issues with the current style, his feedback stands on its own - my voice doesn't override his or vice-versa. Also, if feedback is "late" it should still be paid heed, though if the lateness of the feedback makes it infeasible to address the issue then that's another issue.