Get to Know: Barb Land
Barb Land
Administrative Assistant
Start date: July 2019
Barb Land and her husband Greg live in a barn.
“A barn?” Curious visitors wonder.
The blood, sweat, and tears it took to transform the animal abode into a model home, however, easily makes it a candidate for the cover of Midwest Living.
Greg’s family owned the barn and the surrounding acreage for about 100 years. He and Barb lived just up the road until 2017. Initially, they wanted to build a new house next to the barn. That’s when their contractor talked them into converting the barn into a house. It housed chickens, cows, and goats until they bought it. They could, however, see its potential as an amazing home.
That suggestion sparked a nine-month odyssey of living in a camper next to the barn during its transformation, with Greg doing most of the work. They now have a spacious, 3,2000-square-foot, open floor plan. There are three bedrooms, three baths, and a loft. There are numerous focal points downstairs, including a large fireplace.
The pantry used to be a chicken coop, and all of the posts, beams, and trim are original. The brick came from the old summer kitchen across the street. They also found an antique Forest Home Farm sign in the hayloft, which now is displayed in the family room.
“I wish I had a camera when people first walk in,” Barb says. “It looks like a barn from the outside, but inside it looks like a show home. It really takes people’s breath away when they come in the front door.”