Set back from a quiet country road in Momence, Illinois, a familiar farmhouse has long marked the horizon for local farmers. The new owners—retirees with deep ties to the area—saw the structure not merely as shelter but as a vessel for family memory. Their wish was simple: a home that feels as though it has never left its place, even after a complete rebuild.
Enter Buccellato Design and Architecture, the husband-and-wife team of Aimee and Kevin Buccellato. Their design credo in this project was “be good to the neighbors,” a Midwestern ethic that favours restraint, respect for existing character, and quiet elegance. From the first sketch, the duo treated the site like a living story, allowing each addition to echo the gradual growth typical of historic farm complexes.
Vision that bridges past and present
The architects approached the 6,000-square-foot rebuild as a narrative rather than a demolition. Their brief, supplied by the clients, called for a residence that would convince onlookers that the original farmhouse never vanished. To achieve that illusion, they blended preservationist caution with the imagination of storytellers, ensuring every new wall or window seemed to have always belonged. The result is a four-bedroom, four-and-half-bathroom home that reads like an evolution of the original homestead, not a replacement.
Preserving the farm’s historic fabric
Key to the illusion was the meticulous restoration of the 19th-century barn and corn crib that flank the property. These outbuildings were repaired using salvaged timber and traditional joinery, allowing them to sit beside the new structure as if they had been standing there for generations. Inside, the house is lined with reclaimed white-oak planks, fumed and waxed to reveal their grain, while exposed beams—sourced from the original farmstead—suspend the ceiling like ancient ribs.
The kitchen exemplifies the balance of past and present. Upper cabinets were replaced by a floor-to-ceiling glass wall that frames sunrise over the barn and the adjoining Kankakee River. Below, a dish room and larder keep the functional aspects out of sight. Countertops of black quartzite mimic the look of traditional soapstone but offer modern durability, and pendant lights on a brushed-metal track add a subtle contemporary touch.
Living spaces that echo the landscape
The sitting room adopts a soft cream-and-blue palette, anchored by a tufted mohair sofa in deep umber and a feather-light chandelier that nods to classic country elegance. Antique pieces—such as a Persian rug and a Jacobean gate-leg table—are layered with newer, custom-made furnishings, creating a sense of a collection built over decades. Large windows pull the surrounding fields inward, allowing the ever-changing sky to become part of the interior experience.
Retreat areas continue the theme of understated luxury. The primary bedroom, tucked among mature trees, uses a muted mix of earthy neutrals and pale blues, highlighted by a French-country canopy bed dressed in Schumacher linen. An adjacent sitting nook provides a quiet spot for morning coffee, while the bathroom features pale-blue walls, creamy millwork, and a custom vanity that feels both historic and functional. A guest “quilt room” adds a playful splash of patterned wallpaper and bright trim, reminding visitors that the home is alive and evolving.
Outside, the glass-enclosed porch offers panoramic views of the river and the surrounding old-growth forest, reinforcing the notion that the house belongs to its setting. Even a hidden speakeasy, carved into the original stone foundation, hints at the layered history beneath the surface. Throughout, the design remains “sensitive, not wasteful” and “polite, not ostentatious,” as the Buccellatos describe it—a quiet celebration of Midwestern heritage that honors both the past and the present.
