Blair Niche Project

At just $167 per square foot, this high-design, low-cost barn in rural Wisconsin is an American idyll.

Cabinetmaker Donna Brogan and her country-doctor husband Bert Hodous had an abundance of time (it took years), space (their farm and orchard), and inspiration (a barn and granary on the property already) when it came to realizing their new home, the Blair BarnHouse. What they didn't have, however, was a massive budget. So they turned to St. Paul, Minnesota-based Alchemy Architects, who managed to design and build the new 2,150-square-foot home for $360,000—a feat that included a geothermal heating system, a slatted sunlit porch, and a rustic modernism that's entirely homegrown.