Country Homes
The Red Barn — Cecconi Simone Creates A Country Retreat
Updated on November 4, 2025
Actually, I can. The phrase glows in white neon on the wall of the country home that interior designer Anna Simone shares with her life and business partner, Paula Fleck. A gift from Paula for Anna’s birthday, the sign is more than just a decorating accent — it’s a mantra. “Anna’s traditional upbringing didn’t encourage women to pursue higher education or a profession, but she did, big-time!,” says Paula. “She was the first in her family to go to university and, now, her design firm Cecconi Simone is celebrating 43 years this year.”
The same ethos — understated but fiercely determined — powered the transformation of this rural property writ large. A former horse farm in Cambridge, Ont., the 12,000-square foot compound comprises three heritage-designated barns (dubbed the Main Barn, Medium Barn and Baby Barn), plus a studio. Nestled on just under a hectare of land, the idyllic property is bursting with natural beauty, including the lavender and vegetable gardens, and a lily-filled reflecting pond.
What now looks like a modern-rustic dream retreat — crisp white walls contrasting with hand-hewn posts and beams, clawfoot tubs and jet-black chandeliers — was once derelict, with crumbling foundations and overgrown paths, everything a bit Grey Gardens. “The energy was always good, but the buildings were falling apart,” says Anna. “It needed a lot of love.”
The couple first spotted the barns more than 20 years ago while staying at Langdon Hall. “As we pulled into the hotel, we noticed the red siding and sash windows across the road, and we were instantly charmed,” says Paula.
Anna Simone (left), Paula Fleck (centre) and Elaine Cecconi.
In 2017, when Anna and Paula heard the property was for sale, they toured it immediately. They also brought in a third: interior designer Elaine Cecconi, co-founder at Cecconi Simone. “I’m a very urban person, but the aura of this place — you could feel how special it was,” says Elaine. “Plus, it’s only an hour and 15 minutes from Toronto, and Cambridge has a great farmers’ market on the weekends.”
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There are three barns on the property, the Main Barn (pictured), Medium Barn and Baby Barn, plus a studio, pond and several outdoor entertaining areas.
Together, the trio bought the property as a secondary residence. The barns were divided amongst themselves: Elaine would have the Baby Barn, which dates back to 1798 and is the oldest building in the area, and Anna and Paula would have the Medium Barn, which is more than 200 years old. The Main Barn, which adjoins the Medium Barn, would become the shared heart of the compound: a sprawling, communal space for friends, family, clients and colleagues, the site of celebrations and strategy sessions.
The Main Barn
Instead of having upper cabinets in the kitchen, Cecconi Simone designed raised shelves in the islands that hold candles, glassware and more. They were inspired by similar caddies Anna and Paula saw at The Ned, a bank turned hotel in London, U.K.
Just off the Main Barn kitchen is the living room, complete with a cosy fireplace. The 17-foot-long sectional and built-in benches accommodate a crowd; the integrated bookcase is made from reclaimed barnboard.
In total, the time from purchase to construction completion was a blazing 18 months, including the needed structural overhaul. A structural engineer poking around the beams found serious decay. “He pushed a metal rod into a joist and it went through like cheese,” says Paula. The buildings were so precarious that an engineer remained on-site for much of the project. “Anna was also there basically every day,” says Paula. “She was a force of nature, ensuring that it all came together.”
The 20-seat dining table was built with wood from a five-pin bowling lane, and the chandelier was made from an old beam that was draped with naked bulbs and hung from the ceiling with metal chains.
It’s difficult to pick a favourite space, but a strong contender is the Main Barn. Its great room boasts soaring, 33-foot-high ceilings. On one side is the massive kitchen and a 17-foot dining table that’s long enough to be in a bowling alley (fittingly, the wood was salvaged from one), and on the other side is the living room with custom furniture and a stone fireplace. All around, oversized mullion windows frame the rural setting like art.
Paula sourced the neon Motel: No Vacancy sign as a wink to the concern some neighbours had that the barns would be converted into a hotel.
“At the barn, we don’t collect wine, we enjoy it,” says Elaine of the Main Barn’s rustic wine-tasting room.
The Main Barn has a mezzanine guest bedroom overlooking the great room. The custom bed frame boasts built-in nightstands.
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The 16-stall stable on the lower level of the Main Barn was converted into a five-bedroom guest area with three bathrooms, a lounge, laundry room and cantina.
Almost every surface had to be refinished or replaced. Sixteen former horse stalls on the Main Barn’s lower level were carefully dismantled: centuries-old barnboards were sanded, stained and reconfigured to become five guest rooms and three bathrooms. Layers of grime were painstakingly scrubbed away. “Until recently, we were still removing stray bits of hay,” says Anna with a smile. “The original stable floor was asphalt — fine for horses, not appropriate for residential,” adds Elaine. It’s now concrete with radiant in-floor heating.
In this horse stall turned bedroom, the king-size bed frame can pull apart to support two twin beds if needed.
Just outside the Main Barn is an outdoor entertaining area under a pergola made from charred cedar. The Japanese technique, shou sugi ban, helps protect the wood from rot, fire and insects. Anna built the furniture herself.
The Main and Medium barns are connected by a mirrored aluminum-clad box that serves as an entry vestibule. “We wanted it to reflect the surroundings,” says Anna. “We didn’t want it to compete with the barn’s vernacular.”
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The Medium Barn
Anna and Paula’s private suite in the Medium Barn features a custom sectional and coffee table. They opted for no window treatments. “We get up with the sun, and we celebrate the views,” says Anna.
The ornate black chandelier in Anna and Paula’s bedroom is a dramatic contrast to the crisp white walls and country setting.
Their lofty ensuite features a clawfoot tub set against a backdrop of black candleholders. “I love lighting candles,” says Paula. “They create a wonderful mood.”
The Baby Barn
The Main Barn’s grandeur contrasts with the cosier living areas. Just across a cedar-edged courtyard from the Main and Medium barns is the Baby Barn, Elaine’s private, cottage-like space, where stone walls add rich texture and heritage charm. “Every time I’m here, I think it was worth all the effort,” says Elaine. “It’s always worth leaving the city for.”
The Baby Barn’s stone walls are finished with a style of grout that would have been common when the barn was built at the end of the 18th century. Just outside, a galvanized stock tank is used as a planter.
Custom steel stairs lead up to the mezzanine level of the Baby Barn.
Elaine’s Baby Barn sanctuary includes a cosy bedroom on the upper level.
The Studio
Artifacts from the barns line the plywood walls of the studio, a work and event space.
The studio has garage doors that open to a view of the pond.
The firepit near the vegetable garden is surrounded by tomato red Muskoka chairs that echo the barn exteriors.
It’s a remarkable revitalization of a property that several neighbours had considered buying but ultimately didn’t, believing it was too close to collapse. In fact, at one point, a neighbour commented to Bill Bennett, one of the owners of Langdon Hall, that three women had bought the barns and was seemingly surprised by and skeptical of their ambition to turn the property into a residence. “I’ve known Bill for a long time; I’ve worked with him in the past,” says Anna. “He just smiled and said, ‘You don’t know these women. If anyone can do it, they can.’ ”
Shai Gil, Portrait photography by Giovanni Pigliacelli, Studio and Baby Barn photography by Ema Peter
Oni One
Cecconi Simone