If you do a lot of entertaining and have a little extra space in your home, you might consider converting a portion of it - a basement, unused formal dining room, or spare living room - into a bar or entertainment area. But making a good, fully functional home bar is about more than just putting up a nice bar top and stools and busting out your cocktail shaker. So before you start your project, here are a few fun grown up toys you might want to consider including and why >>>...
When building a home bar, one of the biggest decisions you'll have to make is actually a fairly deceptive one - to install a bar sink or not. Depending on the location of your bar, and that location's access to plumbing, this can be a relatively simple job. But if not, is it really worth spending the extra money for a water supply and drain, or even worth altering the location of your planned project to get one? Bar sinks add important utility to a home bar - and can be pretty snazzy to look at, too - but what difference does having one really make?
Access To Running Water
Straightforward, no? There are a plethora of reasons you want access to running water in your bar, from being able to rinse glasses or fruit, fill ice trays, wash your hands or utensils, or just have some good >>>...
There are really two kinds of home bars out there: ones modeled after old school pubs, hardwood and dartboards, and those you'd more likely pair with a cocktail dress and a skyline view. Now, unless you've got a whole room to spare, chances are that building your own in home pub might not be feasible, but creating your own compact cocktail lounge is a lot easier - and less expensive - to pull off, especially if your home already errs a little on the side of modern design. If you've got the balcony (and a bottle or two), pulling off modern home bars can mean as little as procuring a few pieces of bar furniture >>>...
I've always loved bistro tables - you know, the tall, sometimes delicate tables that come to mind when you think of a Parisian cafe or maybe a trendy nightclub. They're the kind of tables you see when you go out, but not often in the home. I think it's a distinction worth breaking, so here are my top six favorite ways to use a bistro table or bar table in your own home >>>...
For as long as man has been roaming this green earth, serving up a stiff drink in a warm room has been the ultimate mark of good hospitality. The tradition's been around since a horn of mead by a hearth meant the difference between life and death, but though the significance isn't nearly as dire, there's still something about sharing an afternoon cocktail or a nightcap that means friendship. Now, unfortunately, we don't all have room for a full bar in our homes, but if you entertain a lot and would like the ease and convenience of a bar without the furniture footprint, you might want to think about adding a bar cabinet to your den or dining room >>>...
If you ask me, man caves are some of the most fun spaces to decorate in the whole home. Big or small, in a man cave dude decor reigns supreme, and there's a little more wiggle room to just have fun, rather than to try to make sure everything matches and is on trend and easy to use. Man caves are one of the few places you can go all-out with a theme and just make the space you want to be in >>>...
Bars aren't typically something most of us would associate with our houses. Bars are for dates or relaxing after work, possibly meeting up with old friends. Also, bars are about brushing shoulders with strangers and buying overpriced drinks >>>...
Having your own fully equipped bar in your home is the ideal drinking situation: it's all the drinks you like, the bartender is very welcoming and attractive (it's you!), and it's the shortest and safest drunk commute afterwards to your bed. If you've ever considered hosting a big party (or even just a few friends!), here are some house bar choices to consider adding to your living space.
Pine Bar, AF35056 by Toscano
Shop Toscano Bar Furniture:
Pine is a rugged staple of a hard-won life >>>...
A home bar is a great way to entertain without having to go out to a dimly-lit tavern. That said, it can feel very underwhelming in atmosphere if you only have the bare necessities for your bar. Choice accessories not only add to the atmosphere of the bar environment, but also provide both functional and fun ways to personalize your space in order to elevate it from just another hole in the wall where you meet up with friends for a drink >>>...
Kitchen islands are a staple of almost every kitchen big enough to fit one, and are largely considered the stylistic heart and anchor of a well-built contemporary space. But there's one element that almost every island has that rarely gets talked about: the bar stools. Most islands are designed with seating in mind, which means they have to come paired with something to sit on >>>...
