If you love to entertain, having a bar feature in your custom home is a must. This is a great place to add some personality to the home. This is a show piece for the home, and should be treated as such. So, we have put together a quick list of the top priorities as you are designing and constructing your home bar.
The Theme
Right out of the gate, you want to decide on the theme of the bar. For instance, will it be located in the mancave and serve as the sports bar for you and all your friends on Sundays during the game? Or, if you are like me, will it be more of a social gathering place to enjoy some nice bourbons and tell old war stories with the boys? Deciding on the theme will also likely dictate exactly what locations of the home are suitable for the bar.
The Finishes
Once you know the theme, it is pretty easy to start picking out the right finishes for the bar. For instance, do you want a wood or marble bar? Perhaps a bar made from oak barrels if you are concentrating on whiskeys and/or wine. Pick something unusual to give everyone something to talk about but at the same time, something that fits with the overall theme you are trying to present.
The Materials
As we just hinted above, you want the bar to be able to stand up to wear and tear, so even though you want the bar to have a unique look, it must also be durable, especially if this is going to be a regular gathering spot and see lots of traffic.
The Location
In the first step, we talked about the theme, and now we want to expand on that by deciding the location of the bar. Where do you usually entertain your guests? You want the location of the bar to be central to that area.
Have Fun
The space needs to have personality, so have some fun with the design. The space is supposed to be vibrant and full of life, so remember that during the design process.
Be Daring, But…
A home bar is a great place to think out of the box, but remember, you still need the bar to reflect the overall design of the home or it could end up looking like an eyesore when it is done. For instance, if you have a home that is using grey, black, and white as the main color scheme, is a yellow-dominated bar going to work? We are not saying it has to be tame, by any means, just pick some colors that complement the rest of the home, not look like someone threw paint into the fan and picked the first color that came out.
Functionality
This is where your design strategy comes into play. The bar needs to be totally functional for its project use. For instance, if you and your friends are big beer drinkers but you forget to add a tap or refrigerator to the bar, people are going to spend more time running back and forth to the kitchen than hanging out at the bar. One home designer stated, “It’s about masking the functionality with color and pretty details.”
Creative Storage
In most cases, home bars are using limited space, which means limited storage. If that is the case, you are going to have to get creative in how you store things, which generally means going vertical with your storage. This can work to your advantage, as wine or liquor bottles stacked to the ceiling can be a conversation piece all on their own.