Trending home bar designs and how to set them up

With spring well underway and those glorious long sunny evenings here at last, it’s the perfect time to get ready for easy and relaxing entertainment by creating a bar at home. Take advantage of those extra daylight hours and invite friends and family round so you can impress them with delicious freshly-mixed cocktails straight from the bar!

The best part of a home bar is how easy it is to turn a regular Tuesday evening into a “night out”. First, gather the ingredients as well as a few handy tools which will elevate your cocktail-making. Start by choosing two or three spirits you love – perhaps gin, tequila and dark rum – from which you can make a range of exciting drinks. Add some mixers like ginger beer, tonic water and fresh juice as well as garnishes; lemons, limes and fresh mint will all add a new dimension to your mixes and also look great decorating your bar.

Don’t forget the ice! A hugely important part of any home bar, you can simply buy ice for an ice bowl when planning to entertain, or invest in an ice machine for a supremely stylish home bar that’s ready whenever you are.

Building the home bar

Now, the hard part is actually building the home bar and the first step is to decide on the design. Will it be a dry bar, without a sink, or a wet bar with a plumbed-in sink? Home bars don’t have to be big to have that wow factor and whatever space you have, a home bar is an area to be bold and reflect the glamour and cheer of the best cocktail party; think mirror tiles, glass shelving, statement tiles, marble effect, bronze tones and bright colours. 

Once your mouth-watering ingredients are in place, you just need a few handy gadgets to get you mixing like a pro. A mixing glass, bar spoon, juicer, strainer, peeler and jigger (double-ended spirit measure) are all essential.

Now that you’ve stocked up and equipped yourself with tools it’s time to

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4 Home Bar Designs To Inspire

1. Compact Home Bar

If designing for a compact space, transform an unused cupboard into a home bar, creating a moment of surprise for guests as you reveal the delights within. Another way to create an impressive bar is to adapt a dresser or sideboard with trays and shelves to display those all important elements, you could even add a sink. 

2. Effortless garden bar

A simple and effective way to bring the fun of cocktail making to your garden is with a purpose-built bar unit. Quick and easy to set up for perfect al fresco drinks.

3. Permanent Freestanding Bar

A stylish home bar makes a chic addition to the room at the back of your house, blending your house and garden and creating the perfect setting for summer entertaining. Or take this idea one step further and install a home bar in your garden room office, allowing you to transform the space from work to play when you’ve finished work for the day.

4. Wet Bar

For the ultimate in luxury and glamour choose a wet bar, complete with sink, shelves for glassware and spirits bottles, cupboards to keep everything neat and why not add a striking tile pattern for the splashback or perhaps antiqued mirror tiles for extra glamour. 

To prepare for your project and get the best advice, have a look at Rated People’s Home Improvement Trends Report 2022.