How to Design a Home Bar
Our Austin Architects Share Our Top Tips for Designing a Home Bar That Will Have Your Friends Ordering Another Round
Why go out when you can enjoy the hippest new cocktail lounge in town from the comfort of your own home? Our Austin architects work with many clients who want their homes designed around entertaining, whether hosting festive parties or enjoying a relaxing glass of wine with their partner. It’s no surprise the home bar is trending once again. Big or small, home bars provide a space to kick back and have some fun (especially with your design choices). We’re sharing our top home bar design tips so you can learn how to design a home bar to fit all your needs.
Our Top 11 Home Bar Design Tips to Consider
1. Decide Where to Put Your Home Bar
First, select the best location for your home bar. When deciding, you’ll need to factor in your home’s existing floor plan, desired bar size, and entertaining style. Home bars placed off the kitchen, dining, or living room offer convenience and ease and are the most common choices. If you like entertaining outdoors, you may want to place your bar near an exterior window for an easy pass-through. Homeowners looking to entertain many friends may wish to dedicate an entire room to their bar, while more private couples would enjoy a small bar in their primary suite for quiet nights. The choice is yours!
2. Settle the Wet Bar vs. Dry Bar Debate
So, what’s the difference between wet and dry bars? The simple answer is plumbing. A wet bar is run with plumbing and includes a sink with running water. Wet bars are often outfitted with ice machines, refrigerators, and other appliances like built-in espresso makers. A dry bar only has a counter for drink prep and cabinets for storage. Wet bars are more convenient because they offer a spot to clean up while you’re entertaining. However, you may be met with plumbing limitations if you’re retrofitting a bar in an older home.
3. Know What to Include in Your Home Bar
Your drink preferences and entertaining style will determine what to include in your home bar. Make a list of all your must-have items before planning the layout. An inventory will help you determine just how much space you need. Here are some popular components to consider:
Prep Counter
Sink
Beverage Fridge
Wine Cooler
Ice Machine
Mini Dishwasher or Dishwasher Drawer
Tiered Bottle Storage
Upper and Lower Cabinets
Glassware Storage
Wine Racks
Bar Height Counter
Bar Railings
Bar Stools
You can even expand upon this list to include a built-in entertainment system for larger parties or an espresso machine to double as a coffee bar the morning after.
4. Plan Your Layout
Once you know everything you want to include in your home bar, you can begin working with an architect to plan the best layout. Remember, a home bar could be condensed to a corner of your kitchen or take up an entire room. The choice comes down to what type of space you want to entertain in. However, all bars are made of two main components — the back bar and the bar top.
5. Build Out the Back Bar
The back bar is the main drink prep space anchored against a wall. The back bar includes upper and lower cabinets, a countertop, and a backsplash, as well as additional fixtures like a beverage fridge, sink, and wine racks. Many home bars only include a back bar space, leaving them open for easy self-service to guests.
6. Design Your Bar Top
Bar tops are an additional home bar component placed in front of the back bar workspace, similar to kitchen islands or peninsulas. You can include a bar top in your design to achieve that authentic feel of your favorite neighborhood bar (if you have the square footage to do so). The standard bar top height is 42 inches tall and best paired with 30 to 32-inch tall bar stools. The higher height has the added benefit of concealing any back bar counter mess, so you can save cleanup for after the party. Consider outfitting your bar top with a bold accent counter, durable wall finish, and bar railings for that classic pub touch.
7. Select Your Appliances
You have a wide array of home bar appliances and styles to choose from that go beyond the standard mini fridge. For example, you could select from glass front or paneled fridges designed for wine or beverages that sit below the counter or rise to full height. Additionally, you can choose from a range of ice machines that produce specialty ice like blocks, spheres, or crushed. Our Austin architects find that our clients are willing to go bolder in their bar designs. So, don’t shy away from custom-colored appliances in bright red, green, or teal shades.
8. Design Custom Storage and Displays
You won’t want to settle for standard cabinetry once you see some of the custom cabinet upgrades out there. Increase the efficiency and beauty of your home bar with wine racks for your bottles, stair-step shelving for your liqueur collection, and glass-front cabinets and shelves for your glassware. The art of mixology is in the presentation!
9. Set the Mood with Lighting
Like any room in your home, your bar will need functional lighting as well as accent lights to set the mood. If you are including a bar top, accent it with pendant lights to establish it as a focal point of the room. Of course, make sure to include functional task lighting with either undercabinet lights or overhead lights above the counters. Finally, create the moody feel of your favorite cocktail lounge with dimmers, interior cabinet lighting, and even illuminated step shelves to show off your bottle collection.
10. Go Bold with Dramatic Finishes
A home bar is meant to be fun, so don’t hold back on the finishes. Seek inspiration from some of your favorite bars in town. We recommend selecting a bold backsplash, like a smokey mirror tile, and accenting the space with an eclectic cabinetry color, wallpaper, or paneling.
11. Expand into Non-alcoholic Drinks
Get the most out of your home bar by expanding its use. While it may become the hottest neighborhood spot for late-night cocktails, it can also transition into quiet mornings with the addition of a built-in espresso machine.
Cheers to Your New Home Bar Design Success
Now that you have the recipe to mix up the perfect home bar design, you just have to practice your bartender skills! If you have any questions along the way, reach out to our team of Austin architects. We’d be happy to make your home bar vision come to life. Just make sure to invite us to the first party!