Crafting the ultimate home bar: inspiration and design tips

If you’re reading this, we know you’re probably pretty excited. After all, you’re thinking about how to create a home bar, does life get any more exciting? But, it’s important to remember that not all home bars are created equal. Rush into things and the end results could be as disappointing as a warm beer on a hot summer’s day.

You need to think big picture – the layout, the physical bar itself, your sink – before you get into the fun stuff like decor, beer mats and glassware.

So, to help you plan the perfect home bar, here are the three most important design ingredients to chuck into your cocktail shaker.

What do you need to build a home bar

• The right space 

Now, when we say the ‘right space’, we don’t mean that you need loads of space. In fact, you can fit a home bar into just about any sized property, you just need to work with the space you have available. The important thing here is to think logically.

While it would be tempting to turn an unused attic into a warm and cosy bar, that isn’t going to be super convenient when it comes to entertaining guests. No, you want to have your home bar near the main entertaining spaces in your home – your kitchen and living room, for example.

Going back to the size thing, if you’re working with a smaller home, you just need to be smart about the choices you make when designing your home bar. For example, a smaller tap for your bar sink, such as this MixMaster MPOSM Sink Mixer with Pull-Out Spray would be perfect as it consumes little space, but has a pull-out feature that means you won’t lose anything on functionality. 

• The bar itself

The central feature of any home bar is … the bar. So, you’ll want to put a lot of thought into the material, design and any additional features you might want.

By far the most common material for a home bar is wood, but if you want to mix things up a bit, you could go for a chic granite bar to recreate the feel of a big city establishment. If you went the granite route, you could pair this up with one of our sturdy yet stylish Schock sinks: a match made in home bar heaven.

When thinking about the design of the bar itself, consider factors such as:

• What storage do you want for glassware and bottles?
• How many people would you want to be able to sit at it at a time?
• Can you find bar stools that will easily match it?
• What height do you want your bar?

• The bar sink 

An often overlooked but crucial part of any home bar is the sink. After all, the ambiance of the bar will quickly disappear if you’re running out to the kitchen every time that you need to wash your glasses, dispose of the dregs or get ice. So, your sink needs careful consideration.

Our top suggestion here is to consider a double sink – then you can have one bowl serving as a place to wash up glasses, and the other can double as an ice tray for evenings when you’re entertaining a lot of guests.

You also want something that’s easy to clean, because precisely none of us are thinking about creating a home bar so that we can spend more time doing housework.

One great product that ticks both of these boxes is our own Entry 1 & 3/4 bowl. Made from durable and easy-to-clean stainless steel, featuring two bowls and a draining board on the side, what more do you need?

With these three crucial elements of your home bar in place, it’s now over to the really fun stuff – choosing your decor and features, putting in optional extras (a pool table, perhaps?) and last, but certainly not least, stocking the bar. You can take all of this as far as your time, budget and inspiration will carry you. Think you want to install LED lights into your bar to create a real party atmosphere? Well, you’re the owner, so no one can stop you!

If you want more information or inspiration regarding products from Abey Australia that will help turn your home bar dream into a reality, get in touch with our friendly team today.