Anatomy of a Stylish Home Bar and The Accessories You Need

Styling a home bar for a gracious entertaining is as important as the result of the cocktails you create.  As I’m sure most people know, there are two types of home bar.  Wet bar is a planned built-in station with sink for quickly washing glasses and fresh ingredients.  A wet bar also provides the necessary water pipes for what I believe is the king of cocktail mixing; an ice maker.  Whichever home bar you decide to have here are these stylish home bar ideas and how to style a home bar.

stylish home bar ideas and how to style a home bar aerin lauder sideboard bar

Aerin Lauder home bar

A Dry bar however is a lot simpler and easier to set up and style.  It can easily be arranged in many different ways and areas of the home.  It can be as easy as setting up a tray on top of a sideboard and use the drawers of the sideboard for storing glasses and home bar tools.  As you can see in the image above the sideboard which belongs to Aerin Lauder, works as a perfect surface for displaying a few drinks and glasses.

stylish home bar ideas and how to style a home bar home bar cart

If you have the space for a bar cart, it can be really pretty and make your guests feel more at ease due to its casual feeling.

stylish home bar ideas and how to style a home bar cart style

If you opt for an open bar-cart it’s a must to keep it nicely organized with mainly what you use most often at display and assigning the rest to a cabinet in the kitchen.  If it’s a two level bar cart keep the bottles in the lower shelf and glasses on the top one dividing them by type and size, add pretty and functional items (more of this below) between the sets.  It’s good to remember to leave enough empty space for guest to rest their glass while mixing.

stylish home bar ideas and how to style a home bar home bar in closet

Whatever type of bar you decide to have at home, when it comes to style it, it’s all about guest flow, balance and function.   Mix materials such as brass, glass, embossed leather bar tools, marble so on.  All the items should speak about who you are and your lifestyle.  It should harmonize with the rest of your home. Add different heights, keeping the taller pieces in the back and the small ones in the front.  Don’t forget to bring something from nature, either fruits, flowers or leaves of the season.   Keep most, if not all the items useful from the small pretty bowl that holds the olives to the decorative napkin holder.