Cheers to the drinks tray! How to set up your perfect home bar.
Crystal decanters and whiskey tumblers class up a drinks tray. Design: Time & Place Interiors
‘Tis the season to gather with friends and loved ones over rounds of celebratory drinks. The best setting for holiday merrymaking? Your own home, where your guests can relax and settle in with your go-to drink in hand, served from your home bar.
To create great drinks at home, you don’t necessarily need a wet bar, or to go out and buy every possible cocktail ingredient. (Not so easy, if you’re trying to entertain in a small space — see what I had to say on that for Living Etc magazine.) Rather, try focusing on the recipes you enjoy making. Designate a surface like the top of a chest or sideboard to hold your bottles, drinkware, and accessories. Even a shelf will do. The cocktail tray itself is helpful to corral the bar components together. It can be moved around your home to accommodate any occasion that calls for a beverage — which, in my opinion, is any!
Displaying bar accessories such as vintage glassware, a shapely ice bucket, or a Bohemian crystal whiskey decanter creates a stylish look for your home bar. Go one step further and dress up your cocktails area: a vessel with fresh flowers, or a small lamp for a moody aura. Whatever your style is, make it personal.
On the day of your party, don’t forget the extras: pitchers with mixers, ice in the bucket, a bowl with lemon or lime wedges. Light a candle, turn on some tunes, change into your button-up (or your “nice” sweatpants), and enjoy the gathering.
Here’s your shopping list for a home bar:
Serving tray — can be a repurposed antique or artisan-made item
Ice bucket — tons of hip Mid Century Modern or interesting antique models out there
Pitcher — for water or mixers
Cocktail napkins — linen, if possible
Bottle opener / corkscrew
Glassware — you’ll need a variety for wine, cocktails, whiskeys, and brandy
Good coasters — the world is your oyster
Want to make cocktails? You’ll need these tools:
Cocktail shaker
Stirring glass
Stirring spoon; muddler; jigger
Strainer
Ready for an inspiring taste? Enjoy these clever designs of home bar set-ups from classy interiors, ranging from bar carts to small surface spaces cut out in dedication to the home bar.
A 1950s bar cart by Paul McCobb punctuates the arched space in fashion designer Thom Browne’s Pre-War Manhattan apartment. Photo: Douglas Friedman
A well appointed vintage Mid Century Italian bar cart makes a New York City dining room ready to entertain guests with cocktails. Design / Photo: White Arrow
Vintage accessories and personal affects complete a console bar cart in a Brooklyn brownstone. Design: Delia Kenza / Photo: Nick Glimenkis
A statement console holding a home bar accoutrements grounds the dining room in this New York apartment. Design: Philip Gorrivan / Photo: Joshua McHugh
A contemporary artisan-made table by Christopher Kurtz holding cocktail supplies is a streamlined contrast against the rustic background of a country house. Design: Steven Volpe / Photo: William Abranowicz
If you have a spare wall niche, make the best of it with a mini cocktail bar, like in this Brooklyn Heights apartment furnished with vintage Mid Century pieces. Design: Claire Hung / Photo: Seth Caplan
A nightstand doubles as a small bar top at Maison de la Luz guesthouse in New Orleans by Atelier Ace. Design: Shamshiri Studio
The host at this Parisian apartment uses a Danish Modern mini dressers to hold liquor bottles and home bar accessories. Design / Photo: Rebekah Peppler
Top shelf picks
Here are classy drinks tray items we love, selected to help you get you started on setting up your own home bar.
Want to raise the bar on your home bar styling?
New York-based design studio Time & Place Interiors creates personalized spaces that will make your home more enjoyable for both your entertaining and your down time, elevating its style with sophistication and panache. Use the link below to set up a free 20-minute information call with founder Ksenya Malina to discuss your design plans:
