5 Stylishly Compact New Home Bars
Designers share the features and details they used to create beverage hubs that raise the energy on entertaining at home
A home bar doesn’t need to rival your local tavern or cocktail lounge in size. Even a compact beverage station can elevate your ability to entertain at home. Here, designers share the features and finishes in five relatively small home bars that help keep the party going.
2. Avant-Garde Arch
Designer: Gamble + Design
Location: San Francisco
Homeowners’ request. “Our clients had just purchased a home in one of San Francisco’s loveliest neighborhoods, Forest Hill,” designer Jeni Gamble says. “I toured the home shortly after they got their keys, and, wow, it was a time capsule. It needed work, for sure, but there were also amazing bones to be preserved.”
Special features. The bar sits in an arched niche that complements numerous other arch details found throughout the home. The blue-green cabinets echo those used in the kitchen and feature a “twist on Shaker cabinets,” Gamble says, with the curved detail that nods to the arches in the home. The back of the bar is covered in wallpaper with a black gradient effect.
Pendant light: Normann Copenhagen
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Designer: Gamble + Design
Location: San Francisco
Homeowners’ request. “Our clients had just purchased a home in one of San Francisco’s loveliest neighborhoods, Forest Hill,” designer Jeni Gamble says. “I toured the home shortly after they got their keys, and, wow, it was a time capsule. It needed work, for sure, but there were also amazing bones to be preserved.”
Special features. The bar sits in an arched niche that complements numerous other arch details found throughout the home. The blue-green cabinets echo those used in the kitchen and feature a “twist on Shaker cabinets,” Gamble says, with the curved detail that nods to the arches in the home. The back of the bar is covered in wallpaper with a black gradient effect.
Pendant light: Normann Copenhagen
Shop for beer and wine refrigerators
3. Amped-Up Art Deco
Designer: Kate Zharkova of Gallery KBNY
Location: New York City
Homeowners’ request. As part of a major kitchen renovation, this standalone wet bar was updated to have an Art Deco look.
Special features. Nero Marquina marble mosaic backsplash with brass inlay. Quartz countertop and shelves that mimic the look of Nero Marquina marble. Undermount granite composite sink. Blue-green cabinets and paneled beverage fridge with solid brass hardware.
Backsplash tile: Nero Marquina square mosaic, Rockart collection, 9 by 9 inches, Roca Tile
10 Design Features Pros Recommend for Entertaining at Home
Designer: Kate Zharkova of Gallery KBNY
Location: New York City
Homeowners’ request. As part of a major kitchen renovation, this standalone wet bar was updated to have an Art Deco look.
Special features. Nero Marquina marble mosaic backsplash with brass inlay. Quartz countertop and shelves that mimic the look of Nero Marquina marble. Undermount granite composite sink. Blue-green cabinets and paneled beverage fridge with solid brass hardware.
Backsplash tile: Nero Marquina square mosaic, Rockart collection, 9 by 9 inches, Roca Tile
10 Design Features Pros Recommend for Entertaining at Home
4. Creative Corner
Designers: Cliff Deetjen of Peregrine Design Build and Lauren Miles
Location: Charlotte, Vermont
Homeowners’ request. “The clients wanted specific custom pullouts for bottle and bar tool storage,” designer Cliff Deetjen says of this corner home bar in a living room. “There is also a wine fridge and 24-inch fridge drawer.”
Special features. Painted maple and HDF cabinets with recessed door panels and aged brass hardware. The lowers are painted Charcoal Slate by Benjamin Moore. The uppers are Simply White by Benjamin Moore. The open shelves feature custom wood stemware racks and shiplap backing.
Custom cabinets: Wooden Hammer
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Designers: Cliff Deetjen of Peregrine Design Build and Lauren Miles
Location: Charlotte, Vermont
Homeowners’ request. “The clients wanted specific custom pullouts for bottle and bar tool storage,” designer Cliff Deetjen says of this corner home bar in a living room. “There is also a wine fridge and 24-inch fridge drawer.”
Special features. Painted maple and HDF cabinets with recessed door panels and aged brass hardware. The lowers are painted Charcoal Slate by Benjamin Moore. The uppers are Simply White by Benjamin Moore. The open shelves feature custom wood stemware racks and shiplap backing.
Custom cabinets: Wooden Hammer
New to home remodeling? Learn the basics
5. Bold Basement
Design-build firm: B&B Design Build
Location: Denver
Homeowners’ request. Convert the basement and excavate the crawl space in a 1907 home and turn it into a modern living space for family and friends to enjoy. “The basement was near original ‘utilitarian’ condition with low ceilings, minimal lighting, exposed pipes, mechanicals and brick foundation walls,” architectural project coordinator Olga Blyednova says. “It was the only place in the house no one cared to spend any time in and thus was used primarily for storage. The walk-up wet bar served as the focal point and the first thing the guests encounter as they descend the stairs. The homeowner is a former architect and current modern artist. They envisioned a bright, spacious room resembling more of an art gallery.”
Special features. Custom cabinet stain (Rubio Monocoat in Midnight Indigo color). Beverage fridge. Black soapstone countertop and backsplash. Graphic wallpaper. Undermount anthracite sink with faucet in a champagne bronze finish.
Cabinets: Elan series in Riverside door style, Bertch; beverage fridge: CL181WBV, Summit Lamp
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Shop for your home bar
Design-build firm: B&B Design Build
Location: Denver
Homeowners’ request. Convert the basement and excavate the crawl space in a 1907 home and turn it into a modern living space for family and friends to enjoy. “The basement was near original ‘utilitarian’ condition with low ceilings, minimal lighting, exposed pipes, mechanicals and brick foundation walls,” architectural project coordinator Olga Blyednova says. “It was the only place in the house no one cared to spend any time in and thus was used primarily for storage. The walk-up wet bar served as the focal point and the first thing the guests encounter as they descend the stairs. The homeowner is a former architect and current modern artist. They envisioned a bright, spacious room resembling more of an art gallery.”
Special features. Custom cabinet stain (Rubio Monocoat in Midnight Indigo color). Beverage fridge. Black soapstone countertop and backsplash. Graphic wallpaper. Undermount anthracite sink with faucet in a champagne bronze finish.
Cabinets: Elan series in Riverside door style, Bertch; beverage fridge: CL181WBV, Summit Lamp
More on Houzz
Read more stories about entertaining
Browse more photos of home bars
Hire a cabinet pro
Shop for your home bar
Designers: Laura Watson and Shannon Tannehill (design consultant) of The Cleary Co.
Location: Columbus, Ohio
Homeowners’ request. “This was a historic home, so we wanted to keep the kitchen in line with the style of the home,” says designer Laura Watson, who used Houzz ideabooks to share ideas with her client. “These clients gave us creative freedom to ensure the design meshed well with other areas of the home. We did remove a powder room that was in the kitchen and relocated it to an adjoining hallway. We also made sure any trim that was added reflected the historical integrity of the home.” The home bar sits within the kitchen footprint.
Special features. Dark green cabinets (Jasper by Sherwin-Williams). Exposed brick. Quartz countertop. Metal mesh grids for texture. Walnut shelving.
Designer tip. “Metal mesh grids are an inexpensive way to elevate a space and add visual texture,” Watson says. “Great alternative to glass doors.”
Countertop: Gladstone, Cambria; wall paint: Taupe of the Morning, Sherwin-Williams
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