In the world of interior design, few phrases have such allure as "the home bar" — provocative, vaguely illicit, full of the promise of fun. Decanters are suave, martini glasses are sophisticated, and the glinting metal of ice tongs and cocktail stirrers is exotic. No matter how many years you've been legally buying alcohol for, there will always be something mildly clandestine about a home bar.
It evokes early childhood memories of falling asleep to muffled crystal clinks and straining to hear the adult conversations downstairs; and teenage ones of furtively sneaking contraband from their liquor cabinet (how did they not notice the bottle of gin was 50% water?). I love the opportunity to bring in some nostalgic glitz when designing a home bar. You can lean into fantasy and create an area that will temporarily transport you to a more glamorous time.
Options are endless, but here are some of my favourite design tips for creating a home bar of any size. The bar cart Most of us merely dream of the luxury of a whole dedicated room, or even a corner of a room, and must make do with storing our clinking crystal in a neat cart. The carts on offer today are no consolation prize though — some are so beautiful that I would make them the focal point of the room.
My usual advice when choosing homewares is to stay cohesive with the existing style of the room, but forget that when it comes to bar carts. Have fun with it; it's fine if they're incongruous. The only restriction I'll impose.