The best home bars are more than a place to store your bottles and glassware, they can be a design-led focus point in the living room or dining room. At the same time, a home bar needs ample room for storage and a good surface for making drinks. We caught a glimpse of Goldie Hawn's in the back of a recent Instagram post. It encapsulates everything a home bar should be.
Rather than a traditional built-in home bar, Goldie Hawn's drinks space is a two-layered console. The bottom row holds wine bottles and drinks – conequently mixing materials. The top shelf has a tray full of glassware and ample room to mix something delicious. Its rustic style interacts seamlessly with her hardwood floors, floral rug, and glass table.
She's not alone. Styling a console table as a home bar is a designer-approved way to upgrade your at-home bartending. Cory Alisa Ferris, San Francisco-based principal designer, states: 'An open, two-tiered console is a sophisticated alternative to a standard bar or bar cart. Goldie Hawn’s French-style sideboard is elegant and provides appropriate surface area and storage. An elongated top offers enough space to prepare and serve, with plenty of room for standby glasses or fresh flowers. The shelf below displays her collection of barware, a shimmering collection of metallics and glass.'
Best yet, it creates plenty of room for dining room storage. Ferris continues, 'Two sets of shallow drawers below each surface deliver a hideaway for bar tools and napkins. This piece is especially handy as it has a closed cabinet at each end which can stow away larger bar items or tablecloths.'
Beyond functionality for storage, Hawn's small home bar idea makes your home a more pleasant place to spend time. Nitya Seth, Design Head at Niyanmya, states: 'An open-home bar connects living and entertainment spaces and allows a sense of fluidity in-home use. With the help of such a design, social flow works well because the bar is placed in the center of the room, where people can walk up at any time. It also physically extends the space by making a small room appear larger.'
In a design like Hawn's, glassware becomes more than glassware. Seth states: 'This design works to give the space a decorative function. There is clear glass and shiny barware give the room a classy feel and look. Also, it makes those items easy to use, and increases use since they are placed within easy reach when hosting guests.'
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If you want to recreate the look in your own home, focus on your house's needs. Ferris recommends: 'To emulate this look at home, search for a piece that offers appropriate functionality to mix and serve and pairs well with the surrounding design aesthetic. Goldie’s additional furnishings in this space are also French-inspired, so the console blends well with the tone of the room. I would suggest including a serving tray, especially if the top isn’t slab or glass, similarly to the marble and brass piece seen here.'
When the items in your home sit at the intersection of functionality in style, it's hard to go wrong.
