Expansive Contemporary Home Bar Ideas and Designs

The major objective of this home was to craft something entirely unique; based on our client’s international travels, and tailored to their ideal lifestyle. Every detail, selection and method was individual to this project. The design included personal touches like a dog shower for their Great Dane, a bar downstairs to entertain, and a TV tucked away in the den instead of on display in the living room. Great design doesn’t just happen. It’s a product of work, thought and exploration. For our clients, they looked to hotels they love in New York and Croatia, Danish design, and buildings that are architecturally artistic and ideal for displaying art. Our part was to take these ideas and actually build them. Every door knob, hinge, material, color, etc. was meticulously researched and crafted. Most of the selections are custom built either by us, or by hired craftsman.

K2 Ranch

Studio 133

David O. Marlow
This is an example of an expansive contemporary breakfast bar in Denver with a submerged sink, shaker cabinets, dark wood cabinets, quartz worktops, brown splashback, wood splashback, dark hardwood flooring and brown floors.

Contemporary Bar & Display

Lustig Custom Cabinets

Maple cabinetry in a dark stain with shaker style doors, granite tops & white stacked stone back splash. Double beverage coolers, wine storage, margarita machine lifter & pull out storage. Portraits by Mandi

Wandbündige Schiebetüre, elektrisch öffnend

moessmer doors

L`invisibile
Photo of an expansive contemporary single-wall breakfast bar in Munich with white cabinets, glass worktops, mirror splashback, concrete flooring and grey floors.

Villa Oceano Azul

Marc-Michaels Interior Design

Ed Butera
This is an example of an expansive contemporary home bar in Miami with carpet.

San Francisco Forest Hill Remodel

SoYoung Mack Design, Assoc. AIA

Contemporary Media Room Bar/Wine Cellar featuring antique bottles. Paul Dyer Photography
Expansive contemporary single-wall wet bar in San Francisco with flat-panel cabinets, grey cabinets, composite countertops, brown splashback and concrete flooring.

Custom Design - Bar - New American Home 2015

Blue Heron

Expansive contemporary u-shaped wet bar in Las Vegas with granite worktops, dark hardwood flooring and brown floors.

Modern Bar

Angela Wells Interior Design

Trent Teigen
Photo of an expansive contemporary u-shaped breakfast bar in Los Angeles with granite worktops, porcelain flooring and beige floors.

Private Residence Beverly Hills

Delta Light

This is an example of an expansive contemporary home bar in Los Angeles.

Village at Mountain Shadows- Cholla Home

Cullum Homes

Design ideas for an expansive contemporary home bar in Phoenix with dark hardwood flooring.

Stone Canyon

Kym Rodger Design

Inspiration for an expansive contemporary u-shaped breakfast bar in Los Angeles with open cabinets, mirror splashback, dark hardwood flooring, brown floors, beige cabinets and granite worktops.

NEIGHNOURHOODS 2

CW Interiors cc

Custom design and built home bar
Design ideas for an expansive contemporary single-wall wet bar in Other with an integrated sink, beaded cabinets, dark wood cabinets, engineered stone countertops, white splashback, stone slab splashback, porcelain flooring, white floors, white worktops and feature lighting.

State of the Art Home Cinema with 250" Curved Screen in Basement

The Pleasure Home

Expansive contemporary home bar in Hertfordshire with dark hardwood flooring.

Natural Retreat

Knight Architects LLC

Butler's pantry with lighted cabinet for glasses, Subzero undercounter beverage refrigerator, custom cabinets and Ceasarstone countertop is perfect for mixing cocktails and its located directly off of the kitchen. Tom Grimes Photography

Coastal Contemporary

Studio 6 Architects

Design ideas for an expansive contemporary u-shaped breakfast bar in Orange County with dark wood cabinets, glass worktops, shaker cabinets, brown splashback, wood splashback, ceramic flooring and beige floors.

Contemporary Bar & Display

Lustig Custom Cabinets

Niche wall with lighting & contrasting wood shelving. Portraits by Mandi
Inspiration for an expansive contemporary single-wall wet bar in Chicago with a submerged sink, shaker cabinets, dark wood cabinets, granite worktops, white splashback, stone tiled splashback and light hardwood flooring.

Decora Hospital Lottery Home - Saskatoon

Durabuilt Windows & Doors Inc.

Home Bar on the main floor - gorgeous ceiling lights with lots of light brightening the room. They have followed a Great Gatsby Theme in this room. Saskatoon Hospital Lottery Home Built by Decora Homes Windows and Doors by Durabuilt Windows and Doors Photography by D&M Images Photography

The Ultimate Smart Home

Smart Homes Innovations, Inc.

Expansive contemporary u-shaped breakfast bar in Los Angeles with a submerged sink, flat-panel cabinets, grey cabinets, onyx worktops, grey splashback, glass sheet splashback, concrete flooring, grey floors and black worktops.

Orchard Avenue - Napa

Westwind Construction

Pool House www.jacobelliott.com
Design ideas for an expansive contemporary breakfast bar in San Francisco with a submerged sink, flat-panel cabinets, white cabinets, grey floors, grey worktops, granite worktops, grey splashback and concrete flooring.

Project Photos

Digitech Custom Audio & Video

Don’t miss a beat while refilling your drink! This awesome Bar Area has an incredible Sony 65” 4K Television and a pair of awesome B&W speakers flush mounted in the ceiling. So you don’t have to worry about the “big play” that you might miss while you get something at the Bar.

Expansive Contemporary Home Bar Ideas and Designs

A home bar is one of the ultimate indulgences for a homeowner. By no means essential but all the more satisfying for that very reason. Whether your home bar ideas would be having the boys round to watch the big match in a pub-style atmosphere on a Saturday afternoon, ‘going uptown’ to sip an espresso martini in your home cocktail bar in the loft, or hoping to recreate the vibe of an intimate speakeasy in your basement, a contemporary style home bar is a treat that’s guaranteed to lift your spirits. A place where you are always guaranteed a seat.

How big should my contemporary home bar be?

The ideal style of your contemporary home bar will depend on your lifestyle and entertaining habits as well as the amount of available space. If big groups come round regularly then you should consider dedicating a part of your living room or basement to a larger seating area – complete with a bar table, bar stools and wet bar section – to keep everyone suitably comfortable and merry. If TV is essential, check if there is a wall nearby that’s a big enough to mount it on without restricting anyone’s view. A key feature of home bar ideas is the storage – gleaming wine racks and low-lit glass shelves. Make sure you can afford these little delights after you have built the basic structure. Alternatively, if space is limited, a freestanding contemporary home cocktail bar would give you somewhere to prepare cocktails that is out of the way – in the corner of your dining room or under the stairwell for instance. Also, mirrored surfaces can help to create the illusion of space. Sketch the layout of the room in which you would like to place the bar and think about where all those bottles, cans and snacks are going to go. Then speak to either a home bar specialist about your home bar ideas, or to a joiner about adapting a vintage bookcase or creating something bespoke.

What style of home bar should I choose?

Try to play off the interior decor of the surrounding area. A kitsch Manhattan-inspired home cocktail bar will look out of place in a country cottage, for example. Similarly, a long white walnut home bar would jar against a bright red contemporary kitchen. That said, contrast might be something that you accentuate, not least through the choice of flooring, which would help to make your home bar stand out. Collect contemporary home bar ideas in an Ideabook, settle upon a theme and then discuss the design with your home bar specialist or joiner. Lighting sets the mood in bars, particularly late at night, so pay special attention to placement, intensity and how you want your guests to feel. Dim underbar lighting creates a warm, intimate atmosphere, while spotlights brighten and energise.

Which contemporary home bar accessories and facilities should I include?

This really does depend on how far you are willing to go. A home bar can replicate almost everything you see in your local, from running water and refrigerated wine cabinets to draught beer pumps and bespoke lighting and a sound systems. Again, the most important thing is to work with what’s there – available space and home decor. Is that black lizard effect leather flooring really going to go? How about the turquoise splashback? Do those flowers look out of place or will they help to soften up what’s fast becoming a man cave? There are several ways to make a home bar more visually interesting without spending big on fixtures and fittings. Select contemporary furniture that’s comfortable but also sparks interest, such as salvaged chairs or a second-hand leather sofa. Add a touch of glitz and glamour through your choice of glassware, drinks trolley, ice bucket, shaker and spirit bottles if you want the home cocktail bar look. Then scatter a few curios around the bar – contemporary ornaments, lamps, artwork, photos and travel mementos are great contemporary home bar ideas to get the conversation started.

United Kingdom

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