Entertaining at home has always been in vogue, but it has only grown in recent years as more and more people host small gatherings and dinner parties. This is where a well-stocked and attractive home bar is not just a style item, but a functional space in your home for creating cocktails and conversation.

Cooking a bar at home is more than throwing a few bottles on a buffet. Interior designers and home experts say that with a little more intention, a homeowner can create a space that’s a gathering place for friends and family. Plus, with a little extra cash, you can add value to your home with a smartly designed space for drinks and gear.

“One consideration at the outset is the function of the bar. Will it be used for making old fashioneds at poker night or serving cabernets at dinner parties? The contents of the bar will depend on the intended use. Heavy use of wine, for example, will require a carafe rather than an ice bucket,” says Cameron Johnson, CEO and founder of Nickson Living, a Dallas furniture rental company.

Here are eight ways to think about adding or improving a home bar.

Consider proximity to plumbing when you want to add a wet bar to your home, says Catherine Mack, co-owner of the House Buyer Network in Cleveland. If you entertain often, you may want your home bar to include running water as well as a dishwasher. For a dry bar, a cart is always a winner, says Mack.

“For small spaces or multi-purpose rooms, a beverage cabinet or cart that you can move or fold up when not in use may be the best solution. A throwback to the 1950s, carts are often very retro, but there are design options that suit most spaces,” says Mack.

Facebook Marketplace as well as your own home are great places to buy items to include or enhance your home bar, says Kurtis Forster, sales representative for Nu-Vista Premiere Realty in London, Ontario.

“It’s a great opportunity to recycle things you might have lying around or parts that others throw away. It’s a positive thing for our environment, it can add a unique element to your new home bar and it will help you save money,” says Forster “There are so many opportunities to repurpose countertop, cabinets and other storage options that can turn your room into the bar of your choice.”

Ensuring that liquids and other materials typically found on a bar cart or home bar don’t stain the surface is a key consideration, says Grace Baena, interior designer of Kaiyo Used Sofas, a store used furniture in New York.

“I would recommend picking something with both utility and style. Natural wood options might blend in better with your decor for a living room or dining room bar cart, while a stainless steel might suit your kitchen better and be a bit more durable,” Baena says. “You can add a few accents to a cart with some fun or stylish hand towels or even a vase of flowers on the top tier.”

Bar carts aren’t just practical, they can also let your creativity run wild, says Lauren Binard, realtor at Maison Real Estate in Charleston, South Carolina. Binard, who also works in interior design, says you can upgrade a basic bar cart with a little paint and a few accessories.

“Painting it a funky color makes it an easy statement piece. Orange Hermès, anyone?” Binard says. You can swap the decor with the seasons. Go crazy! Try mini pumpkins for fall, garlands and sequins for the holidays, heart-shaped napkins and champagne flutes in February. The options are endless.

Bar carts or home bars traditionally go in dining rooms, but you can place one anywhere you like for extra storage or a pop of color. For example, Binard says a bar cart is nice to show off in a living or dining space where you’ll actually use it instead of becoming a nice dust collector in the entryway.

“While most home bars are in the kitchen, probably because of the cooler temperature and away from direct sunlight, another good spot is actually between the living room and the dining room. eat,” says Adrian Martinez, owner of Painting Contractors in San Bernardino, California. . “It’s perfect, especially for those with open-concept home designs. It makes your interior space eye-catching and entertaining. At the same time, it allows your guests to socialize in the living room instead of the kitchen.

Setting up shelves above a bar cart or bar can add not only functionality, but also plenty of space to show off your favorite collections of fine wine, whiskey, or even decorative objects. art, says Robin Burrill, CEO and principal designer of Signature Home Services in Keller, Texas.

“If you don’t need to hide your bar behind doors, you can certainly choose to show it. A nice bar nook can absolutely be the focal point of a room where you entertain,” says Burrill. “How about some open shelves serving as a bar in the part of the kitchen facing the open living room? Why not install a backsplash at the very top behind those open shelves?! You can frame your bottle collection with your favorite tile accent.

Burrill says she wishes more homeowners would consider their existing architecture as a way to repurpose something like a bookcase or a shelf in a home bar. Homeowners could take a tall, skinny recessed and reuse it, she says.

“If you have an open bookcase in the living room, for example, install a few doors at just around chest height. guests come, and lo and behold, you open the door and the party is ready to begin with a beautiful collection of bottles and all their dancing reflections.

Leslie Turner, co-founder and broker-in-charge of Maison Real Estate in Charleston, says the style of a home bar should match your personality and the upcoming season.

“Vintage glassware, pretty bottles or decanters, and fresh flowers or fruit can be mixed and matched and replaced with different seasons or holidays,” says Turner. “Keep a cool sculptural vase on the cart all year round and put out any flowers or greenery. A pretty tray nicely shelters bottles or glasses. Add an ice bucket and save space for cocktail napkins or drink garnishes.