impromptu bar setup

The other night I had about 20 minutes notice that a handful of friends were stopping by after work – they were bringing pizza, we were supplying a few after dinner cocktails.  It’s times like these that I wish we had a fabulous, fully-stocked bar cart that I could just wheel into the dining room, onto the deck or into the living room on a moment’s notice, but I don’t, so instead, I turned my entryway console, which is adjacent to the dining room, into a makeshift bar. Here are a few tips that have come in handy for me when I’ve needed to set up a makeshift bar area on very little time:

1.  Keep a good liquor selection on hand.  Because we are often prone to get togethers, dinners and barbequeing by the pool at often a last minute’s notice, I always try to keep a good supply of wine, liquor and mixers on hand. Nothing – NOTHING – kills a party quicker than a sad supply of spirits!

2.  Corral bottles on a tray.  Using trays creates a clean, pulled-together look, but they also help delineate an actual bar area, and best yet, you can carry it with you to any room you are in:

3.  Add some greenery.  Whether a bunch of flowers from the grocery store or some picks from your yard (I snipped a few fatsia here), nothing brightens up a bar spot better than fresh greenery:

4.  Striped straws are a must.  Most of the grown men I know won’t usually reach for striped straws for their Jack and Coke’s, but I always include them on my bar tray anyway as much for the touch of whimsy as for practicality sake (you can use them to stir drinks, too!)

5.  Add a touch of whimsy.  I had some empty space to fill on my console, so I added a book of fun toasts and one of 101 margarita recipes, along with a small piece of coral.  Just because it’s got to be practical doesn’t mean it can’t be fun.  I like to mix it up, adding one of our fun bottle openers or my Drunken Sailor coasters.

I was pretty happy with the results, especially on such short notice!

What are your favorite bar setup must-haves?

Hope you have a wonderful weekend!