“Sometimes staying in really is just as fun as going out. For proof, look no further than the rising popularity of the home bar, now one of the most sought-after elements of a high-end residence. Homeowners are dedicating entire rooms, feature niches and hidden-in-plain-sight cabinets to this hosting staple. However, rather than taking cues from the sleek luxury of their counterparts in hospitality projects, home-bar designs are going full-out, putting personality on display alongside an owner’s libations of choice.”
The recent coverage in Sotheby’s highlights multiple home bar projects made by Amuneal as well as quotes by Amuneal’s CEO, Adam Kamens on trends we are seeing and scenarios we are solving in home bars today. Coverage includes the above Long Island Speakeasy project, alongside works by designer Chad Caleb Dorsey featuring Amuneal’s Colelctor’s Back Bar Shelving, The Curved Stainless Steel Bar made for a Philadelphia Penthouse designed by Jagr Projects and a Blue Gloss Lacquer Pantry with retractable doors concealing a hidden bar cabinet for an Aspen Home designed by Karen White.
Adam Kamens, CEO of custom furniture company Amuneal, which supplies many bespoke bar and speakeasy projects, notes there is “definitely an increase, not just in the number of bars we’re designing, but in the footprint dedicated to them.” Just how much square footage depends at which phase the home bar is incorporated into the overall vision. “When a bar is being added to an existing home, we’re often designing units that fit into what’s already there: on counters, floating off walls, hanging from ceilings, sometimes claiming previously underutilized or awkward spaces,” Kamens says. “But when a bar is considered early in the design process, it tends to be more personal, larger in footprint, and much more driven by the experience our client wants to create for themselves or their guests.”
“However, even a small space offers an opportunity for a design surprise. In the living room of an Aspen, Colorado home, local designer Karen White has concealed a built-in oak-and-leather bar behind floor-to-ceiling blue lacquered doors with a patinated bronze inlay. It’s a pop of color that takes the space from day to night, and a growing trend. “Concealment has become one of the more interesting design problems we get to solve,” says Kamens. “It lets the bar exist on the client’s terms, revealed only when they choose.”
