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Once upon a time, bar counters were used only for their intended purpose: to sit down and have a drink in a drinking establishment. Somehow they migrated to the kitchen, and took root there. The detail turned out to be very convenient, especially since it has undergone noticeable changes and the modern bar counter for the kitchen has a diverse design. Its variants can be very different in design and style, and their functional purpose can also be different.
Purpose and types
If the area of the kitchen allows, the bar counter in the kitchen is set for its intended purpose: sit down for a cup of coffee or something stronger, something to eat. Then her “equipment” is appropriate: holders for glasses, wine glasses, glasses, a shelf / holders for juices, bottles, etc. nearby. They put it resting with one edge on the wall or the edge of the kitchen set, sometimes they are placed in the form of a skeleton – in the middle of the free zone.
In small kitchens, it is often multifunctional. It can also be used as a divider into zones – a dining room and a kitchen, in very small areas it is often used as a dining table. Moreover, it can be located outside the box – against the wall.
In medium-sized kitchens – 10-12 meters – it is often made in the form of a peninsula – a small ledge on the side. In order to make more rational use of space, the place under the table top is occupied by shelves or a cabinet. This design is very simple – the countertop of the bar often relies on several pieces of straight or inclined pipes fixed on the cabinet table.
Such multi-stage kitchens have recently become popular: it is more convenient to perform various operations in the kitchen on surfaces with different heights.
But, nevertheless, more often a bar counter for the kitchen is present in studio apartments to distinguish between two zones: the kitchen from the living room or from the hallway – who has what is combined. Moreover, it is often a continuation of the desktop-island or peninsula.
They do it in the form of a partition. In this case, the base is most often made of drywall, and the surface is “attached” to it – from above or from the side.
In general, there are many options, variations and different types. Adapt the idea that you like to your conditions, and you can begin to implement.
Dimensions and dimensions
There are no strict rules in this regard. There are some recommendations that are violated in about half of the cases. Recommendations apply only to the height and width of the countertop:
- It is customary to make a bar counter in height of 1,1-1,2 meters. Then special high chairs are placed near it.
- In width – at least – 30 cm, optimally 50-60 cm. You should not do less than 30 cm: even a small plate already on such a tabletop will be in danger. And it’s just uncomfortable: neither put your elbows, nor lean on properly.
The length, shape, number and shape of the legs are all up to you. Speaking of legs. The traditional racks that were in drinking establishments are a countertop on a pedestal. But for the kitchen, for some reason, a countertop on one pipe from floor to ceiling is considered a “classic”.
By the way, in this form it is almost never used. More functional analogues with cabinets and cabinets prevail.
Bar counter for the kitchen: stages, manufacturing methods, photo reports
The easiest option to perform is precisely the classic one: a tabletop attached to a wall or furniture with one edge, and resting on a pipe with the other. With a tabletop there are options:
- Make from a wide board, preferably not coniferous – their wood is too soft.
- Order from the same company that made the kitchen set. If you bought a ready-made one, you will have to look for similar material from the photo or carry a small spare part with you around the workshops to demonstrate what you need.
- Make it out of thick plywood, then decorate it with something – stick plastic, tiles, mosaics.
Everything else is better to choose in a store selling furniture fittings. The choice is very wide, and the range of prices is generally amazing. For example, a pipe of the same diameter can cost three times more. But such a difference is not without reason. With cheap Chinese pipes / nets / baskets, chrome plating begins to flake after a while. German fittings have a very high price tag, but a lifetime warranty, the Poles are in the middle both in price and quality. The choice is yours.
In the photo above – a homemade bar counter, which was made from a thick board. It rests on one side on a shelf attached to the wall (also made of inch boards). The second support is a traditional pipe. A hole of suitable diameter is drilled under the pipe in the body of the countertop. Under the countertop on the pipe, a nozzle-stop “fixing ring” is installed, the hole is closed from above with a decorative ring. There is also a “thrust” or universal fastening of the pipe to the floor and ceiling, as well as various holders and shelves for it.
If the tabletop is attached directly to the wall, corners are usually used for these purposes. You can take reinforced, and choose the color based on the finish. But this type of fastener is installed so that it is not visible – stepping back a few centimeters from the edge. You can put several small corners, or one solid.
If you decide to make a bar in the kitchen along the wall, you can use decorative brackets for the shelves. Their bearing capacity should be enough for the countertop, especially since you can put several pieces. An example of assembling a bar counter of a simple design with a pipe in the photo below.
Photo report No. 1: a homemade countertop and pipe rack
The tabletop was cut out of a window sill (massif), the edge was rounded, sanded, toned and varnished. Spare parts – a bar leg, brackets and a fixture to the floor – were bought in the furniture fittings department.
We fasten the emphasis to the tabletop, to the edge – the corners. Everything sits on self-tapping screws with a flat cap. The job takes 7 minutes.
Having attached the assembled rack to the wall, we mark on the wall the places where it is necessary to install the dowels. We circle the pipe on the floor with a marker: we will set the thrust bearing at this mark. According to the marks, we mount the stop for the rack, put the dowels in the wall.
We put the rack in place, fasten it with screws. All. Ready.
Bar counters with shelves
If you don’t like the design with a pipe, you can do without it, but you will have to remove the upper part, which is located under the ceiling. Instead of a leg, for example, you can make the same shelf as near the wall. The view will immediately become more dynamic and modern.
And in general, the entire structure can be assembled from wide boards, joining them at right angles. Looking at the photo below, you will understand what I mean.
In modern interiors, broken lines generally fit better. If the kitchen is in the style of minimalism or high-tech, then it’s hard to fit the classics there, but something consisting of broken lines will look very good (a few sketches in the picture below).
A slightly more traditional version is shown in the photo. That doesn’t make it any less interesting. A non-standard approach, even in small doses, significantly changes perception.
Bar counter on the base
All this we considered options without reason. But the tabletop can be attached to some cabinet. If the countertop is located exactly above the table surface, we take a pipe and standard fasteners to horizontal surfaces. If, as in this case, the surface of the bar counter is displaced, there is a special inclined fastener.
The cabinet can be made independently. Actually, the main thing is to assemble the frame. It can be sheathed with furniture plywood or some other finishing material – it depends on the style of your kitchen. The frame can be made of wooden (dry) slats, or you can also weld a metal corner.
As an option – to assemble from drywall profiles, sheathe them or GVL. Another option is to lay a brick base. But this, if the bearing capacity of the floor allows.
With a drywall base: photo report No. 2
Often choose a drywall base device. The material is inexpensive, the technology has been tested, the mechanics are familiar, the result is at least good. In the order of work, no news: we assemble the frame. In this case, wooden bars were used, but it is also possible with the use of profiles.
The main thing is to observe the verticality and horizontality of the planes, put the racks exactly at 90 °. Everything is checked by a good building level, it is better to track verticality with a plumb line: it has no error. When the frame is assembled, it is sheathed on both sides with drywall or GVL.
We putty marks from self-tapping screws, corners and joints. Further, it depends on the type of finish chosen: some require puttying (water-based painting), others do not. In our case, textured paint was chosen, it is applied in a thick layer, and you can – directly on drywall.
It remains to install a countertop on the bar counter. Choose which one goes best with the rest of the furniture in your kitchen.
Photo report No. 3: Bar counter with a sink
This was the first experience in creating furniture (and in general something worthwhile) with their own hands, as a result, some design flaws were made. Not the most successful design turned out, although they do not argue about tastes.
Starting materials:
- cheap countertops bought on sale;
- remnants of a cabinet made of laminated chipboard;
- bars;
- a couple of purchased doors;
- plumbing filling: sink, siphon, mixer and required pipes, hoses, fittings.
Installation and replacement of the faucet in the kitchen is described here.
Tabletops are laid out face down on the floor. They are connected in the form of the letter “G” with the help of glue, which smeared the ends and a steel strip with perforation, into which the screws are screwed. The strip, of course, is fixed from below.
The sidewalls were supposed to be ennobled (presumably with a laminate), therefore the remnants available in the household were used – an old door and a piece of a cabinet. They are screwed with corners, aligned with the edge of the tabletops. And this is the first mistake. And visually, such a cabinet looks heavy, and sitting is uncomfortable. The sidewalls must be moved from the edge by at least 10 cm.
After the sidewalls were installed, the cabinet was turned over and placed in a permanent place. All other work was carried out on site. A hole for the sink was cut out, the plumbing part was installed and connected.
Laths are nailed along the floor – along the walls and slightly stepping back from the outer edge (5 cm indented, 10 can be more convenient), shelves are made. The cabinet on the side of the sink is closed with a door, the shelves on the left remain open. The space is partially finished with wooden planks.
At first, they thought to put several different “bells and whistles” on the pipe, but semicircular edges remained from the countertops. It was decided to use them on the pipe. Panels for decorating balconies (purchased in Leroy) were used as the exterior finish of the pedestal. They almost approached in size, and the remaining gaps were closed with a twisted cord. As a result, a homemade bar counter with a sink cabinet looks like in the photo below.
There are also some comments on finishing. First, the cord will soon be saturated with various liquids, will have a pale appearance and a strong “aroma”. To delay the appearance of the smell, it can be covered with something, even with the same PVA glue. The second is that the countertops are simply docked. Water will get into the gap, various small debris will fill up. Even at the stage of “docking” the edges must be smeared with a sealant (transparent, silicone, not acrylic). It is also possible and necessary to process the edges of the cutout for the sink. Then the countertop will not swell. The joints of the tabletops can be trimmed with furniture overlays, they can also be used instead of a cord. Another budget option is plastic corners and the same T-shaped strips.
Bar counter for the kitchen on the remains of the wall
If the kitchen is combined with a balcony, a piece of the wall remains. The place where the window used to be. If there is no desire to destroy it, you can make a bar counter.
There are two options:
- At the height that is, put the countertop. This will be another work surface or shelf. Above it, on pipes at a height of already about 1,1-1,2 m, fix another plane, which will actually be a bar counter.
- Report / grow the wall to the desired height and place the countertop.
Both options are not bad, but the one on the right in the photo is more practical: two surfaces in the kitchen are always better than one. Please note that the dimensions of the tabletop are larger than the width of the “legs”. This is no coincidence: this way you can sit more or less comfortably without turning sideways.
And if you are not too lazy to remove this wall, you can do something more convenient – so that you can put your feet up. An example is in the photo.
Photo design ideas
Related Videos
If you want to put a bar counter in an open summer kitchen, you can borrow the idea in this video. The guy built an interesting rack from snags and a thick board found in the forest.
Most often, questions arise about how to make a countertop for a bar counter. You can decorate it with a mosaic. And how – see the video. In general, the mosaic laying technology is simple: on a special white glue, followed by grouting between the tiles. It is difficult to form an uneven edge. Here’s how to do it – watch the video.
Tabletop glued from bars