Girls grow up dreaming about their planning their weddings, the way they'll get engaged, and such. But me? I have always dreamed of styling my very own bar cart. It was long awaited, considering I lived in a dorm and sorority house for my first two years of college, but the wait has finally come to an end! For the very first time, I have styled my bar cart. With the help of my roommates of course.
Since this was something I looked forward to so much, I had to do it right. After researching and saving countless bar cart pictures on Pinterest and Instagram, I found the perfect style for myself, and of course...for cheap! Bar carts can get wayyy too expensive and for no good reason. Here's proof you can have a gorgeous bar cart with a super affordable price.
The Cart
$30 from IKEA! How could it get any better. Online, it was out of stock, but upon looking in my local IKEA, I was able to find one. I feel as though the white has the cleanest look, but you can spray paint it to make it even more interesting. I'm thinking about spray painting the base gold and wrapping the shelves in marble contact paper. There's so many ways to personalize it.
The Bottom Shelf
The very bottom shelf should have the heaviest things: this includes spirits, any bottles, or mixes. You can also accompany the drinks with glasses that match the type of drink: for instance, margarita glasses next to margarita mix, wine glasses with wine, etc.
On our bar cart, our bottom shelf includes six mimosa glasses and a couple of drinks. We had a pink theme, so rosé and a pink lemonade from Trader Joe's was the perfect pairing. We also have grenadine for mixed drinks and two bottles of Pellegrino. These are for decoration only, so once I finish the Pellegrino, I just fill it with tap water. Similarly, the other bottles can be filled with water & food coloring.
The Middle & Top Shelf
The middle shelf is where you can get creative; put whatever you'd like here. I found this adorable glass drink dispenser at the 99 cent store for $5. We also have four Moscow mule cups to accompany it. The middle shelf is a great place for any extra glasses you might have. Try sitting them on top of stacked books for added height (which I have yet to do).
My favorite part: the top shelf! My roommates and I have been collecting little knick-knacks for quite some time, and this is what we have come up with. The straws in the mason jar were only $1 from the 99 Cent Store. The napkins are from Hallmark; perfect print for our apartment in Tucson! I love adding fresh lemons & lemons, as well as flowers for height. The "Cocktails" sign hanging above was found in the sale section of Target. Oh, and let's not forget the letter board. It's so fun to come up with things to slap on the board; our latest: "If Alex is still standing...give her more wine."
All in all, I think our bar cart turned out beautifully! It's almost October, so expect some Halloween decor to come!
Happy Decorating!
xoxo,
SKY