Few recreational activities in our lives are more popular than asking your loved ones over for a meetup.
The idea of having your friends and family come to your house for a timely reunion, do a barbecue together and perhaps crack a few cold ones in the meantime has long been a staple of modern culture and societies around the world at large.
But sometimes, it just isn’t possible. Perhaps you have small children sleeping at home, maybe your living room is undergoing renovation, or your partner simply doesn’t want guests at the moment. Whatever the reason, the effect is the same – no visitors allowed. Normally, that would be the end of it. But if you have time, money, and an unused garage, there is a solution. Why not transform your garage from an abandoned parking space full of old furniture and dirt into your own DIY bar?
Below, you’ll find a list of steps you can follow to remake your garage into a perfect meeting space that your loved ones of all ages can enjoy when they come over. It includes creating a plan, cleaning out the entire area, painting it in your favorite colours, adding all the bar equipment you might need, and installing RGB illumination. Follow the advice below and learn how to create a perfect DIY bar out of your abandoned garage!
Step 1: Plan Your DIY Garage Bar
Fortunately, you don’t have to learn how to create a coffee shop business plan to turn your garage into a similar space. It would be enough to start by planning the layout of your DIY bar to ensure it will be a successful conversion. As with any construction or renovation project, planning is key to keeping costs low and avoiding any potential pitfalls.
Before you begin, you should think about the number of guests you plan on having at once, as well as the guests’ ages. To illustrate the point, if your typical guests are nearing retirement age, a dedicated chess table will be a good choice – not so if your main visitors are young couples with kids.
That said, it is also essential to consider the type of events you plan on hosting in your new DIY bar. If your friends are coming over to watch the big game, you might want to add a large TV set, a couple of speakers, and perhaps a coffee machine to the plan. If you plan on hosting more intimate gatherings like book clubs or poker evenings, you might want to go for a smaller setup that doesn’t require too much space in your garage.
Once you have a clear idea about the kind of party you want to host in your DIY bar, it’s time to decide how much space you actually need. Most of us don’t have access to large empty spaces that could be easily converted into a bar. But don’t worry! You can always use the vertical space in your garage for storage by adding shelves and cabinets full of wine and liquor bottles, as well as a few decorative items such as books and other knick-knacks that might make things look better.
Step 2: Clear Out the Entire Space
Whenever you redecorate your house, it’s always a good idea to remove all the clutter, such as old furniture, unused sports equipment, and other unwanted items that you no longer need. However, it’s even more important in this case, as you want to make sure that your DIY bar will be a neat and welcoming space. After all, if you have a lot of useless stuff lying around in your garage, you won’t have any place to put the essentials, such as decorative or recreational equipment.
Secondly, after decluttering your garage and throwing away a lot of unused furniture and other items, it’s important to clean the entire space out. Once your garage is free from old stuff, you should give it a thorough wash – to remove as much dust and debris as possible, make sure to clean not only the shelves and floors but also the walls of your garage.
Step 3: Paint the Garage in Your Favorite Colours
Once you’re done cleaning out the garage and removing all unnecessary items, it’s time to paint the entire space. This might be a little more difficult than you initially thought. Because you want the colours to be perfect, you should take your time here and decide on your favorite colour combination – an online colour generator can be a handy tool in finding your ideal colour palette.
Take a look at some paint samples and consider how you want your DIY bar to look. The colours and decorations in your new space will affect the overall atmosphere there, as well as the moods of your guests. If you want to create a friendly, cozy atmosphere for your book club, you might want to go for a warm colour scheme with yellow and orange accents. If you want a more festive look for the evening cocktails, dark blue or a vivid red might be the way forward.
Step 4: Install Bar Equipment
The most crucial thing in any bar is the equipment related to it. Once you have picked your favorite colour scheme, you should think about installing a few other practical items that make your DIY bar complete.
One such item is a sink that can come in handy for many things, from pouring drinks to washing dirty cups and utensils. Likewise, adding a refrigerator will ensure that any perishable food items or drink ingredients prepared beforehand don’t go bad. You may also consider investing in a portable generator to keep your bar running even during a power outage – here are the top 9 RV-ready generators on the market today, as they are powerful and reliable to serve you in all circumstances.
Now, it’s time to start installing the bar appliances. Start by placing a few shelves and cabinets at the far end of your garage. For a smaller space, these might be enough. However, if you want to host larger gatherings, you might have to install a small bar in the center of the room, one that’s capable of serving a few guests at a time.
Once the essentials are in, it’s time to place some recreational appliances of your choice. Remember the planning part, but beyond that, feel free to go wild with your selection!
Step 5: Add RGB Illumination
As you’re probably aware, the colour scheme you picked for your DIY bar will have a big impact on the mood of your guests. To make sure that things look perfect, you should consider adding RGB illumination. RGB is short for Red/Green/Blue and refers to the three colours that, when combined, create all other colours. RGB illumination is used in many different scenarios, from backlit keyboards to LED lights.
Installing some RGB LED lights into your DIY bar will ensure that your space looks even greater. Additionally, if you add a few dimmer switches to the mix, you will be able to change the lighting whenever you please and create a more festive atmosphere for your guests.
Conclusion
As you can see, creating a DIY bar in your garage is not too difficult. All you need is a little time, some money, and the right equipment. In fact, you can easily do it by following the advice above. Once you finish your DIY bar, you’ll have the perfect place to host all kinds of events for your friends and family.
And while you’re at it, you can also use your DIY bar for various other activities, from storage to relaxation. Either way, you’re sure to have a good time! Good luck!
