Simple Holiday Home Bar

If your plan is to dazzle guests with holiday décor and your bar or bar cart is one of those areas you wish to dazzle with, you might want to move on.  This is all about a simple holiday home bar constructed to take you from Thanksgiving to New Years.  And most importantly, to encourage guests to help themselves so you’re not stuck playing bartender.

We are fortunate to have a bar area in our home with a beverage fridge and plenty of cupboard space for glasses and bottles.  Having that bar space keeps the drinks out of the kitchen and guests circulating through the house.

A few festive touches that don’t scream one holiday or another means minimal attention to this area except for restocking before guests arrive.  It also means that spur-of-the-moment or last-minute get-togethers are welcome here.

Hard to believe it’s been two years ago, but in December of 2019 I ordered fairy string lights from Amazon and they are still going strong.  They are easy to wind into anything and make everything just a little more magical.

Here is my strategy for a simple holiday home bar:

Water

Yep, getting a hydration station set up is pretty important.  For those who might want to temper their alcohol intake or just need some water, I like to have something bubbly and some citrus available.

And then, I make something tasty. 

Cranberry Mint Water

A few leaves from a live mint plant into a liter of water chilled in the refrigerator for 4-5 hours infuses just enough flavor for a refreshing taste.  The cranberries add no flavor but are so pretty on top. 

Infused water often shows up when I entertain!

Soft Drinks

Whether for mixers or for those who want to satisfy their sweet tooth, we keep Coke and ginger ale on hand. 

Except when somebody drinks it all.  He’s been better about replacing it before it’s completely gone. 

Here’s something I love about Coke.  When a delivery person goes out of their way or someone working on our house seems hot and tired, offering up a Coke lights up faces. 

You know it’s not the caffeine, but just the offer.  I love handing a Coke to a stranger in my home.  Makes me smile.

Wine and Champagne

November brings sale prices on my favorite wines and champagne so we stock up in order to serve some “good” stuff over the holidays.  It would be nice if it lasted through the year, but it somehow disappears pretty quickly.

We’ve found that most of our friends no longer drink much beer, but we always have that on hand in the beverage fridge.

Sweet and Savory Snacks

Real appetizers and desserts belong in the kitchen, but a few nuts or pretzels and then something sweet are nice to have on the bar.

Martinis are not my thing, but I love sexy martini glasses.  Probably from all those old movies where the cool people sipped from distinctive “V” shaped glasses while wearing fantastic outfits and listening to live music.

So using packaged peppermint bark broken up and placed in a martini glass and placed next to the new gingerbread house looks so cute.

The adorable napkins were an Ikea find.  Isn’t it strange how Ikea stuff seems so unique even though it’s mass produced and available to most of the world?  Things that make me go, “Hmmm.”

Glasses

I have an assortment of beautiful glasses, many of which have been gifts. Putting them out and using them makes me feel so good.

DF Andrea sent me these made in Estes Park, Colorado.  So many good memories of our time in Colorado. And aren’t they gorgeous?  I’ll be using these for more than just the bar, but they get an honorable spot for the holidays.

Praying this week that your holidays start off on a wonderful note – whatever that looks like to you and yours. God bless you.