Bar eating space is convenient for families on the go.
An eating bar is always a favorite gathering spot in a kitchen. Throughout several decades, a breakfast far in a kitchen is still included in many house plans. The convenience of serving a quick meal near the kitchen stove is helpful before a family leaves for work or school. While few homeowners desire to give up a formal dining room, most seldom use a formal dining room. Having the option to eat and socialize around a bar area works well for most homeowners.
Instructions
1. Measure all of the space of the kitchen and dining room. Draw the area on graph paper in detail in order to define the exact location of a new eating bar. Look at options that include removing a base cabinet or opening a wall. Sketch the bar area from different perspectivies so you can envision how the bar will fit into traffic flow.
2. Take out any materials that will make room for the bar. Be sure to cut off all electricity and plumbing, however, before prying a cabinet or wall surface loose. Use a crowbar, for example, to take out wall studs between the kitchen and dining room. Check to ensure the wall is not load-bearing, however. Ask an expert carpenter to assess the wall, if you are in doubt. Build a beam to fit across the opening supported by side beams to hold up the house weight above the wall, if it is load-bearing.
3. Construct the bar base and surrounding cabinetry. Build a free-standing bar using 2-by-4-inch framing, as one option. Connect several premade cabinets to form the base of the bar as another option. Plan to install a counter top with at least 18 inches of overhang for the stools to fit underneath.
4. Install exterior materials, counter tops and wood trim on the bar space. Nail beadboard paneling into place over framing, for example, and add counter top material covered with 12-inch granite tiles, as one choice. Use crown molding around the floor perimeter to give the bar base a professional built-in look. Add wood trim on corners or around openings for interior shelving to finish the bar.
5. Repair any wall areas to make the new bar look seamless with the kitchen and dining room. Cover studs or exposed wood with drywall or plaster board. Finish with joint compound or plaster to give walls a smooth finish. Paint the walls and any bar areas and all wood trim.
6. Hook up all plumbing and electricity before installing any needed flooring. Secure any sink plumbing included in the bar, drain lines or light fixtures. Plan to add flooring last, so you can tie the kitchen and dining room together. Install tiles between the two rooms in a 4-foot width, for example, and leave existing hardwood that's in place. Add the tile to cover rough spots caused by the remodel or removing a wall.
7. Remodel the dining room and kitchen to harmonize with the bar. Install granite tiles in the dining room over an old dining table to correspond with granite tiles on the bar, for example. Add tiles on one wall of the dining room to tie in with floor tiles placed between the dining room and kitchen. Include backsplash tiles in the kitchen to match tiles in the bar area, so the two spaces seem united.
Tags: dining room, kitchen dining, kitchen dining room, granite tiles, wood trim, dining room, dining room kitchen
