Styling A Sexy Bar Cart

Happy Monday!

Today I wanted to switch gears and do a little post on styling bar carts.

A little fact about me is that I use bar carts in most every single space I design, and then I kind of leave them there for my client to add on to for their choosing and needs.

Sadly, when I go back to my client's houses I often see these sad little bar carts in exactly the same shape I left them in. Not sexy and styled up as a bar cart should be. This is something that I can actually relate to since I left my sad little bar cart near naked and abandoned since probably Christmas. It is time to change that, and to make all the bar carts, trays and stands out there the sexy little beasts they should be since they are the life of the party after all;)

Bar Cart Basics:

Here are some ideas for items that take your own cart and cart tending abilities up a notch, at least style wise.

Cart:

I started with an adorable little cart that I just happened to find at Target for only $130!!! I'll be honest it wasn't exactly what I was looking for but it had nice bones and for that price there was no way I wasn't taking this cart home since I had a party that night. But I never did REALLY love her. She was just a bit too rustic for me.

 Bar carts range in price and can get really expensive!! Since my little gem isn't currently available here are some other contenders on the market right now in a varied price ranges.

Crate and Barrel Libations Bar Cart $599

 

 

Z Gallery Metropolitan Bar Cart $299.95

 

 

 

West Elm Foxed Mirror Bar Cart $399

 

 

CB2 Ernest Chrome Bar Cart $179

 

This is usually the easiest part isn't it? Now let's add some layers to the cart and really take things up a notch...or two.

 

Here is my cart as she sits all pretty and dressed up just waiting for the next occasion, and now that she's all glammed up I LOVE her and I am so happy that I didn't pass this one up.

 

 

 

 

Here are the bar cart basics:

Trays:

 

 

I'm all about trays EVERYWHERE, but specifically on the bar cat they are a great way to keep things organized. In my case they also added some much needed shine and polish to my other wise a bit too rustic cart (for my taste).

 

Bar Tools, Containers And Gadgets:

 

Get some bar tools and display them proudly. As you can see I placed mine in a pink Keep Calm And Carry On Tea Tin. You can find these bar tools such as jiggers, cocktail stirrers, bottle openers and strainers sold in sets at most places that sell home goods and bar ware. 

 

Here is a Stainless Steel Bar Tools Set from Williams Sonoma for $89.95.

 

 

 

Get yourself a decorative bowel. I have been putting my wine corks in the little DIY Ikat Bowl that I made a long time ago which I can later use as place settings for dinner parties. Little decorative bowels are a great way to add style to your bar, and are easily converted in to a lemon and lime containers when entertaining.

 

I am loving these adorable Ikat printed bowls from West Elm for only $8.

 

 

 

Get yourself some napkins. I put these pink napkins out for staging, but I really HATE my napkin holder. I'm on the hunt for a Lucite napkin holder, and I play with napkins. There are too many funny ones out there to not get a laugh out of them.

 

I am in LOVE with these paper napkins from Z Gallery for only $5.95 that say "After Monday and Tuesday the calendar says W.T.F" How fun would that be on a Friday cocktail hour?!

 

 



 

Get yourself an ice bucket AND a martini shaker. I am on the hunt for a gold ice bucket since I didn't buy "The One" at Christmas time and have now convinced myself that I cannot live without it. An ice bucket or champagne bucket both serve essentially the same purpose where space is limited, but are great for keeping things cold, and keeping ice readily available for guests.

 

I'm LOVING this gold rimmed and chrome ice bucket sold at Wayfair made by Krafteware.

 

 

 

Get yourself a liquor decanter. I have seen some amazing modern ones out there, but I prefer the vintage crystal that weigh a hundred pounds and mine is the real deal. They are just so classic and are a bit of an ode to the bar carts that my grandparents had.

 

I'm loving these Glass Bottles With Wood Stoppers from West Elm from $19-$39.

 

 

 

Get yourself some liquor. Truth be told I'm a pretty solid red wine gal, but I keep the basics on hand at all times for when we go out or for impromptu guests. My main friends are The Goose (Grey Goose), Good Ol Jack (Jack Daniel's), Johnnie (as in Johnnie Walker Black label) and my personal bestie Patron Silver (as in it will bite you in the ass but make for a whole lotta fun, Patron on ice). We really only drink The Patron, but we keep the bar stocked with the other friends for guests. I stock more when we have large parties and need a real bar. This is why bar carts are personal, you stock it the way you like. So you're not a drinker? No problem, stock it with bottled sparking water and books. Get creative!

 

Now for the top of my bar cart, let's take a closer look.

Traditionally for the top of the cart you will see many pretty glasses which I do for company just not for everyday. I don't need glasses sitting there. Instead, here's what I did.

Get yourself some pretty paper straws!

I added pink, silver and gold straws. You can find them at your local craft stores since they are commonly used for cake pops, but I found Etsy.com to have a huge selection of them. The problem for me is that they are so cute I don't want to really use them. Is there such thing as "show straws" like there is for "show towels"? I'm just asking.

I found these paper straws on Etsy.com 100 for only $7.00 in any color under the sun.

Get yourself some decorative storage boxes, and fill them with your everyday tools. I have a plastic wine opener from Italy that is nothing special in the looks department but it is my go to wine opener and has a built in foil cutter. I keep a little lighter in there for candle, and I also have my wine charms in there. Point being it looks pretty AND has a function.

I found this beauty at Home Goods, but I am drooling over this Pink Box With Himalayan Crystal decorative box from One Kings Lane for $99.00. If you want it hurry because it's only available until 5/3!

 

 

Get yourself a pretty hand towel if your cart has a handle!! I found mine at Home Goods, you can find yours just about anywhere to add that extra touch.

 

I'm digging the bohemian vibe of these West Elm Hammam Stripe Hand Towels for only $10.00

 

 

Bottom line here is to have fun and make your bar cart YOU. I've seen art, books, candles, boxes and anything else that you can think of styled on bar carts. For me since I often tire of the same thing day in and day out I see my $130 Target gem being something that I will absolutely enjoy for years to come.

 

If this inspires you to take your own bar cart up a level in style don't forget to email me and share your pictures! I'd love to see what you come up with.

 

 

Weekend Update: Paint Your Window Frames With Spray Paint!

Happy Friday!

Did you know that you can actually spray paint your window frames on the outside OR inside of your house?

This is a little too good to be true for me since we did a garage addition with new hurricane proof windows and bronze window panels, but haven't quite mustered up to replacing the rest of our windows. The result makes our nicely done addition look a little bit "off", and since it's a garage addition the last thing we wanted is for it to look any more "off" than it has to.

Let's take a look down memory lane with our house's transition from before until now and then I'll give you a quick and easy "How To" so that you can take this extended weekend and put some love on your very own update.

Here was our home when we started this journey.

 

There she was in all her yellow madness with her decorative trim, white garage and white windows. She had a pond/fountain just nice enough to serve as a frog mating pool, she had a teeny tiny drive way with a ton of useless grass, and she had a whole lot of fugly going on.

 

 



So things had to transition. Walls went up, block went in, concrete was poured and she lost her white garage, green grass and teeny tiny drive way....and gained a new master en-suite.

 

 

She was looking really nice and clean and modern even though the landscaping could be beefed up a bit. The only thing in this moment that really has always bothered me are the new window frames vs. the old white window frames (eye sore and a half!) Right now we don't have the budget to replace the rest of the windows so paint will have to do.

 

Off to Home Depot I went to find the best solution. I was told that this is the way to go.

 

 

 

Yup, this is spray paint my friends! It is Rust-Oleum Oil Rubbed Bronze Metallic Spray Paint which paints wood  and plastic, and yes metal!

 

Are you ready for the easy part?

 

 

 

**Special Tip: The first step for us was to remove the checkered window frame that was inside of the window itself. It is outdated and unnecessary. ESPECIALLY in modern designs. If you have this and want to remove it you can easily do so by placing razor blade knife under the frame and pulling them off piece by piece. Scrape the excess glue and done! I've don't this on several projects and it really changes the look of the space. It's little work for a big bang style wise.

 

Here is your super easy step by step to spray painting your window frames:

 

-Tape newspaper all over the window and the surrounding wall with painters tape. Remember that spray paint has over spray. 

 

-Paint the sides of the window frame in light coats never holding the can too close to the frame which can cause dripping.

-Apply 2-3 coats letting it dry a few minutes in between each coat.

 

-Remove paper.

 

-Done!

 

 

 

There are new drapes going in the addition soon, so I will post about that one soon which will also make the windows look more uniform from the outside of the house.

 

I am so relieved to have this little easy project out of the way. What a great way to polish up the outside of the house with little cost and effort.

 

Have a wonderful Easter weekend~

Project Reveal, Globally Inspired

It was brought to my attention (a few times now) that I have been slacking on posting to the blog. I believe it was put to me as "Hey I checked your blog the other day to see what you've been up to, and there was still the damn Christmas tree! Oh, and the post before that was a jack o lantern. Just sayin..."

Well, point taken and well said Viv!! It's time to make a concerted effort to post again and let you in on some of the workings here at Whitney Perez Interiors!!!

Here is the long over due final pics from my Globally Inspired project. I'm so thrilled with how this project turned out with the rich masculine under tones and organic globally inspired references.

Here are the "Before and After" pictures for my Globally Inspired bachelor pad.

Foyer Before: 

Foyer After:

Office Before:

Office After:

 

Dining Room Before:

 

 Dining Room After:

Dining Room To Office Before:

 Dining Room To Office After:

 

 Kitchen Before:

 Kitchen After:

Family Room Before:

Family Room After:

 

 Stairs Before:

Stairs After:

 

Upstairs Landing Before:

Upstairs Landing After:

Master Bedroom Before:

Master Bedroom After:

 Master Bathroom Before:

Master Bathroom After:

Daniella's Room After:

Adriana's Room After:

One of the greatest parts to designing spaces is that they are all different. I take someones wants and ideas and translate them in to their finished space so that it has a designed finish and yet is still very much them. I love when I get an off beat taste which pushes me stretch my own ideas and abilities to give them something that they could only imagine. I find these challenges exciting and creative as a designer, and this project is a great example of that!

I am looking forward to sharing more with you and moving forward with the newly styled
                                                              Cuban In My Coffee!