Some say I’m a dreamer…

… others just think I’m off my bleeding nut!

So I spent some time with google over the long weekend and looked for ideas on the layout/design of the bar that would go along with the ideas I had come up with in my head.  The original idea that started floating around was a ‘rustic’ look that would have the front of the bar covered in the same type of stone that is on the front of our house.  As I searched for examples of that, I came across a very nice bar that had some slate tile, wood, and backlit panels that really caught my eye.  I showed the things I found to the Mrs. and she too loved the look of the example I liked, SUCCESS! 🙂

Then the fun began.  I fired up Google Sketchup and started playing.  Over a couple of days and a couple of different iterations, we have a very solid idea of what the main bar will look like.  We took a side trip to Lowes and browsed the tile isle and kitchen section for ideas to use on the back wall cabinetry.  It was somewhat discouraging that the tile we liked was $2-4 for 12×12 inchers and almost a buck a piece for 6×6 (and i need 4×4!) meaning upwards of $1500 for self-installed tile assuming the bar and game room will share the same tile flooring.   So when I got home, it was back to google!  Looks like we’ll be able to find what we want at a significantly reduced price elsewhere, sorry Lowes!

I actually went down and roughtly laid out the footprint of the bar with scrap lumber based on the measurements in the drawing, it felt very natural for the room and wasn’t going to consume the entire room as I had feared.  We might even have room for a corner table and 2-3 more chairs in one corner!

Anyway.  Here’s a couple of pics to give a tease.  One is the bar room we used as the idea for the design of the bar, the other is my sketchup version of what our bar room will look like, subject to change of course.  Especially the yucky looking blue/black top on the bar, not many options for that kinda thing in sketchup.  🙂  Probably going to be something along the lines of a beige stone/marble looking formica until we can spring for marble in the kitchen, then we might see about a 2 room discount and upgrade the bar.

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