Calling all coffee lovers, DIY coffee bars are trending more than pumpkin spice lattes and the good news is, they’re easy to add to your kitchen. Especially in older homes where your rooms are full of small little nooks and spaces, coffee bars are an easy add that customizes the home and gives the whole room a personalized pop that smells like having a personal barista brewing your favorite pot up in your kitchen.
The Elements of A Coffee Bar
Assembling a DIY coffee bar in your kitchen is easy when you have all of the elements that you need. Make sure that you have a coffee maker, mugs, cute storage for your supplies, floating shelves, and something to anchor those shelves like a countertop or a free-standing table.
For custom floating shelves, pick a wood that works with your current room decor and wall color. Don’t shy away from mixing woods by matching the undertones or adding a fun painted floating shelf color. We make custom shelves, so if you have Chantilly Lace painted walls and want your shelves to blend perfectly with the walls, we’ll make you Chantilly Lace painted shelves for you.
We do recommend that you skip using raw shelves when creating your coffee bar and opt for something painted or sealed. Raw shelves run the risk of getting coffee cup rings on them which isn’t really all that ideal.
When sourcing all of the elements of a floating shelf coffee bar, start with shelves and an anchor for those shelves and work from there. If you’re using a countertop as an anchor, you’ve got one major piece taken care of. If you need to source a table or bar cart for your coffee bar, get thrifty and shop secondhand first. That gives you the freedom to customize the look without breaking the bank.
Add the Extras
Adding the extras is the fun part of creating your own coffee bar in your kitchen. We love the Mos & Jes sign on the wall of this little coffee bar and the options are endless if you want to add your own wall sign to your little kitchen corner. Modern or boho homes could rock a neon sign while vintage homes could add a custom banner or pennant with the name of your in-home coffee bar. It’s a cute customization that takes your kitchen to the next level.
Mugs are also a must for coffee bars in the kitchen and you can go one of two ways: uniform or mismatched. If you’re going uniform, pick a color that accentuates your other kitchen decor. You can also pick one mug style and purchase it in a few colors like the picture above. If you’d rather mismatch your mugs, that’s a great option too. Your mug collection can be aesthetic, sentimental, or both. All that matters is that your favorite mug is easily accessible for your morning coffee.
Other fun additions to coffee bar shelves include cute containers to hold your coffee beans and other supplies, decorative trays, baskets, plants, and any other fun accent that makes your home feel like your favorite little coffee shop.
We love souring home coffee bar decor at thrift stores first. Last week we scored an antique, wall-mount coffee grinder (and though we won’t be grinding our own beans) it looks so cute paired with our little home coffee station. We also love sourcing coffee bar decor at World Market, Anthropologie, William’s Sonomoa, and of course — on Etsy or from other local small businesses.
Coffee Corner
If committing to a full coffee bar sounds like a hassle, give yourself a coffee corner. Turn any corner of your kitchen counter into a DIY coffee bar by setting up a little coffee station. Your DIY coffee station can be as big or as small as you’d like — all you need is a little corner and a coffee maker. And while we know that sitting your coffee maker on the counter might not really count as a “coffee station” adding a few extra accessories can certainly take your corner from an appliance sitting on the counter to intentional coffee corner. And in the end, it’s the mentality behind it — right?
You can add simple elements to your coffee corner that amp up the intentionality. We love the idea of making up a few names for fun drinks and framing it in your kitchen. We’ve seen these drink lists based off of family members, locations, and even Gilmore Girls.
Drink of the Week: Iced Express Your Shelf
You can make this simple drink with any coffee or coffee substitute (we love Crio Bru). Start by brewing up your favorite pot of coffee or hot drink and letting it cool. We brew a pot of Crio Bru in the morning and let it chill in the fridge until lunch. Then we fill a tumbler or glass with ice, drizzle in a little caramel, add some oat milk, and put in a dash of vanilla creamer. We also add in a little homemade cinnamon vanilla but you can add in regular vanilla and a ¼ teaspoon of cinnamon. Before we pour the brew over the ice, we give it a good mix with a frothier and then we add it to the glass. If you need a little more sweetness, we recommend adding more creamer or liquid sweetener.
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