If you can imagine, bar furniture items may have been fashioned from planks of ships, cobbled together. That’s the general look I was going for. The spacing between pieces in the front allows a visitor to view the bottles on the bottom and the assortment of glasses on the top shelf.
I obtained all of my materials from Lowes and Home Depot. Total cost was probably about $250-$300. I chose red oak pieces, both for the great hardwood durability as well as for oak’s dark appearance and how well it takes up stain.
I generally used hand-tools for everything, which did take more time. Using a handsaw and sanding by hand is a bit arduous but rewarding once you finish. However, now that I actually have a power sander and reciprocating saw, it’s hard to imagine how I put up with the hand work back then. The one power tool I did have was a Dremel tool (indispensable, Dremel tools) which I used to cut the tips off of screw points and grind them down.
The starting planks of wood and a very simple shop set-up (my weight bench).
One of the four main corner supports. The 90 degree angle helps improve stability.
The top half completed (but upside down). 90 degree angle corner brackets were used to attach the corner supports to the base.
I attached some small casters to the bottom to allow it to roll.
The basic shelf construction is finished.
The basic construction is all finished. For the top, I trimmed some decorative molding to fit and attached with screws from the bottom and wood glue.
After a priming coat had been applied. There is a small back-stop for each shelf that I attached to prevent any bottles or glasses from falling off.
After staining.
After applying polyurethane to seal the stain in, I added a bottle opener and a towel ring. I used oval pieces found with the stairs/railings section of Lowes/HD wood products to mount them to the cart. I also added a small cubby attached to the top shelf to allow a drawer to be inserted to keep tools and other small items.
The newly finished product from the front.
With a skull and a lantern as accents, the pirate bar has its start!
This image shows the drawer functionality that I added. I used a wicker basket found at Target.
The newly-stocked bar.
And the final result, all stocked up and ready to go.
I used a corner nook for the bar in the basement of our old apartment. With a few accoutrements, the first pirate bar is borne!
I’m certainly no carpenter, but this simple yet functional design is proof that a handmade bar cart is within any average person’s skill.