100 best design ideas: kitchen-living room with a bar counter in the photo

Recently, a bar counter is increasingly used in the interior of a kitchen combined with a living room. If before it was something surprising and unusual, now it is an indispensable attribute in many apartments. Initially, it was used only as an element of decor and interior design in the West, but over time it was widely used in our country.

The main difference is that in the countries of America the bar counter corresponds to its name and is used for its main functional purpose - the preparation of drinks and cocktails, their drinking. In the Russian Federation, she is more interested in people as a small dining table that can fit into a small kitchen. Also, the rack is often used as an element of the interior, for zoning the space and perfect appearance, but not for its intended purpose.

Choosing the best place

Depending on the location of the bar, its main types can be distinguished:

Stand by the wall. Such an element of the interior is installed along the wall or under the window. Well suited for a kitchen with a small space, which will save valuable meters. Such a rack can replace the kitchen table, if the window sills are high, then the rack can be combined with them. As a result, the useful surface will increase, and during lunch you can see the view from the window.
Combined. This option is the best and most used in domestic cuisine. The working kitchen surface is combined with the bar and slowly flows into it. In this case, the design has a "G" -shaped shape (in more rare cases, a "P" -shaped).
Island. The best option for a large kitchen-living room. Such a rack may contain a hob or workspace, while completely changing its main functional purpose.
Partition. Also a popular option for the kitchen-living room, capable of zoning the space, separating the relaxation area from the kitchen.

An important nuance is lighting. Regardless of the type and type of partition, it should have individual lighting. Due to spotlights, the partition will be better to zone the room, create an interesting highlight in the design of the kitchen-living room.

Materials used and rack dimensions

In most cases, the height of the bar varies from one meter to 120 centimeters. In order to conveniently engage in food preparation, cooking or eating on its surface, the width of the rack should be from 50 centimeters or more. It should be borne in mind that when eating, the rack should fit not only dishes with food, but also a plate, cutlery. In order to conveniently sit behind the counter you need to use special kitchen chairs with backs or stools with high legs. The advantage of many models will be the ability to adjust the height. Thus, for each person, you can choose the optimal height given his personal growth and other nuances.

For the manufacture of a bar counter, various materials can be used, both the cheapest and most affordable for everyone’s pocket, as well as expensive, exclusive ones. As a raw material, various tree species, chipboard, plastic or metal can be used. Stone is also a popular material; it can be either natural or artificial. In some cases, a bar counter is made of drywall or glass, in addition, there may be combined options.

Different materials can also be used as a rack decor, but often tiles, stone or brick are used here. When decorating, you need to take into account the configuration of the rack, its main purpose and location, in addition, it is important that it fits perfectly into the interior of the kitchen-living room, creating a single picture.

If you give preference to quality and a long service life, you should pay special attention to such natural stones as quartz, marble and granite. At the same time, there is a drawback of such materials - their high price, however, it is worth noting that it is worth it. If you don’t have a lot of money, but you want to use externally high-quality material, then marble can be replaced with corian, it looks identical, but the price is much lower. Wood is also a good material, the service life is shorter, however, wood can add zest to the interior and give the style a special status with pronounced lines.

Use of a bar in a kitchen with limited space

At first it may seem that in the kitchen, where there is practically no free space, the bar counter will become superfluous and inappropriate, but this is not at all the case. In a small kitchen, it is a kind of find, also ideal for people living without children or for those who live alone. This element of the interior can be used both as a dining table, and as a bar counter for evening gatherings with friends for delicious cocktails.

Advantages of using a bar counter in a small kitchen:

Save space due to the small size, the chairs can be easily hidden under the counter and free up a couple more additional square meters.
If the rack is equipped with shelves, then you can store kitchen items and accessories, hide dishes or other little things used here.
It is best to use a rack, which will be combined with the work surface and be its logical continuation.

Even small rooms can organically accommodate a two-meter kitchen with two or three chairs. This option is enough to make several people comfortable here. In a small kitchen, it is better to use concise compact furniture (for example, transparent chairs made of plastic), which will allow you to not load space.