WE CAN’T WAIT TO GET FRIENDS ROUND TO HAVE A LOCK-IN
LINDSAY O’MAHONY, 47, sings in band Honey Rider and lives in Felden, Hertfordshire, with husband Jon, 49, a music producer and manager, and their sons Max, nine, and Ozzie, seven. They also have a property development business. She says: OUR cocktail lounge has been the only real escape from the drudgery of this winter lockdown. It is housed in the games room of a huge extension that we added when we developed our house from an old bungalow in 2019.
The bar itself is an L-shape, measures three metres wide (10 ft) and is painted deep teal with four grey velvet bar stools.
It sits on the middle of one wall and there is also a pool table, darts, table football and table tennis so that the children can enjoy themselves while we have a cocktail or two.
I can’t remember a time when we made the decision to have a bar and games room. It was just one of those things that evolved while planning our renovations and suited our lifestyle perfectly. We are very sociable but with young children and busy careers, and relished the opportunity to create a fun and relaxed space in which to entertain family and friends. And thank goodness we did.
Jon made the bar mostly out of kitchen base units and MDF panelling. It has a black granite worktop and splashback and a white Carrera marble countertop. There are mirrored metro tiles on the back wall and two glass shelves housing a large selection of spirits.
It all looks very pretty in the evening when we switch on the fairy lights and the mirrors bounce the light around.
There’s a proper beer pump — I love pulling a pint! — and I bought Jon a cocktail-making kit so he can now rustle up the perfect mojito.
Two sets of French doors overlook the garden on each side, and are framed with luxurious teal velvet curtains which make it feel cosy at night.
Roll on the day we can invite friends for a cheeky lock-in. But in the meantime, our cocktail lounge provides us with a lot of family fun and somewhere to ‘go’ for a change of scene.