Be your own barista with an at-home coffee bar

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4. DISPLAY COFFEE ACCOUTREMENTS​ Place your coffee maker, espresso machine, milk frother, coffee scale, hot water kettle and anything else you use to brew center stage. Boyd likes to display


various brewing devices, such as a Chemex, single-serve system and French press. “When your friends come over for the weekend, they’ll be impressed with the press,” Boyd says. ​ But you


don’t need a $5,000 espresso maker to create a coffee bar. A single-serve machine or small drip coffee maker, a decorative tray and a pair of mugs will be perfect for small spaces. That


said, if you do have a top-of-the line espresso maker, make sure to show it off. ​ “Instead of placing a normal coffee maker on the countertop, our clients are investing in beautiful


machines, going with built-ins like Thermador or Miele,” says Shannon Ggem, owner of Ggem Design in Los Angeles, which caters to an upscale clientele. ​ 5. USE MUSIC TO ADD AMBIENCE​ For a


truly authentic coffee house atmosphere at home, it’s a nice touch to include coffee shop music. Boyd suggests placing an inexpensive Bluetooth speaker inside a lamp shade on the coffee bar


to play mellow, hip music. “That creates such a beautiful vibe,” she says. ​ Online streaming service Jazzradio.com features several stations, including Paris Café and Coffee House Jazz,


that play continuous coffee shop music. YouTube carries channels such as BGM that display cozy screen scenes while playing soothing coffee shop music to fit any mood. Candy Music Room offers


a coffee shop playlist, complete with animated steam rising from cups, espresso maker and customer chatter. The key to creating the just-right coffee bar is to merge form and function,


assembled from elements that look and feel good to you. Whether it’s a corner on your kitchen countertop or a custom-built cabinet, as long as your coffee bar is stocked with your favorite


beans and a mug for sipping a home-brewed cup of java, it’ll be perfect. ​ _Editor's note: This article was originally published on September 1, 2022. It's been updated to reflect


additional photos. _