DIY Outdoor Bar

How to turn an old door into a functional and beautiful outdoor bar!

Old door turned outdoor bar

Currently I live in North Carolina, but I was raised in Georgia, and all of my family is still there. We go back and visit as much as we can, and whenever possible, one of my favorite things to do with my dad is go to a local antique market. If you are in the Atlanta area, the Lakewood 400 Antique Market is worth the trip. It is held the third weekend if every month, and there is so many cool things to see and buy!

I had this idea of wanting to make an outdoor bar for our backyard, but could just not find the right piece. On one of my trips to the antique market, I came across a bunch of old doors. This one in particular was a beautiful teal color that caught my eye and I knew it was what I wanted to use to create my outdoor bar!

I scored this door for a great price, which is key to any good DIY project!

Once I got it home, I made sure to give it a good scrubbing with a Mr. Clean eraser just to get all the dirt and grime off it.

Next, I gave the door a good coat of Thompson’s Water Seal.

I prefer the spray can form for this type of project. It makes it fast and easy to get in all the nooks of the door. This spray protects the door from water damage, mildew, and helps prevent to color from fading. *Update: I have had this door now in my backyard for over two years and it is still as colorful as the day I bought it. There has been no water damage to it and it has been outside the whole time in the elements.*

I used scrap wood from a pallet to create the shelves, You can be creative with this and add shelves anyway you want.

I painted the shelves and legs white to pop against the teal colored door. I took a sander to the paint to give it a distressed look to match the look of the door.

I also added a bottle opener to one of the legs because what outdoor bar doesn’t have a bottle opener?!

To add to the character of the old door, I purchased a door knob from Hobby Lobby.

I found a similar doorknob on Amazon, and it comes in white! I wish I would have found it before, because I love the white finish.

After we were done, it felt incomplete, so I painted a small chalkboard, using chalkboard paint, on it. The chalkboard really helped complete it!

Our DIY outdoor bar turned out better than I ever imagined!

It looks great in our backyard and has been the perfect addition for entertaining and decorating for the holidays! It goes perfect with my herb garden too!

I hope this post helped give you some inspiration for your own outdoor bar! If you have made one, let me know! I would love to check them out!

If you enjoyed this post, I would love for you to share on Pinterest! 😘