Oak Barrels for Interior Designing

Every barrel which is used for preparing beverages do have a particular life time after which they are not useful for the preparation of any kind of beverages. Those age old barrels are used for multiple purposes even at home or at any place. But prior to using them, they have to be properly cleaned and sterilized to get rid of any fungal and bacterial infections. Barrels made up of different kinds of materials will be available for us in the market. They might be made up of wood, steel, plastic or cement. This variation in the material helps us to use it for different decorative purposes.

In general, the traditional design of wooden barrels it self gives an ethnic look to them. When they are used as interior designing pieces, they definitely look like some master pieces of art. So, let us have a look on the different ways of decoration which we can do with barrels.

• Wine barrels can be used directly with their old rustic look to give that ethnic effect or they can be cleaned with deck wash and sanded which reveals the beautiful American white oak.
• They can be used as base for dining tables by placing a glass over them and by adding chairs with same ethnic look. This arrangement will look perfect in bars.
• Four barrels arranged in a row as a base and a wooden plank or a mosaic top over them is a better idea for placing all the wine bottles at bars.
• Barrels with a door cut in them gives ample space to place bar supplies like glasses and bottles. You can still arrange one or two shelves in it to use the space the most.
• Another interesting thing which we can do with barrels is we can use them as sinks. A ceramic basin is attached at the top portion of the barrel and the plumbing accessories will be hidden inside with a door cut from it. These sinks would look great in bars and restaurants instead of the regular sinks.
• We can also make some beautiful fountains, wine racks, drink coolers and also crate some art form by doing some painting on them.

Every thing can be converted in to a master piece of decoration if you have that art with in you. So, why late get some empty barrels and start crafting your own art form.

Decorate Your Home with Barrel Planters

Many of us may think that barrels are only used for wine making. Of course they are true, but only up to some extent. But they should also know the fact that barrels do have some particular life span after which they are not useful for wine making. Then what will the wine makers do with the barrels, whose life time is completed. They will definitely sell them. So, what can we do with that barrels is our issue here. Those barrels can be used for decorating our homes and offices. Sounds interesting, right? Yes, we can create some master pieces with these barrels. Let us see how we can do a barrel planter with a wine barrel.

Once the spring arrives you can find some wineries selling these used wooden barrels. If you can get one you can create wonders with it. In order to make a barrel planter you need to cut your barrel in to half so that you can make two planters at a cost of one. Two types of planters can be made with the way you cut your planter. The most common of the two is created by cutting your barrel horizontally. These horizontal barrel planter are round in shape and come in different sizes. Similarly if you cut your barrel length wise or vertically you can create a vertical planter which is also called as trough planter.

After cutting the barrel, it is better to place the planter in the required location because it is difficult to move the planter once you fill it with soil and water. The location should have partial sun light. A hole has to be drilled at its bottom for water drainage. Then a layer of stone or gravel are to be added followed by soil. Mix the soil with some fertilizer to get high yield. Now you can plant some plants of your choice. You can also arrange some stones around this barrel to make it look more interesting.

Know About the Wine Cellar

Wine making process is an art which involves a lot of processes to get a final bottle of wine. It involves barrel making, wine aging, wine filling and then storage. But while aging the wine, the barrel has to be stored in proper places because the climatic changes will definitely affect wine's quality. For such storage a place called cellar is used. A cellar is a place used to store the wine which contains bottles and barrels of wine. These cellars are natural in some cases and in some the climate will be adjusted according to the requirement. Depending on this, they are divided in to two types Active cellars and Passive Cellars.

Active Cellars: Cellars in which wine is stored and the humidity, temperature and other climatic conditions are controlled, are called as the active cellars. The required conditions can be made by either increasing or decreasing the temperature inside the cellar. These cellars are highly insulated and properly constructed. Temperature is always low in these cellars which gives cooling effect to the barrels.

Passive Cellar: Passive cellars are something in which there is no chance or no artificial system to control the climate inside it. For that reason, these cellars are generally under the ground level to keep them away from the temperature variations. These cellars are less expensive and doesn’t require much maintenance.

Wine cellars protects the alcohol beverages from harmful external influences and provides darkness and constant temperature required to store the alcoholic beverages. In general the cellars above the ground are called as wine rooms and a wine cellar with less capacity to hold less than 500 barrels are known as wine closets.

Use of Vintage Wine Barrels as a Decorative Item

Generally wine barrels are used in the process of storing aging wine. These are made of wood. Different types of materials are used to make barrels, such as, oak, walnut, chestnut, cherry, pine and redwood etc, which are used to store the wine. Following are the areas where vintage wine barrels can be used as a decorative item:

End Table:
A vintage wine barrel can be placed on the end table which is next to sofa, loveseat, or armchair, as it gives attraction to the living room, den, or family room. You can also increase the look of the wine barrel with a normal wood stain or paint. Restore the look of the bands holding the barrels with very light sanding and some black paint.

Sturdy Table:
You can also use the wine barrels for creating a vintage rustic look on the table. They can also be used to design unique bar at your home. Ensure that all the barrels are of the same height so that your table or bar is sturdy.

Unique Storage:
Cut a hole into the side of the barrel and add some simple shelving, by this way you can create a unique form of storage for any room. As it takes up very little space, it is perfect for small rooms or apartments.

Stool Style Seating:
Vintage wine barrel can be used to make a unique seat and it can be used indoors or outdoors.

Interesting Sink:
You can use the vintage wine barrel in your home to create a sink which looks attractive and sturdier. You can replace the top of the barrel with plywood or more durable material.

In all the above ways you can use vintage wine barrels as decorative pieces.

Cascading Barrel Fountains for Gardens

A cascading barrel adds attraction to the place where it is placed, either it may be indoor or outdoor. Barrel fountains are available in different sizes, shapes and colors. Their sizes may range from several barrel units to large fountains created from numerous stacked barrels which cascade several steps.

Cascading barrels are available in numerous styles and they may include simple half barrels which is made from half whiskey or wine barrel. A spigot is a type of cascading barrel which resembles an old cast iron hand pump. In a spigot barrel fountain, water is made to flow from spigot in to the barrel. With the use of an electrical pump, water is recirculated in to the spigot again. A stacked barrel fountain is made of stacking uptwo or more half barrels either of same size or different sizes on one another. These stacked barrels may be tilted to provide spilling from one to the next, or they may contain a spout.

These cascading barrel fountains can be built in the home or purchased from the outside. Making of these barrels is a simple process and it is less expensive than purchasing of these barrels from outside. First choose a half barrel and a liner may be applied to increase the life of the barrel. Place some bricks at the bottom of the barrel and also place a small pump on the bricks which helps in circulating the water. Attach a hose and this will go through whatever is used to create the spout. This should be levelled. Then place the water in the barrel and connect electric pump to the plug. Your barrel fountain is ready now.

These barrel fountains can be purchased at different stores, but it is better to purchase them through online as the online retailers provide these barrels in many different styles and sizes.