Accents

Cocktail Crafting

The art of the drink begins with the right tools

1957

Cocktail Crafting

The art of the drink begins with the right tools

Styled by Erica Pedrosi | Photo by CJ Benninger

**COCKTAIL HOUR** Celerie Kemble’s Maitland-Smith bar cart, available at Henredon Interior Design Showroom, Michigan Design Center, Troy, is ready to roll.

ABOVE: Waterford Marquis ice bucket, $79, metro-area Macy’s stores, macys.com; Orb ice tong, $9.95, Crate & Barrel, Troy; Distil titanium crystal glasses/Schott Zwiesel, $24/ea., Hugh, Detroit; and Pink Pony shot glasses, $6/ea., Pink Pony gift shop, Chippewa Hotel, Mackinac Island, 906-847-3341. Tufenkian Implied damask Tibetan wool, hand-knotted rug, Ghiordes Knot, Michigan Design Center (MDC), Troy, michigandesign.com. Outdoor collection Douglas by Lane Venture couch and gold mirrors from Labarge; bamboo cast brass bar cart (also shown below) with leather inlay, Maitland-Smith/the Celerie Kemble collection, from the Henredon Interior Design Showroom, MDC. Duralee pillows (teal fabric from Crypton Home), Duralee Showroom, MDC. All MDC items prices available upon request. Northern Latitudes Distillery (fi ve varieties), Lake Leelanau, northernlatitudesdistillery.com.

Get In the Mix

Bar none, these tips ensure a perfect beverage every time

WHEN RENOWNED INTERIOR designer Celerie Kemble of Kemble Interiors was in town promoting her new furniture line at the Michigan Design Center in Troy (see story in this issue’s Bulletin Board department), we enjoyed chatting with her about everything from patio furniture to bar carts. Design affects lifestyles and experiences, she explained, right down to how you make a cocktail. For those who wish to elevate the art of the cocktail, first obtain a bar cart that can be practical but also aesthetically pleasing. Kemble created some dandies for Maitland-Smith (one is shown below, available at the Henredon Interior Design Showroom) that incorporate her favorite materials: bamboo, gold leaf, and leather she describes as “the color of crème brulee just before it burns.” It’s modern and fresh, but also traditional, she explained.

So how would she dress her bar cart? “I love a cutting board, lemons, and limes,” she said. “There’s nothing more engaging for the homeowner or for guests than one tiny task, like cutting the fruit. Making a drink becomes a process when you’re part of it, when you’re present.” Utensils play an important role, too. “The knife should be ‘sexy,’ ” she said. “And maybe have little tea towels or napkins with embroidery or with interesting designs.” Whatever you add to your cart, “dress it out,” she advised. “A drink is becoming too common of a thing. It’s a precious moment, a time of the day. A bar cart is that moment.” — Megan Swoyer (See more on Kemble in Bulletin Board.)