Your Home Bars, Order Vs Clutter?

Any thoughts on what you think works better ascetically, clean, symmetrical home bars or the kind where you can’t take two steps without landing on a tiki or have a shelf full of 80 similar coconut mugs?
I prefer the clean ones but I’m a hypocrite because some of my artifacts are just too good to vanish into the garageand respect people who have that kind of control. So how is your bar Apollonian or Dionysus?

P.S. this isn't my house I got it from another thread since it seemed the perfect example.

This haphazard example is a section of my house.

[ Edited by: naugatiki 2008-09-16 14:43 ]

I vote for Clutter,
tiki/polypop is one of the decors that the more you have the better it looks.
oh and a bit of dust is fine.
IMHO of course.

Jeff(bigtikidude)
p.s. I keep getting told, to stop bringing home mugs.
:wink:

[ Edited by: bigtikidude 2008-09-16 10:41 ]

Naugatiki.

First off, I have to say that I'm totally jealous that you have that amazing Mid Century Modern Home. REALLY Nice ! Unfortunately, here in SoCal, people are hip to that architecture and those houses go for alot of $$$.

I think that the minimalist look you have going on there is perfect for this kind of house. That kind of house is all about clean lines, right angles, and S P A C E .

Wonderful nothingness, and the tiki and other poly pop touches are perfect. This place filled with Tiki clutter would mess with the beautiful design of the house.

Maybe designate one area, a shelf for the collection clutter (like you have, but maybe a little more if you feel the need) , and add a few big Modern Bosko Tikis here and there, and maybe one of his modern plaques on the part above the bar, but please don't fill in all that awesome space. I like it.

If it was just your run of the mill house, I would say add more stuff, but in this case, I say less is more.

That's my opinion, anyway.

Anyone who begins collecting Tiki ephemera quickly realizes they can fill every empty space in their home if they aren't careful. So we all get selective in some way. And then we choose what gets displayed and what gets stored...

Both styles are good, but I think the former is more a design style that you can put Tiki into and the later is the Tiki style. Do you have a sleek modern place with Tiki accents, or a Tiki bar with modern accents?

I think ultimately it depends on the space you are working with.....

If you have a basement, loft, or other space that you can dedicate as the 'Tiki Room' then you should go nuts! Stack it to the ceiling, fill every nook and cranny, make it so that every single time someone comes into the space they see something they didn't see before.

If you are trying to incorporate your 'Tiki Space' into a more open floor plan, you should let the space you are working with dictate how dense you make it.

Specific to your house (love it, by the way!).... I would keep it on the lighter side and honor the mid-mod vibe of the house.

My house, while not as cool as yours because it is only a Florida Ranch style, has a little bit in every room instead of all in one room. It keeps the Tiki-Vibe going while at the same time allows Andy and I to indulge in all other things mid-mod and atomic era.

But that is just my opinion. You do what makes you happy. You are not going to do to your house what I would do to your house, so until such time as you hire me as a decorator my opinion is only good for conversation over cocktails.

Speaking of cocktails, whose turn is it to make the next round?

--eidt----

YEAH! Post 1234! Nice balance there in the number!

[ Edited by: Chip and Andy 2008-09-16 10:58 ]

I agree with tikiyaki...in the Modern setting seems like very organized clutter and space is a good match. For the rest of us suckers...disaray is the call of the wild. I am into eclecticism so my home is a conglomeration of various collections and themes, but because my home is more modern in style, I tend to try to have some organization to the clutter...but like most collectors "more is good." Function is important though, you don't want the bar-tender to trip. :lol:

The best home lounges I see always have an awesome backdrop too...bamboo, reed, seagrass, etc. That really makes the Tiki art pop and the clutter feels more comfortable to me. Your drummer look great where they are.

your house is breathtaking.
and however you decorate it (more or less) is going to be even MORE awesome.

geez.
i'll bring rum ~ when can i visit?

"Clutter" kinda has a negative connotation. How about "layered" and "dense" environments? That is the CLASSIC look of a Tiki Bar, something that resembles the collected jetsam and flotsam in an old sailor's bar, or the assembled weapons, shields and masks in an old ethnological museum display --environments that create an atmosphere of mystery, and of exotic lands and customs.

Then there is the look of Tiki Modern, the environment created by the sophisticated urbanite who appreciates modern and primitive art and displays only selected, prime pieces in their mid-century home decorated with designer furniture.

...and then there are the many different stages inbetween the two. :)

I prefer the beachcomber/bamboo/color balls/tiki/fish nets and mugs everywhere you look kind of bars than the modern/empty/witco/white ones. But it depends on the room you have, and with your bar, I'd say 50's modern would fit best, or something in between. Sorry, there's no correct answer.

This is a very sensitive subject around the old Psycho Tiki D Household.

The "house" rule is for every new item brought home an item needs to leave (usually equated to square footage).

I have never stood fast to any rules, especially artificial ones that make no sense whatever to me.

My display style is along the lines of "you can't see the forest through the trees". Literally speaking, it is nearly impossible to focus on one item as many others overpower the detail of any individual item overrun by the masses.

I think Vamp once called it "warehouse stacking".

Three velvet paintings currently reside in my garage, another three in a bedroom closet.
I have a Witco Guitar leaning up against a large novelty candy machine in a bedroom.
There are another 3 original Miguel Covarrubias posters rolled up in another closet that need to be framed and displayed, a PNG Gope board I recently purchased is in another corner, my fossil tortoise shell in another.
Vintage travel brochures, menus, postcards and other paper items are stacked and packed all over the house. Every corner is inhabited and forget about wall space.

The last two adventures in mug purchases have left the top of my dresser with no room at all.

Yes, this is how I display my collection. Even if you don't see it out, if you were to ask me about something I have posted, I could find it and show it to you.

Still planning on adding a room on the house. Already have enough to fill it.

Will this ever change or stop me from buying more? I think not!

Psycho Tiki D (I know I am and I have even made a dent in the yard yet)!

[ Edited by: Psycho Tiki D 2008-09-16 12:48 ]

[ Edited by: Psycho Tiki D 2008-09-16 12:50 ]

*On 2008-09-16 12:05, virani wrote:*tiki/fish

:D

I guess I have a cluttered look. Too much to display with out crowding.
So, the past few months I have been photographing various "Treasure's" and attempting to change.

Thus, I am able to rotate my items on display but enjoy all of them with a mouse click.
Watching Monk has helped me too. :wink:

Great post PTD...and I do wonder where Ami keeps her hairbrush? :lol:

Shouldn't we all be compiling our dust too...having dust is extremely important, and I enjoy a well placed cob-web as well. A change in the dust pattern can implicate a possible removal of items by a loved-one or clepto!!!

We have an alternative situation.

My world of TIKI is housed (except for parties) entirely inside a 1967 travel trailer.

I must choose well as there are few RV or camping related items with Polynesian POP styling.

Also, the rule of my wahine (a good rule too) is that what goes in the Tiki-Lander stays in the Tiki-Lander.

So with limited space for storage or display, I like to keep it tidy and stowable for quick display and setup and because it is a cozy and compact space like a ship's galley.

I am fast approaching the threshold of every new TIKI object in means something must go to make it fit, so with every purchase I must decide if I want it bad enough and what do I get rid of.

Scorpion bowls and monkeypod wood serving trays are the hardest to acquire under this system.

Good luck in your styling.

I go for clutter every time.. It's great to have a dedicated space/room/bar/basement so you can keep the house simple then when you take guests into your "tiki room" they will be blown away because it is unexpected... however if you have an open plan type house you just need lots more stuff to cover every square inch with tiki stuff and I say go for it...

On 2008-09-16 19:26, coruscate wrote:
We have an alternative situation.

My world of TIKI is housed (except for parties) entirely inside a 1967 travel trailer.

I must choose well as there are few RV or camping related items with Polynesian POP styling.

Also, the rule of my wahine (a good rule too) is that what goes in the Tiki-Lander stays in the Tiki-Lander.

So with limited space for storage or display, I like to keep it tidy and stowable for quick display and setup and because it is a cozy and compact space like a ship's galley.

I am fast approaching the threshold of every new TIKI object in means something must go to make it fit, so with every purchase I must decide if I want it bad enough and what do I get rid of.

Scorpion bowls and monkeypod wood serving trays are the hardest to acquire under this system.

Good luck in your styling.

coruscate,

My house is probably not much bigger than your trailer, hahaha! You live in one of my favorite places to visit and aside from a tiki on Francis Drake Blvd going out towards Point Reyes north shore, I didn't know tiki existed there! Tiki travel trailer? Is it parked anywhere near the Olema campground?

Also, you don't need to apologize because I too, snore!

PTD

I'm a big fan of the layered dense look. The problem is some spaces are large and finding enough things to fill it can be a real challenge.

Hey Psycho Tiki D, I'll have to keep an eye out for that Tiki on SFD, I don't remember seeing it.

Mostly out that direction are the MOO-eye (er, I mean cows)

I try to keep a little tiki appreciation out here, contrasts with the Scottish Village romanticized naming of the streets and towns.

FYI, There is a Tiki bar space at the Broadway in Fairfax on SFD blvd, but I haven't grooved with it enough to justify the regular drive over the hill.

You can see some pictures of the work in progress on my trailer on this thread:

http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=26479&forum=1

Currently I am trying to find my own glass float/floats (next big storm) to add to the layered effect and maybe a puffer fish light.

I've fleshed out the library with a few classics like Aku-Aku, Kon Tiki and a few Beachbum drink guides and a full set of MAKE magazines. Saving up for a BOT.

The bakelite art deco radio will be converted to a windows mobile operating system with a VGA screen and about 10 gb of flash memory. It will be the Tiki-Media-Center. As a juke box it will play tiki podcasts, Martin Dennny and Waitiki of course, and about 55 different covers of Girl from Ipanema all while running a screen saver of vintage tiki with a drink database. Finally it will continue to operate as an internet device for email and checking Critiki on the road.

The Tiki-Lander will get an A frame bamboo pole canopy at the entrance in the next couple of months, still working out the mounting hardware and aquiring outdoor leopard print sunbrella fabric for the scalloped edge.

Saving up for a little Honda eu1000 generator and some solar 12 volt wiring improvements.

I just put new wheels and brakes on it in case I need to stop in a hurry to admire some Googie-tecture on the road.

At least it currently can run on propane and there are hand crank blenders to carry me through the dark ages.

I have yet to figure out how to travel with the 2x8 foot painted SHAG inspired tikis made of plywood, I may need to carve a stout 4 foot tall one out of redwood and mount it on the tongue instead.

I reached the "one thing in means one thing out" threshold yesterday, a little earlier than predicted (getting back to the thread topic here) and now anything new means something else has to go.

So I would have to put myself in the "clean lines degenerating into unintentioned clutter" camp.

coruscate,

Check in the town of Inverness. There is a large white house on the south side of SFD east of the bakery that has a bunch of statues and yard art out front. They used to have a large tiki out there with everything else.

PTD

On 2008-09-16 11:43, bigbrotiki wrote:
something that resembles the collected jetsam and flotsam in an old sailor's bar,

Bigbro hit the nail on the head with this description, This is what I desire to do however unless it is really a collected jetsam and flotsam in an old sailor's bar, it often looks "Cluttered" I am a designer/cabinet maker and at times I need to design a "Random pattern" or a "Natural looking grouping" and believe me there cannot be anything random at all . It has to be planned to look random. The best example I have seen outside of Bal Hai is the ceiling of the Rincon Room

I like the sense of discovery of being in a room packed with tiki stuff. Like sitting there for ages drinking and staring at everything trying to take in all the details :D

Just like my brain, my house is cluttered.

Usually we have different areas for various collections. For example we have a pinup wall in the bedroom, rocket/robot wall in the hall, all my soccer stuff in the basement (which no real guest ever sees), and tiki in the sunroom. This is the theory but tiki is seeping out into other parts of the house. The more cluttered the better.

Personally, I vote for dense and layered, as is immediately obvious from one look at my Paradise Cove lounge! -- http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=28843&forum=18&33

And DUST is certainly no problem -- I've got PLENTY!

But I concur with a couple other folks who said in their posts that it really depends on the particular space you have to work with.

And, lastly, I was a bit perplexed to see how many post-ers mentioned how much they loved/envied Naugatiki pad when clearly stated that the wide-angle pic of the house was NOT his (her?) place but had been BORROWED from another thread.

This shows that a lot of peeps don't always read these threads carefully enough, which, in certain situations, can lead to confusion and misunderstandings.

Just an observation.

Cheers :drink:

[ Edited by: KreepyTiki 2008-09-18 15:15 ]

On 2008-09-18 15:14, KreepyTiki wrote:

This shows that a lot of peeps don't always read these threads carefully enough, which, in certain situations, can lead to confusion and misunderstandings.

Just an observation.

Cheers :drink:

[ Edited by: KreepyTiki 2008-09-18 15:15 ]

DOH ! ...How did I miss that ?

Anyway, I guess I'm in the minority here in thinking that S P A C E is a good thing, especially when it come to Mid Century Modern homes. I too like the crazy collections of stuff, so I guess my compromise is to put some tiki in every room, and have one room with the dense collection.

Yep...I missed that too and I usually do read...good catch!!! It is a fabulous house though.

Whether it is cluttered or minimal, I like to see it flow well, like the owner chose a special place for every item and the items all live together in harmony. Like everyone else said here, do what feels right to you and complements your home. Of course "money" helps. :D

How about busted and tossed about like an 'ol alley couch?

Ive got a mid century house and attempt to go for the not too cluttered look. but seeing as I'm a furniture magnet I always seem to have more stuff than I have space for. Its full but not cluttered. I do like a sense of space in my environment

On 2008-09-20 22:30, Sophista-tiki wrote:

Verrrrrrrrry hip!

To be fair about the clutter issues our tiki bar lives in between our living room and the family room. It's an island of bamboo in a sea of mid-century modern.
This shot is the tiki bar from the living room.

This is closer to the business end of the bar and it's how you are greeted as you enter our house.
(Our cherished copy of "Tiki Modern" lives here BTW)

Here are some old coconut heads hanging over what was a set of two planters but is now a lava-like red light box.
This is the boundary between bar and living room.

Here is the view from the family/dining room looking into the living room.
This is the business end of the bar. Notice that there is a nice glass float hanging there.

Back behind the bar I made some shelves to keep stuff.

There's also a big hanging cabinet over the bar to store liquor n'more which is home to some tiki drummers.
I have to say that I would go for jetsom & flotsam coating every surface if we had a tiki bar in it's own room.
This bar lives in the middle of our house and it needs to play nice with the clean lines of the rest of the house.
BUT the tiki influence does spill into the rest of the house with pictures accessories and the color pallet.

The original thread for the before & after pictures of the Bamboo Bar can be found here:

http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=19049&forum=18&start=210&222

[ Edited by: Sparkle Mark 2008-09-21 15:15 ]

:o Well I guess our little tiki oasis is more cluttered. It would probably fit in the corner of that big beautiful space you have there. But I would have to agree with most, that less is more in that beautiful home of yours. :lol: Like my boss tells me when he sees my desk. "You know Pat, a cluttered desk is a sign of a cluttered mind. Yup, and that would be me. :oops:

http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?mode=viewtopic&topic=19049&forum=18&start=195

But again, different strokes for different folks. :lol: