One thing you learn very quickly when you’re dating a Ukrainian is the importance of Vodka glasses. Not that it really mattered to her, mind you, but the first time I met my girlfriends father, one of the first (if not THE first) thing he asked me was where we kept the vodka.

Now, I don’t “keep” vodka. I keep toilet paper and paper towels and an extra set of towels in case someone crashes over and maybe a bottle of wine somewhere for a special occasion. But her father left the Soviet Union the day after it collapsed: he’s self-described as “Old-School Russian,” and he wanted to make sure that this schlub his daughter was dating kept a bottle of vodka on ready.

Unfortunately, I didn’t. And his first impression of me was hardly positive.

For his next visit, I picked up a bottle, as well as some barware from ClassicHostess, picking up a set of six green tinge Vodka glasses. It’s amazing; my job hadn’t changed, my looks hadn’t changed, nothing about me made me more qualified to date this man’s daughter than the first time he’d met me.

But I did have a new addition to my barware.

By no means am I suggesting a set of six green tinged vodka glasses is what will make the difference in impressing your in-laws.

But it was for me.

I may still live at  home, but that didn’t stop me from creating my own makeshift bar in my room, complete with barware accessories. I don’t have the luxury of a sink or appropriate countertop space, but I made due with what I had. The bar? The top of one of my dressers of course. (Hey, it’s a start!) The most important element of my “bar” is the bar tool set. Buying just a cocktail shaker and all the essential tools separately is just not plausible. I got a great set that includes the cocktail shaker, tongs, strainer, stirrer, opener, and knife. On display is my collection of beer glasses. Wine and cocktails are great, but I’m a beer woman. I have both pilsner glasses and beer mugs.

When the mood for a cocktail strikes me, I’m equipped with two martini glasses. Most of my cocktails probably belong in tumblers but the dresser is only so big. On the right are my liquors of choice –vodka, rum, and amaretto. I have a few small bottles of mixers like apple martini mix and lemon drop mix, but all the rest is dispersed in the rest of the house. Lastly, I have one bottle stopper from my sister’s wedding. However, after seeing this awesome skull bottle stopper from Classic Hostess, it’s now on my wishlist. One day soon, I’ll have my dream barware area.