DIY Tray Makeover

When I moved into my first apartment, my mom gave me a black serving tray she was getting rid of-- basic black with chunky chrome handles. I wanted to keep it set on my living room table but it wasn't really my style. I did a fairly easy DIY makeover on it and love it-- I get tons of compliments and it looks great on my table! If you have a serving tray that needs sprucing up, use the below steps to give it a fresh, new look:

DIY Tray Makeover

Materials:

Wood serving tray

Sand paper

Wood filler

Paint stripper

Spray paint

Handles

Electric drill

Screws

Plexiglass

Gift wrap/ scrapbook paper/ printed paper

Apparently I'm a doof and forgot to take 'before' images of the tray. I found these two online to give you an idea of what the tray looked like before-- basic black with two chunky hammered chrome handles.

First, remove handles and any hardware. I used a thin coat of paint stripper to remove the black paint from the tray easily (top and bottom, all sides). Next, I used wood filler to fill in the screw holes from the handles as they new ones I had purchased were not long enough to use these holes. Let the filler dry, then using your sandpaper, sand down the entire board to prime your board for paint.

I used a creamy off-white spray paint, if you'd rather brush on paint, go for it, this was just easier for me. After the top had dried, I also spray painted the bottom.

Before attaching the handles, I wanted to give the board a roughed-up shabby-chic look. Using my sandpaper, I gently went over areas of the board that would look the most naturally worn-- the sides and corners.

Once I was happy with that, I measured and marked where my handles would go. Using the power drill, I drilled holes for the screws, then screwed each side of the handle in. On the bottom of the tray, I affixed felt Magic Sliders so my board wouldn't scratch the table.

I had my dad cut a piece of plexiglass to fit in the bottom of the tray. If you can't do this at home, Home Depot should be able to cut the piece of plexiglass according to your measurements.

I measured out a piece of patterned gift wrap to the size of the bottom and placed the plexiglass over it. Voila-- a new look for an old tray!

Besides easy cleaning, with the plexiglass I can take any pretty pattern paper and stick it on the bottom and place the plexiglass back over it. I change it out for different seasons and holidays, which gives my board an updated look all year long!

Happy DIY!

PS- I made it as a finalist for WWDMAGIC's #IWantToBlogAtWWDMAGIC contest! Please take a moment to vote every 24 hours: HERE. Thank you!