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July 25, 2012

My Drab to Fab Tray Transformation

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Hi friends! It’s time for another recycle transformation! You know me, I am always trying to upcycle my old furniture and accessories and turn them into something new again. Right down to this little serving tray. Who knew it had so much potential? Are you ready for my Drab to Fab Tray Transformation?

DIY Tray Transformation

DIY Tray Transformation

The tray started out as a beautiful tray from Crate and Barrel but over the past 4 years its had its share of wear and tear and was about to be thrown away. But with a little white paint, wood scraps and stain, I was able to save this little tray.

DIY Tray Transformation

There is nothing I love more than the pairing crisp white again an espresso brown. It’s my favorite. It’s modern and classy but can also have a rustic feel.

DIY Tray Transformation

The tray serves a function purpose in our home. Instead of a coffee table we have a tufted ottoman and we often use the tray to place water glasses or eat a quick snack. And when we aren’t  huddled around the TV, it serves as a decorative tray with stacked books and fresh roses from the garden.

DIY Tray Transformation

I only get a few roses from my rose bush each year  but I always appreciate the one or two bouquets I can make with them.

So are you ready to see how this tray looked before? Oh it makes me cringe!

Recycle Tray Transformation

And here it is in all its glory. By the looks of the ‘before’ photo you never would guess it actually started as this tray from Crate and Barrel. We received it as a wedding present almost 4 years ago and its gotten A LOT of use. And yes those are probably food stains and crumbs that you see stuck in the cracks. Disgusting. Can I tell you impossible it was to clean this tray?  I’m not hiding anything back on this post!

And the after… ahhh so refreshing!

Fresh Coat of Paint!

I started by giving the tray a few coats of white paint. You’ll notice why this tray was such a pain to begin with, those cracks are so tiny I couldn’t even paint over them, let alone keep this tray clean. One of my main goals of the makeover was to cover up those tiny cracks to make it easier to clean and maintain.

At one point, I started distressing the edges and later decided that wasn’t the look I was going for and gave it a coat of white spray paint which solved all my problems.

Make Your Own Wood Tray Design

Next, I cut 12 pieces of Birch Plywood (left over from my board and batten) into 9″ X 3″ pieces and gave them all a quick sanding to smooth out the edges.

The most tedious part of this project was fitting each piece into the tray. I went with a simple design of rotating the sections to give the tray some dimension. What seemed like something so simple actually took a while. Some pieces were slightly too wide or too long and I had to sand each individual piece for a specific spot on the tray. After I completed the puzzle I was so scared to remove them, but I still had to stain the wood!

To help keep my pattern and my sanity, I gently removed each piece of wood and laid them on the canvas in the same pattern.

I put 2 coats of Minwax Dark Walnut Stain (my current favorite) onto the wood and let it dry.

Next, I used my trusted non-foaming Gorilla Glue to adhere each piece back into its place.

* Now, this next step isn’t pictured (sorry!) but after I placed the wood back into the tray there were a few small gaps that really bothered me. So I filled the gaps with Elmer’s wood filler and it worked like a charm. I applied it as if I was grouting the wood pieces in place. Meaning, after I applied the filler I wiped the surface clean with a wet paper towel so the grout was left only in the cracks. Once the wood filler dried I stained the cracks to match the wood. It worked better than I could have imagined!

Once the pieces were set, stained and dried I sealed the wood with Minwax semi-gloss Polyurethane.

And now I have the beauty to show for it.

DIY Tray Transformation

So what do you think? Good save?

DIY Tray Transformation

About Taryn Whiteaker

Taryn Whiteaker is the voice of style behind TarynWhiteaker.com (formerly Design, Dining and Diapers) ! Taryn is a previous PR/Marketing professional who got back to her creative roots after becoming a mom and now shares her passion for home decor and design for the world to see. Taryn lives in the greater Seattle area with her husband and three kids and loves coffee, the outdoors, and exploring with her family.

Filed Under: ALL POSTS, Before and Afters, DIY Home Decor, DIY Projects, Furniture Builds and Makeovers Tagged With: Before & After, DIY, my home, repurpose, Spray Paint, tutorial

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Jackie says

    July 25, 2012 at 5:58 am

    I love this! I am totally into mixing white and wood tones right now and I have a few trays that could use a makeover. Thanks for the inspiration!

    Reply
  2. Karen says

    July 25, 2012 at 6:49 am

    Great job! It looks fantastic. Love the white and dark wood too!!

    Reply
  3. Jody says

    July 25, 2012 at 7:39 am

    Super idea to add the stained wood at the bottom–I totally would not have thought of that. What a huge improvement!

    Reply
  4. Ashley @ Cherishedbliss says

    July 25, 2012 at 7:53 am

    I love how it turned out!! Loving the dark wood with the white : )

    Reply
  5. Tori says

    July 25, 2012 at 1:47 pm

    Love it!!

    Reply
  6. Jen says

    July 25, 2012 at 7:10 pm

    Ooohhh…your version is 1000X better than the original Taryn! Love the play of the white aginst the dark wood and that you used smaller pieces of wood rather than just a single large one. Beauty + Function — what could be better than that?!

    Reply
  7. Ashley Fitzgerald says

    July 25, 2012 at 7:22 pm

    The tray is gorgeous! I love what you’ve done with it! I just ended up doing some small changes to a bathroom cabinet I have, but seriously those small changes make all the difference!

    The chocolatey brown and bright white look fantastic together! And the pattern in the wood is perfect.

    Reply
  8. Jen @ Four Marrs & One Venus says

    July 25, 2012 at 9:12 pm

    Looks Great Taryn!! What a nice transformation…super pretty!

    Reply
  9. GlamorousMommy says

    July 26, 2012 at 6:13 am

    This looks fantastic!! Great job :)

    Reply
  10. the cape on the corner says

    July 26, 2012 at 6:59 am

    what a great idea to redo that tray, and i love your couch! gorgeous!

    Reply
  11. Megan says

    July 26, 2012 at 1:17 pm

    What a gorgeous redo! I love what you’ve done, and your space is beautiful. Megan

    Reply
  12. Tamsyn says

    July 26, 2012 at 4:03 pm

    Gorgeous! This is such a perfect make-over for this tray, I love it :)

    Reply
  13. Chelsea @ {twotwentyone} says

    July 26, 2012 at 7:14 pm

    LOVE this! It looks like a super expensive, fancy pants tray!

    Reply
  14. alison says

    July 26, 2012 at 8:05 pm

    It’s gorgeous. I love the stained inside. (and as a first-time visitor- um your couch… wow. LOVE it!)

    Reply
  15. Sarah @ 20 State says

    July 26, 2012 at 10:13 pm

    Ohhh this is a bit gorgeous, much like the rest of your house. Its official, I have big time envy!

    Reply
  16. Wendys Hat says

    July 26, 2012 at 10:46 pm

    This is just beautiful!

    Reply
  17. Niki {Hello Paper Moon} says

    July 27, 2012 at 5:42 am

    It really is fabulous! What a cute and cost effective transformation!

    Reply
  18. Talitha says

    July 27, 2012 at 9:31 am

    That turned out beautifully! I love it!

    Reply
  19. hani@craftionary says

    July 27, 2012 at 10:17 am

    Superb. Pinning this! Thanks for linking up at Friday Fun Party. Have a nice weekend.

    Reply
  20. Sherry says

    July 27, 2012 at 12:45 pm

    Hi Taryn,

    Stopping by from A2D – I Love this tray makeover!!! Now I’m off to check out the rest of your posts…Have a great weekend – enjoy!!!

    Reply
  21. Heather@French Press says

    July 27, 2012 at 5:36 pm

    what a beautiful transformation

    Reply
  22. Suzanne says

    July 27, 2012 at 8:50 pm

    That looks great! I love the white and dark espresso, too.

    Reply
  23. Sarah@sarahlyallhome says

    July 27, 2012 at 8:56 pm

    Trays are so in right now and so expensive..I love the way you DIY’d that one!

    Reply
  24. Becca says

    July 28, 2012 at 9:33 am

    What a great idea! I never would have thought to change the bottom like that! Great project, chica!
    xo Becca

    Reply
  25. Jenn says

    July 28, 2012 at 8:15 pm

    Wow! I have a tray that I want to redo. I’m excited by your success and ready to give it a shot.

    Reply
  26. Erin says

    July 29, 2012 at 8:07 pm

    Wow, gorgeous. So glam rustic. (Is that a thing?) I’m excited to see this since I have the same tray with those blasted ridges/cracks. I demoted the tray to toy storage since it was so impossible to keep clean anyway. But this gives me hope. Thanks! Beautiful job.

    Reply
  27. Maury @ Life on Mars says

    July 30, 2012 at 6:21 am

    This looks great! i love the wooden base. Great job! Visiting from Nifty Thrifty Sundays!

    Reply
  28. Patty says

    July 30, 2012 at 11:45 am

    Wow, I am really impressed with what you did with your tray. We do the same thing with the ottoman and a tray.

    Reply
  29. Tammy says

    July 30, 2012 at 8:57 pm

    Wow! What a great makeover! And you get to enjoy that wedding present even longer now :)

    Reply
  30. Rhiannon says

    July 30, 2012 at 11:38 pm

    Gorgeous! Love the look., so unique too now. Am following your blog now, have clicked on quite a few of your projects recently and decided I should probably just follow along as I like everything you make! :)

    Reply
  31. Amie @ Pinkapotamus says

    July 31, 2012 at 4:18 am

    This is Gorgeous! I just adore the colors and the shabby chicness of it with the roses and books! HOpe you will share with my Pink Hippo Party @ http://pinkapotamus.blogspot.com/2012/07/pink-hippo-party-89.html
    xoxo
    Amie @ Pinkapotamus

    Reply
  32. HouseTalkN says

    July 31, 2012 at 5:41 am

    Holy awesome! I want the couch, the tray, the works! I am a newbie here and I have spent way too much time peeking around this morning!
    Kerry at HouseTalkN

    Reply
  33. Mindy says

    July 31, 2012 at 1:18 pm

    This is really quite the transformation! I think the dark color looks great against the white!

    Reply
  34. Sara says

    August 1, 2012 at 6:22 am

    These are adorable!! Hope you can link them up at my trendy tuesday party going on right now!!

    Reply
  35. Katie says

    August 1, 2012 at 11:14 am

    Thank you for sharing your project at A Crafty Soiree! What a great way to give an tray new life. I have one that could use a facelift as well!

    Reply
  36. Aimee @ ShugarySweets says

    August 1, 2012 at 11:16 am

    Genius. I love it!

    Reply
  37. vickiemunton says

    August 1, 2012 at 4:09 pm

    LOVE IT! I can’t wait for my next re-do!

    Reply
  38. Mary says

    August 1, 2012 at 4:26 pm

    I LOVE this! What a great idea! I love how you put the birch in the bottom. Very classy look!

    Reply
  39. Karen Whitney says

    August 1, 2012 at 8:04 pm

    This is darling! Looks even better than the brand new tray! Awesome save :)

    Reply
  40. Betsy says

    August 1, 2012 at 8:54 pm

    Oh, I love the birch wood you added into the tray. It adds a lot to the look.

    Reply
  41. Bre says

    August 2, 2012 at 5:53 pm

    Gorgeous blog! I found you over at the Liz Marie Blog link up. I have a tray from a thrift store in my garage waiting for a transformation just like this! Although I don’t think I’ll have the patience to put the detail into it like you did. Yours looks amazing!

    Reply
  42. angie says

    August 2, 2012 at 6:27 pm

    I simply LOVE what you did to that tray! I am going to try one too. I have some dark 3/4 inch dark cappuccino strip flooring that was left over from my new floor. I think I will try it with that.

    Simply gorgeous!

    Reply
  43. Barbe@ Beez Rental Designs says

    August 2, 2012 at 11:00 pm

    Hello Taryn,
    You did such a great job on your tray, kudos! I have a tray that I started a makeover and didn’t like where it was going so just put it away. lol Your inspiration has moved me to try again, thanks for sharing. I found you over at Inspirational Friday party. If you get a chance would love if your share at Frugal Treasures party going on through Sunday evening. Going to check out some more of your posts. Have a good weekend.
    Barbe

    Reply
  44. katie says

    August 3, 2012 at 6:22 am

    gorgeous tray makeover. You have my wheels spinning since i have a hot pink tray that i would seriously love to make over!

    Reply
  45. Beverly {Flamingo Toes} says

    August 3, 2012 at 3:56 pm

    I love they way you transformed this Taryn!! The new slats paired with the white are just perfect!
    Thanks so much for linking up – I featured you today!

    Reply
  46. Aimee - It's Overflowing says

    August 3, 2012 at 4:32 pm

    Fab is totally right! This tray is so cool as is your gorgeous white sofa! Featuring you tomorrow!

    XO, Aimee

    Reply
  47. Erin @ His & Hers says

    August 6, 2012 at 1:44 pm

    This is gorgeous! The white + wood is perfect. Although I do miss the food crumbs…they added a certain element of the unexpected. ;)

    Reply
  48. Vel says

    August 6, 2012 at 4:03 pm

    You did a really good job! Saw this from “My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia”

    Reply
  49. Sarah {Lacquer and Linen} says

    August 7, 2012 at 5:36 pm

    What a gorgeous transformation! I just saw this on Craftgawker and am so glad I did because I love your site! I can totally relate to DIY mishaps and have saved the day (more than a few times) with wood filler! Can’t wait to spend more time looking through your blog! – Sarah :-)

    Reply
  50. Debbie refreshrestyle says

    August 12, 2012 at 10:31 am

    Love it! The dark stain looks awesome :)

    Reply
  51. Kristin Cadwallader says

    August 13, 2012 at 7:40 am

    Love this makeover! Beautiful! xxx Kristin

    Reply
  52. Debra says

    August 16, 2012 at 6:39 am

    That turned out GREAT!

    Reply
  53. Julie @ Inspired by You says

    August 20, 2012 at 11:32 am

    Really love the wood contrat.

    Reply
  54. Dreaming All Day says

    October 12, 2012 at 12:09 am

    Oh my gosh, who’d have thought to do this!!!? You are so brilliantly creative!

    Reply
  55. Julia @ cuckoo4design says

    October 20, 2012 at 3:58 am

    Hi Taryn, I just found this on homestoriesatoz. It grabbed my attention because I think we have very similar tastes. Is this the Claudia sofa from Macys? I have same sofa and same ottoman and I love your tray!

    Reply
  56. courtney says

    January 31, 2013 at 9:37 am

    this is beautiful!!

    Reply

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Taryn Whiteaker

Hi and welcome! I'm Taryn and the voice of style behind Taryn Whiteaker Designs. I'm a wife, mom of three, and coffee lover, living in the Pacific Northwest! This is where I share my love for design, whether it's decorating our own home, tackling big DIY projects, creating inviting tablescapes, or sharing my personal style. Thanks for stopping by and don't forget to subscribe to my mailing list to get all the latest updates! Read more...

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