Goodwill Challenge: Upcycled Serving Tray

Hello One Artsy Mama readers, it’s time for part two of our Goodwill Challenge! I was “blessed” with this hand-painted wooden serving tray. I’m sure that there’s someone who worked really hard on these flowers, but alas, the recipient wasn’t nearly as impressed and it ended up on the bottom shelf at the Goodwill store.

The tray is on the small side, and isn’t meant to hold a lot of weight, so I thought it would be perfect for our coffee table as a remote holder, or even just a small snack tray. Apparently the theme of this Goodwill trip was “Amy and Erin find awesome things to put on a coffee table”. So let’s see how I {Erin} upcycled this cute little tray!

Upcycled Serving Tray

Materials:

-Wooden Serving Tray

-12×12 Piece of Scrapbook Paper

-Scissors

-Foam Brushes

-Mod Podge (I used Matte)

These materials were supplied by DecoArt, all opinions are my own:

–DecoArt Americana Decor Chalky Finish Paint in Everlasting (or whatever color you’d like)

–DecoArt Americana Decor Creme Wax

–DecoArt Americana Decor Waxing Brush

Step 1: Paint the tray using the chalky finish paint. Let Dry. I chose the chalky paint, because I like the vintage feel it gives to the piece. You don’t have to paint the whole tray white, just where the paper WON’T be showing.

Step 2: Seal the tray with the creme wax. Let Dry. Seriously let it dry. Don’t ask me why I’m telling you this, but let’s just say my project took an extra day because I was too impatient excited to wait.

Step 3: Choose your paper and cut to fit the base of the tray.

Step 4: Using a foam brush, apply Mod Podge to the bottom of the tray. Place the sheet of paper on top and smooth it out. After a few minutes, apply a light coat of Mod Podge to the top, which gives the tray a small bit of protection from daily use. 

Step 5: Enjoy! Now granted, you can’t be as cool as me right now, and enjoy a light breakfast for two on the back porch, taking in the sights and smells of the Atlantic Ocean, but it still functions very well as a remote and tv guide (wait, does the tv guide still exist, besides online?) for your coffee table.

It was a very easy project, and it was fun to give that little tray a second life. I think our Goodwill challenge was quite successful, and I love the transformation of our less-then-stylish pieces, don’t you? I can’t wait to see what our next challenge will bring!