Easy DIY Thrift Store Tray Makeover

For this project I’m upcycling a simple 25 cent thrift store metal tray that I’ve had in my stash for quite a while. I actually found three of them at the same time, and I’ve already used one for this DIY Owl Owl with Fall Leaves. The last one is being saved for a future project.

This metal tray is very ho hum, making it a perfect candidate for an easy and fun and floral makeover.

Supplies needed for this Tray Makeover project

• Metal tray
• piece of scrapbook paper
• spray paints in colors of choice (paint and primer combos)
• scissors
• pencil
• decoupage medium
• foam brush
• brayer
• Goop adhesive

To dress up this tray I went through my scrapbook papers and found a lovely floral design. The goal is to inset the paper onto the flat middle part of the tray inside the scalloped area.

I used this same scrapbook paper for my wall clothes rack makeover, and my DIY wall art from thrift store canvases.

It’s just so summery and it makes me smile.

Here you can see the scalloped design from the bottom view of the tray.

To get the proper shape for the scrapbook paper I placed the piece right side down on the bottom of the tray. Then I ran my index finger along the edge of the scallop, and followed that with the lead of a pencil as I went. To keep the paper in place I taped it to the tray at the top and bottom.

I went a little too quickly in a couple of spots, which is where you see some corrections. It’s helpful to try to go slow, but booboos are also easy to fix so it’s all good.

And voila! It fits pretty well. It doesn’t have to be perfect.

We had a couple of warm days here so I took the tray outside and gave it two coats of an aqua paint and primer combo spray paint.

Then I did a dry fit of the scrapbook paper piece.

To add the scrapbook paper piece to the top of the tray I used a matte Mod Podge and a 1″ form brush.

After adding a coat to the tray I placed my scrapbook paper piece on top and used a brayer to flatten it down. I used my fingers around the edge. I didn’t do a top coat until I was done with the brayer. You can’t use a brayer when it’s wet.

The top coat goes on white, but it dries clear. I did three coats of the matte Mod Podge on top and bottom of the tray. letting it dry in between. I didn’t get a picture of this, but I used a plastic sandwich bag to smooth out any bubbles that appeared. By placing your hand inside the bag you keep your fingers clean.

I went into my stashes and found these four wooden drawer knobs, and I thought they’d make perfect feet for the tray.

I spray painted the knobs with a couple of coats of a hot pink paint and primer combo to match the floral scrapbook paper. Then I glued them on with GOOP adhesive.

The pink feet aren’t really very visible, but I think elevating a tray just gives it a little extra something.

Here you can see the before and after. That’s the last tray of the original trio on the left. The floral tray just seems to have more substance to it. It definitely has more personality.

I’m super happy with how my tray makeover turned out. I’m still debating whether or not I want to put something around the edge of the paper, but the cutout fits the shape very nicely so it’s not really necessary.

This was such a fun and easy project, and it cost me next to nothing because I used things I already had. The creative possibilities for a project like this are pretty endless, depending on the paper and spray paint that you decide to use. And decor style and color scheme could be easily matched.

You can find more decoupage makeover projects on my blog, Color Me Thrifty, here.