How to Re-cover a Wooden Tray | Dollar Store Craft
I love decorative trays. They are so handy. Here’s how to re-cover a wooden tray.
I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again. The dollar store has come a long way. Recently I’ve noticed these nice wooden trays that have been in store. Typically they are associated with a season and so they contain a message to that effect.
But what about the rest of the year? For me personally, other than Christmas, I don’t keep too many (if any) decorations for other holidays. I simply don’t have room or space to house a lot of seasonal decor.
I saw this cute tray last Thanksgiving. Since then, I’ve also seen them at Christmas. However, now I want to convert it into a year-round tray. So let’s figure out how to re-cover a wooden tray.
How to Re-Cover a Wooden Tray From the Dollar Store
To repurpose this tray is easy. I found this adhesive vinyl at the dollar store. All you have to do is cover up the design and you are good to go.
I have a lot of solid-coloured Avery adhesive vinyl at home, but I wanted something prettier. My local dollar store had these patterned vinyls that I thought looked nice and were neutral enough that it would work year-round.
Now my design was quite dark and so first I put down some white Avery adhesive vinyl. This kind of masks the design. This may not necessarily apply to you.
Then cut the adhesive vinyl and apply that over top.
Tips for Cutting
This applies to both the initial white layer, as well as the decorative layer. There are 2 ways to do this. I will show you both.
To get nice clean cuts, I recommend a ruler and either a box cutter or rotary cutter.
The key is to get it fit just right. You want to make sure that the original design is completely covered. One way to do this is to cut it slightly larger, apply it and cut the excess off.
You can also carefully measure, cut to size and apply it.
I tried both methods for this tray – one for the bottom layer of plain white and then one for the top layer. Both worked well. I believe it’s just a matter of personal preference.
TIP: Utilize one of the edges of the vinyl as one of the sides. That’ll be one less line to cut and you know it’s already perfectly straight.
Tips for Applying
Okay, now that you have it cut out, it’s time to apply the vinyl. It isn’t a huge piece of vinyl but it can still be a bit tricky to apply.
Regardless of whether you cut it oversized or just right, you’ll want to peel the backing off on one side to start.
Apply this side down first. If you cut your vinyl slightly larger it’ll ride up the sides a bit. Using a large scraper or even. a credit card, coax the vinyl right into that corner. Get right in there.
Trim the excess on this one side using a box cutter.
If you cut your vinyl to size, line up the cut edge with the edge of the tray. Using your scraper, press the vinyl down right into that edge. Trim the excess on this one side.
Now that you have one side complete, slowly remove the backing, pressing as you go.
When you are done, run that scraper over the vinyl again to make sure there are no bubbles. Work your way from the center, out.
Look at the difference! Now I can use that nice little Thanksgiving tray year-round. I must say that little bits of clutter always look better when contained in a nice tray! Next time you see one of these in the dollar store, you’ll know how to re-cover a wooden tray to make it fit your decor.
This tray has so many purposes and can have so many uses. They are a great catch-all for the kitchen counter, your dresser, your desk, your mail….the possibilities are endless! This would also make a nice base for a gift, instead of using. a basket. Now that you know how to re-cover a wooden tray, you’ll be buying them all up!
