Trays aren’t just for serving your tea and biscuits. Oh no, a beautiful tray is an effective and pretty way to store everything from your office essentials through to your coffee table necessities. What were once scattered objects become an organised collection when gathered together on a pretty platter. Well that’s what I tell myself anyway.
It’s a shame though that such pieces can be a pricey addition to your home decor. Never one to shy away from a bit of DIY (or a trip to Ikea), I’ve created a stylish yet budget-friendly tray that should only take you about 20 minutes to create.

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{You will need}
  • A box photo frame such as the Ikea RIBBA (£3.50). It’s best to opt for a frame with large depth if you want to add handles or other hardware.
  • Hardware. We used handles and reinforcement corners from eBay.
  • Fancy wrapping paper
  • Drill and drill bits

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    Tutorial

    1. Dismantle your frame, being extra careful with the glass, putting it to one side.
    2. Then add your hardware by taking a drill and creating pilot holes to affix two handles to the side of your frame. If you’re using campaign-style handles like ours then you’ll need to drill a recess hole to house the domed rear of your handle.
    3. If you are using the reinforcement corners then drill pilot holes for these too. I would suggest a quick run through to test out the fitting the corners before you reassemble the frame. This will ensure your screws are the right length and don’t pop through the walls of your frame (or break the glass). Remove all the screws before you move on to the next step.
    4. Take the back of the frame and cut a piece of wrapping paper to size.
    5. Reassemble your frame making sure the wrapping paper is placed under the glass. Remember the glass should now be placed towards the back of the frame.
    6. Place flat on a surface and stack up your goodies on top.

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    As campaign-style hardware is all the rage at the moment, I was keen to to use military-style gold handles for this little creation. If you use slimmer handles then you could use a larger frame with lower sides to pop on your coffee table. Oh and by the way, those aren’t miniature biscuits on the tray but rubbers! Check out Blott if you want to get your hands on them.

    Let me know if you fancy making something your own or if you’ve spotted any high street gems.