I made this easy-to-do tray as a bridal shower decoration and as a gift for the bride-to-be.  If you squint just right, you might not be able to see the crapsmanship that went into its making!  CRAP ALERT:  My first error was in not getting a full photo gallery of my technique, but I don’t think the blog post will be harmed without a full visual explanation.

My supplies were a wooden, unpainted tray from Michael’s (I liked the more expensive square one, but I had a coupon!), gloss black craft paint, a paintbrush, gloss-finish ModPodge, two sheets of pink (the bride’s favorite color) scrapbook paper, and some black striped washi tape from Office Depot.

CRAP ALERT:  The first thing I should have done was sand the tray.  Unfortunately, I first painted the whole thing black.  Sanding would have made the tray much smoother to the touch.  After painting, I went over it with ModPodge to add a level of protection to the surface.  In the photo above, the ModPodge is drying on the bottom of the tray.

Next, I cut down my scrapbook paper to fit the tray’s inner area.  I put down a layer of ModPodge in the inner area, placed the paper into the tray, and began to paint ModPodge over the top.   CRAP ALERT: I obviously hadn’t let the black paint dry well enough, so when I attempted to ModPodge the top of the scrapbook paper, black paint smeared on it.  That’s why I was smart to buy two sheets of scrapbook paper.  When you’re used to crapsmanship, you prepare for the worst!

I peeled off the smeared paper, cut a second piece, and removed air bubbles with a credit card.  I waited a while to make sure everything black was well-dried, and then I ModPodged the top of the paper.

Because my cutting was a little uneven (CRAP!), I used the washi tape to lay a strip all around the inner edge.  Since the washi tape was the exact width of the tray lip, I also put washi tape over it.  I worked carefully to made sure my cuts were square.  I then did another coat of ModPodge over the top, and Bob’s your uncle, I was finished.

It doesn’t look half bad, does it?!