Quick Project – Bed Tray for the Grandkids

I was outside working on one project and digging through my scrap wood when I came across a 19″ piece of 1 x 10″ board (which means it is 9 1/4″ wide). I set it aside for a quick project to do the next opportunity I had an hour of free time. Who doesn’t love an instant gratification project! Plus I know my husband is always happy when I think of some project that will make my scrap wood pile diminish slightly!

I just recently made a bed tray for myself. I thought about making another one, this time for the lake house, but the board was only 19″ wide and my hips like a comfortable 22″ wide bed tray. Then I started to think about how I could use this piece of wood and still take a bed tray. After all, it is almost Valentine’s day and I sometimes get tired of giving the same kind of gifts to the grandkids. One of my granddaughters is a little laptop and notebook ‘Youtube’ obsessed. So I thought about what a perfect little gift a bed tray would make for her.

The good thing about making a bed tray for the grandkids is that it actually can have a lot of uses. A portable workstation, a snack table in front of the TV, an ‘I don’t feel good today’ stay in bed tray for meals, and a “mommy needs a nap but you can still spend time with me table.” It can even become the garage for their hot wheels. With that in mind, I just grabbed 4 of my unused porch railings and went to my saw.

I cut my porch spindles so that I had a 6 1/2″ piece that had a good portion of decorative features as well as a firm stability portion to attach to the scrap board.

Then I just had to decide which direction to attach them that visually made the piece beautiful. I always try them both ways before I attach them.

At this point, I have about 20 minutes of work into this project. That includes sanding the 1 x 10″ scrap, finding the spindles, cutting them, completing a rough sand to the spindles, and attaching them with wood glue. I used my nail gun and sunk nails from the top as well as from the bottom. Then I wood filled my holes but didn’t overly worry about getting every nook and cranny because I do want the bed tray to be rustic. I think the legs look very rustic and I want the top to match..

Even if I can’t think of projects that I could make for my grandsons and have to wait before giving this to her, there are a lot of other ways I can incorporate this tray into my home. I can use it to display food on another tier at a buffet line set up. I think it would make a great cupcake stand! I can place some cute Easter decor on it and display it on a table top. When the grandkids come to visit, especially the 3 year old, I can put his snack on it when he sits on the floor.

I hope you find some inspiration from this quick project and I hope you make one that fits your needs exactly! If you do, please post a picture of it and comment below. You can also tag me at #mothertruckerdesigns.

Respectfully,

The Mother Trucker