Thanksgiving Sign from a Bamboo Serving Tray

 A bamboo serving tray is not exactly a rarity at thrift stores these days. They vary in cleanliness and condition, and when I spotted a stack of them at Habitat Restore, I decided to give one a makeover as my latest project for the Charlotte Region ReStore blog.

My upcycling plan was simple and straightforward: Paint and stencil the tray.

But the best part is that it would be a double duty DIY, as both a serving tray and a Thanksgiving sign! Aside from this pilgrim hat craft (ALSO from a Habitat ReStore find), I haven’t done too many Thanksgiving-specific projects.

But, it seemed like this was a ripe opportunity to rectify that. So, let’s get crackin’ (and crafting)…

This post contains affiliate links for your crafting convenience, and was also sponsored by the Charlotte Region ReStore(s). All blue, bold, and underlined text is a clickable link, either to a product or to a related post.

Double Duty DIY with a Bamboo Serving Tray

Here’s a better view of the bamboo serving tray. I selected the cleanest of the lot, but even after some careful scrubbing, a few stubborn stains wouldn’t go away.

Those stains made it easy for me to decide to paint it, though! And I selected a creamy off-white shade of spray paint to give me a fresh and clean surface for stenciling.

Next, I gave it two full coats of paint and was quite pleased at how it turned out. Clean and bright and ready for further embellishing!

I loved that the herringbone pattern of the woven bamboo was still visible through the paint!

Anyway, it was then time to transform the tray into a Thanksgiving sign. I selected and sized the perfect stencil, which I purchased it from this online shop.

Next, I carefully stenciled the word and willow branches in two different colors to complete my Thanksgiving sign.

Lastly, I made sure the stenciling was completely dry before giving the entire tray and light topcoat with a clear satin spray. And that was it! Ready to see how it turned out?

Thanksgiving Sign from a Bamboo Serving Tray

When all was said and done, I was left with a fresh and elegant makeover. It has a bit of a farmhouse look (which I’ve been moving away from doing), but I love how it turned out nonetheless!

I actually thought about finishing it up by wrapping the ends (where you’d consider the handles to be) with jute twine. But, in the end, I went without and left the handles as they were

I think it’d be a fine embellishment, though, don’t you?

Either way, it’s hard to beat such a simple project that has two potential uses.  It could be a tray set out on a coffee table for drinks (in lieu of coasters) or snacks. OR you could prop it up against the wall as a Thanksgiving sign.

Which way do you think you’d use it as?

I think I’m partial to it as a sign. But maybe that’s because I’m selfish and don’t want drinks or snacks covering up my stenciling work!

I hope you enjoyed this super simple, but very effective upcycling idea for a bamboo serving tray! And as always, I always encourage you to visit this tutorial on the Charlotte Region ReStores’ blog, as well.

Either way, may your Thanksgiving this year be safe, peaceful, and full of food and love!

And don’t forget that my first book, “Crafting with Flannel”, is now available! It even contains its own tray project- with a touch of flannel, of course…

You can purchase it online from Amazon, Target, Barnes & Noble, and Walmart!

Plus, I have an entire blog post dedicated to other upcycling ideas for Thanksgiving– a few of my projects, as well as others’, too!

Craft on!

S

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