i should be mopping the floor: DIY Kitchen Tray

This easy-to-make DIY kitchen tray has been on my to-do list for a while.

Glad it's now on the Ta-Da list!

Easy-to-Make DIY Kitchen Tray | Simple project that's budget friendly and can be made in a couple of hours.

Remember how we *pretty much* finished our kitchen redo last summer? Well, there were still a few loose ends that I just hadn't gotten around to tying, yet. One was a tray for my island to fit my fruit bowl, a candle, and an old scale. I've been dreaming about it forever...I bought the supplies months ago. I would see them in shops and think "just finish it already". And a few days ago...I DID!

It is MY Big Finish.

Read past the tutorial to find out how you can enter to win $10,000 for your Big Finish!

A friend of mine has a similar one on her island that she bought at a craft show. I loved the rustic, shabby design. And it was a really simple project {making me wonder why I took so long?}. I did it 100% by myself in a little over two hours.

I love seeing my old scale on display. And the bowl was my great grandmother's.

Do you have a project you've been putting off finishing?
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You'll need five cut pieces of wood for this...the length will depend on how long you'd like your tray. Mine was a bit longer at 34", but I also plan to use it as a centerpiece on my Thanksgiving table this year...filled with candles! Plus, my island is fairly long...I wanted this baby to take up some real estate on it {I put felt pieces on the bottom of it to easily slide it to the side when I need the island for prep space}.

I used two 1"x4"x6' boards for my tray, cut into the five pieces. Each board was less than $3 each. I splurged and bought $6 handles, but my total was still under $20 for the entire project.

The two end boards {that hold all of it together} were cut at a foot each...so the three long boards would fit flush along it.

After cutting my boards, I gave them a good sanding.
I know I've mentioned this before, but I've had this BLACK+DECKER sander for almost 15 years. I use the ding-dang out of it and it still runs great. It's by far one of my most used {and loved} tools.

The only *slightly* tricky part of this project is the handles. You'll attach them to your end pieces before attaching all of the boards to your end pieces. I sunk my screws in by pre-drilling a hole for the actual screw. Then, I used a larger drill bit {making sure it was larger than the screw head} and drilled just the top portion of the wood out, so the screw head would sink down and not cause the wood pieces to sit unevenly.

I clamped my boards together, pre-drilled holes {as not to split any of the wood}, and attached the longer boards, side-by-side, to the end boards with two screws on each end.

After everything was attached, I painted it and gave it a chippy finish with some milk paint that I had on hand.

And as you can see in the above photo, I attached small felt squares to the bottom. It makes it easy to move around the island top without scratching the surface.

I'm really loving this thing. It's perfect for setting hot pots on, as well.

So...what is YOUR big finish?
Do you have a room you've been meaning to paint?
Or maybe some trim that needs to be hung?

Tell me about your project...and be sure to register for TEN THOUSAND BIG ONES for your next big project. BLACK+DECKER has launched a movement to get all the unfinished home projects moving again. Join them for the chance to win $10,000 cash and products. Plus, they might put you and your finished project on a billboard right in the middle of Times Square {how cool is that?!?}! So while your family may never notice that you finished painting the bathroom, millions of others will!

For this campaign, there are Weekly Prizes, at approximately $439.91 per prize, and one Grand Prize of $10,000.

To enter, visit the campaign landing page here, and enter your First Name, Last Initial, Email, City, State, Phone and upload a photo of yourself and your completed project!

Please note, the contest ends December 28th, 2014.

CLICK HERE TO ENTER.