Harlequin Letter Tray

I had been on the lookout for a small box to use as a letter tray and found this gray wooden tray on clearance at Joann's fabric.  When I bought it the one thing I knew was that I wanted to change it up a bit. I liked that it was wood and a good size but I wasn't crazy about the rustic style and decided to paint it.

                    

Lately harlequin patterns have been on my mind so I thought a bright red color with a black and white diamond pattern might be sharp. The tray had silver metal edges which I did not like so to start I removed them with a flathead screwdriver and then sanded and primed it. Next I spray painted it with a bright red gloss paint from Krylon caller Banner Red. 

I hadn't used Krylon before so I wasn't sure what to expect. The wood was very soft and porous so it took about four coats to cover completely but it worked out fine. I finished up with a gloss topcoat. I had intended to paint the bottom with the black and white pattern but realized that trying to get the diamond pattern right might be a little daunting  and time consuming so I searched for a black and white paper I could cut and glue to the bottom. I couldn't find exactly what I wanted but I did find a cute little harlequin bandanna at Joann's Fabrics for a couple bucks. 

I cut a piece of cardboard that I had left over from another project to match the size of the bottom of the tray. Next I washed and ironed the bandanna and centered the fabric over the cardboard. Quick note: the pattern was not straight so it made it difficult to center in the board. To solve the problem I lined up one side so that at least part of it was straight. Unless you are a perfectionist it won't matter if it's not perfectly straight but with a diamond pattern like this it looks weird if it is too uneven. To keep it from shifting I taped one side of the fabric to the cardboard and then used spray adhesive to glue it to the cardboard making sure to smooth out any wrinkles. I then just set it in the bottom of the tray. No need to glue it, it's not going anywhere.

Good tip: Bandannas are a good way to get just enough fabric for a project like this. They're small, come in a multitude of colors and patterns and you can usually get them for a dollar two. 

I'm very happy with the outcome and the cool thing is if I ever want to change it I can always pop out the cardboard and switch the fabric.

B.