Wood pedestal tray, footed tray, table style tray, whatever you call them, these pretty farmhouse style risers are useful in so many ways and are fabulous for making your décor stand out. Style them up as table centrepieces for parties or weddings. Use them as dessert or drink stands. Turn one into a coffee station for your kitchen, or even a cool desk accessory for your office. Wood pedestal trays are really inexpensive if you 'do it yourself'.
This DIY is so easy, you could have it finished in one day. (Unless you are filming and taking photos of the process, then it will probably take you two!) I wanted to make a step-by-step tutorial of the process to make it easier for you!
A QUICK REMINDER: When attempting any DIY project, please take care to undertake the necessary safety precautions. You should always follow the manufacturer’s safety recommendations when using any product or tool. When following my instructions for a DIY project, you are doing so at your own risk.
THE DIY CHALLENGE
I joined up with some amazing bloggers for this DIY challenge. The brief was to build a wood pedestal tray from scratch and style it for the holidays.
For me, the challenge was not in the actual building of it but in deciding how to style it but we'll get to that later.
Are you thinking of building a farmhouse style riser or are you just looking for ideas to style it for the holidays? Either way, I've got you covered. This is my interpretation of a footed tray but don't forget to check out all my friend's posts for more amazing inspiration. (See below for more details).
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What is a pedestal tray?
It's basically a tray on legs! You could make a wood pedestal tray by adding legs to a tray you already have or even by transforming a cutting board into a footed tray. You can make them in any length you want. I wanted my pedestal tray to display Christmas décor as a centrepiece on my table and that's why I made it so long. You could just as easily make a smaller version if you don't need it to be as long as mine.
For this challenge, the idea was to make a wood pedestal tray from scratch and it was much easier than I thought it would be.
Because this footed tray turned out to be so simple to make, it's given me the confidence to try more woodworking projects in the future!
After you've read this post, you will also be able to make one of these pretty footed trays for yourself because I'm giving you the step-by-step tutorial of the process!
How to distress wood
If you are using new store-bought wood to make this pedestal tray then you might want to distress it a bit first so it doesn't look too new.
I had fun jumping up and down on my wood pretending to be a snowboarder haha!
I just put the wood down on our gravel driveway and literally jumped all over it!
I've seen some people hit the wood with a hammer or scratch it with nails and chains. All I did was jump up and down on it and it had a lightly distressed look afterwards.
Do whatever you want to the wood, I mean, it's supposed to look distressed so you can't spoil it, can you?
Materials
- Wood L=80cm/31" W=20cm/8" D=2cm/0.8"
- Wood trim 2x L=80cm/31" 1cm/0.40" thick
- Wood trim 2x L=18cm/7" 1cm/0.40" thick
- Wood finials x 4
- Dowel (optional)
- Wood Glue
- Woodstain | USA | EU |
- clear wax
- white wax
- Chalk paint
Tools
- Googles
- Sanding mask
- Sandpaper or
- Electric sander
- Paintbrush
- Wood Saw
- Pencil
Step 1 Cut the wood trim
The trim I bought was so thin that you could easily use a hand saw to cut the pieces. I used a circular cutting saw because it was just sitting there and I'm all about making my life easier!
Cut two long pieces for each long side, the length of the base. Then cut two pieces for the short sides taking into account the size of the trim on the long sides. The short pieces will fit inside the longer pieces.
Step 2 Sand
Give all the pieces a light sanding with 120-grade sandpaper. Wipe the pieces down with a damp cloth or use a tack to clean away the sanding dust.
Step 3 Stain
If your wood is as light as mine was, it's a good idea to stain it first. We're going to be distressing the paint later and it's nice to have a darker colour showing through the paint. I loved the look of the bathroom stool I made a while ago and I wanted to achieve a similar finish on my pedestal tray so I just followed the same steps.
Give all the wood pieces two coats of wood stain, I used a walnut coloured stain for this (see the materials list above for the details). This is a good time to go and get lunch because you need to wait for the stain to dry.
Step 4 Paint
Once the wood stain is dry (about one hour), paint the pieces with whichever colour paint you want your pedestal tray to be. I used Rustoleum Chalk Paint in Antique White. After about twenty minutes, you can give the pieces a second coat – yup, chalk paint is very quick to dry!
Step 5 Distress the paint
I started off sanding by hand but then switched to my handy palm sander. Be warned, chalk paint creates a lot of dust when you are sanding it so don't forget to wear your mask and make sure you are outside when you do this step. Something crazy came over me when I was working on my media stand makeover and I started sanding the chalk paint inside. Take a look at that post, if you want to see the result – oops!
Step 6 Wax and buff
Use a wax brush or cloth to add a layer of clear wax over the top of the paint. Take a look at my coffee table makeover if you need a detailed tutorial on how to use chalk paint wax on furniture.
I added a layer of white wax over the top of the clear wax.
Step 7 Assemble the tray
Here's where the magic happens.
Use some wood glue to glue all the pieces of your trim to the pedestal tray base.
If you have them, it's a good idea to tighten clamps to the wood pieces after glueing. My wood glue only needed five minutes to dry so because I only had two clamps, I attached each section of the trim separately.
Step 8 Attach the legs
I used curtain pole finials for the legs. The finials were hollow inside and I was worried that there would not be enough surface wood on them to glue them to the base of the pedestal tray.
I had some dowelling leftover from another project and decided to cut some short lengths to fit inside the finials. I used wood glue to fix them in place inside the finials.
If you can't get finials you could just use large wooden ball knobs for legs instead. You can usually find them at the craft store. You could even make your own legs by cutting a thick piece of wood dowel or even an old spindle if you have some going spare.
Decide where on your pedestal tray you want to attach the legs. Rub some sandpaper over that area so that you have a wax-free area for glueing.
Once you are ready to attach the legs, measure 1cm in from the corner of the pedestal tray base on both sides.
Draw a circle around the legs so you know where you need to attach them.
Apply wood glue to the legs and fix them to the base of the pedestal tray. Use a clamp to press them tightly to the wood and leave them to dry.
Remove the clamps and attach small round furniture pads to the bottom of the feet to prevent them from scratching your table. You can also buy ready-made, sticky-back felt buttons for furniture.
Pedestal tray assembly finished
Now you have your very own display tray on legs! Wasn't that an easy DIY? The best bit is, you can use your footed tray all through the year for seasonal displays. See below for how I styled my pedestal tray for Christmas.
How can you use a pedestal tray?
Here are a few ideas on how to use your footed tray around the house:
- Wood pedestal trays make great plant stands. Use them to elevate plants on shelves. You could even add some wheels instead of legs so you can more easily move your plants around.
- Use them to hold condiments on your kitchen counter.
- Wood pedestal trays look great as farmhouse risers and would be perfect for any farmhouse buffet.
- Decorate your tray with seasonal displays in your kitchen.
- Add handles on each side instead of wood trim.
- Footed trays are perfect for adding extra height to wedding and birthday party table set-ups.
- Your wood pedestal tray would make a useful coffee table centrepiece. Remotes and other small items can be hidden out of sight underneath, and essentials or decor can be displayed on top.
- Wood pedestal trays make fabulous desk risers for accessories or even to elevate your monitor if you make it wide enough.
DIY Pedestal trays are extremely customizable and you can make them, to match your aesthetic and style.
Decorating a Pedestal Tray for Christmas
Here's how I decorated my wood pedestal tray for Christmas.
You can find lovely Christmas tree candles here.
I added some silver baubles for a bit of sparkle!
I added lots of natural Christmas decor. You can find gorgeous natural decor here.
Below, you can see my table with lovely wood pedestal tray all set for Christmas!
Where to buy online
If you love the look of these lovely footed trays but don't want to make your own, here are a few that you can buy online:
Chippy Farmhouse Pedestal Tray
These beautiful Farmhouse Risers with Cow motive (very pretty)
More wood pedestal tray Inspiration from the Blogger DIY Challenge participants!
Want to see more lovely pedestal trays and gorgeous Christmas styling? Well then, that's great because you are in for a treat.
Below, you will find links to the posts from all my blogger friends who took part in this challenge. Click the links to go straight to their posts. ENJOY!
American School of Charm - How to Use Scandinavian Decor as Holiday Table Inspiration
Shop At Blu - How to make a table riser
MTB Home Living - How to build a farmhouse footed tray
From Farmhouse To Florida - Quick easy way to make a footed tray
The Ponds Farmhouse - Easy to make DIY Farmhouse table riser
Mrs Coleman - How to make a footed tray the super easy way
J Dubby Design - DIY unique footed tray for holiday decor and entertaining
Modern On Monticello - DIY wood footed tray
Cottage on Bunker Hill - Christmas Tray DIY
Cottage In The Mitten - How to make a footed tray
Sydney & Co - DIY Decorative tray
Sonya Burgess - How to use scrap wood to make a pedestal tray
Faith and Farmhouse - How to make an easy footed tray
These posts are good too!
WAIT!
This post was shared and/or featured at these link parties.
Jennifer Williams says
Beautiful tray! Love how you styled it too.
Allison O'Dell says
This came out SOOO pretty. You are re-affirming my Christmas list to get more tools! So smart how you put the dowel into the finials. Brilliant!!
Jayne Westerholt says
Thank you so much, Allison! More tools are on my Christmas list too! A girl can never have too many right? 😉
Sandra Smith says
No photos of your work appeared and the only dimensions provided were metric! Not helpful! Frustrating experience all around.
Jayne Westerholt says
Hi Sandra, sorry to hear that. My images are 'lazy loading' to ensure a faster connection to my website. It could be that you scrolled too fast through the post thereby not allowing time for the photos to load. I see this on a lot of websites and usually find that refreshing the screen brings the photos up faster. As for the metric measurements, I'm in Europe so I'm used to metric but it's not a problem for me to edit the post to include Imperial measurements too. Thanks so much for your comment. 🙂
Linda says
I love how you made your tray! The styling is absolutely gorgeous!
Jayne Westerholt says
Thank you so much Linda!
Donna @ Modern on Monticello says
This is gorgeous! Both the tray and your decorations. You did a great job on this challenge. So glad I participated with you. Pinned!
Jayne Westerholt says
Thank you, Donna, it was so lovely to be in this challenge with you!
Rachel Harper says
Jayne,
Your tray is so cute. I love how you styled it.
Rachel
Jayne Westerholt says
Thanks so much Rachel! Loved being in this challenge with you!
Sue at Blu says
Jayne I absolutely love the side of your creation. And the greens and whites are just lovely! So woodsy and festive. This was a great challenge!
Sue at Blu says
oops...size! I love the size of your creation! lol
Jayne Westerholt says
Thanks, Sue! It was a great challenge, looking forward to doing more of these with you!
Renee Barton says
I love this! What a great way to make it look distressed. I love the blend of stained feet and white tray.
Jayne Westerholt says
Thanks so much, Renee!
Danielle says
I love the size of yours, and those dainty feet! SO pretty! You are now a carpentry queen!
Jayne Westerholt says
lol, Danielle, a carpentry queen I am not but I have to admit that making this footed tray has encouraged me to do more with wood!
Kim Waldorf says
I love your tray and the length you made it. It is styled beautifully for Christmas. What a great job!
Jayne Westerholt says
Thanks so much Kim! I loved yours too!
Sonya says
So happy to be part of the challenge with you and love your tray and how you styled it.
Jayne Westerholt says
Thank you so much Sonya! It was lovely to be in this challenge with you!
Elizabeth says
This is gorgeous, and you make it look so easy!
Jayne Westerholt says
Oh but it is! At least, this project was anyway 😉 Thanks for the lovely comment!
Sharon Rexroad says
Jayne - love how your tray came out. And your hint about adding a piece of dowel inside the finials? Brilliant!
Jayne Westerholt says
Thanks Sharon! We missed you in the challenge!
Cristele says
Hello Jayne,
My Name is Cristele, joining in from Charming Homes & Gardens Link party. My links are 46-48. I enjoyed your Farmhouse Wood Pedestal Tray. It looks very elegant! My favorite part about the tray is the length. I also love risers and elevating decorative elements on a tray, it gives the items a sense of presence.
Jayne Westerholt says
Hello Cristele, I'm so glad you liked my pedestal tray, it was so much fun to make!
Leslie Watkins says
Jayne! I love this project! I love the tray underneath and the wood feet with the white tray...stunning! I have pinned this more than once I love it soooo much! Great job, friend!
Jayne Westerholt says
Thank you so much, Lesley, you are a star!
Carol@BlueskyatHome says
Jayne, You are quite the woodworker. I'm so impressed with your skills. The tray turned out so pretty. It will make a great addition to styling vignettes any time of year, but I love how you styled it for the holidays. Thanks for sharing at Tuesday Turn About Link Party.
Jayne Westerholt says
Thank you, Carol! I'm looking forward to using this footed tray all around the house after Christmas! Always great fun partying at Tuesday Turn About!
rachelle says
Jayne, this has to be the most beautiful diy raised tray I've seen. You have a great attention to detail and the finished results plus the way you styled it is lovely. I want to visit the rest of the hop, but first pin your picture. I am unable to pin anything from this post 🙁
RR
Jayne Westerholt says
Thank you Rachelle for your lovely comment. I'm not sure what's going on with the pins but I will check that - thanks so much for letting me know!
Cecilia says
This is such a great tutorial, Jayne & you styled it beautifully! Thanks for sharing at Vintage Charm!
Jayne Westerholt says
You're welcome, Cecilia! Thanks so much for your lovely comment!
Rachel Harper says
Jayne,
I'm so excited that we are featuring your beautiful tray on Charming Homes & Gardens on Wednesday!
Jayne Westerholt says
Thanks so much for the feature Rachel. I love linking up with Charming Homes & Gardens!
Kim | Shiplap and Shells says
I loved everything about this riser Jayne. It is so cute! I am featuring you at Charming Homes and Gardens tomorrow.
Jayne Westerholt says
Thank you so much Kim!
Cindy says
This try is so pretty. Love the way you have it styled too.
Pinned
Jayne Westerholt says
Thanks so much, Cindy!