In places like the kitchen and the bathroom that get a lot of use it's just inevitable that stuff needs to be out on the counter. Whether it's olive oil, vinegar and salt and pepper shakers or your favorite perfume bottles and a framed picture, in the kitchen and bathroom the stuff we use most ends up being out. That's all fine and good until it turns to clutter (or just starts attracting a ton of other items that don't really belong there). One way to minimize cluttered counters is to wrangle it into clusters using trays or platters.
Here are our favorite trays: from modern and melamine to classic marble or silver to natural bamboo. In all shapes and sizes, you can wrangle most anything. For some more ideas check out our roundup of breakfast trays
Black or White Large Serving Trays, $24.36
SOlig Tray, $1.49, Peacock Melamine Tray on sale $18.99, Simrin serving trays, Angela Adam's serving trays
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Trays are addictive! I've found my favorite ones at thrift shops. And those painter's trays, they last forever.
Please! Nothing more with deer motifs. Haven't we seen enough deer?!
I love trays and find them useful. I have one like the yellow in white that I bought from West Elm on sale for 15.00, I use it on my bookcase night stand to hold, ear plug, hand cream, sleeping mask and small flash light. Before that I had it in the kitchen holding note paper and a small glass with pencils and a vase.
I have a super old silver tray that I love to use when I entertain. I am with Vincent I look for them when I go to thrift stores.
I love the "love birds" birch tray from ISAK -- http://www.isak.co.uk/products.php?offset=3&cat_id=2
I just bought a square melamine salad plate at Target to be my new bathroom counter tray.
It cost about $2 or $3, it's the perfect size for what I needed, it's pretty much indestructible...and if it's not, for three bucks, it's easily replaceable. The best part... it's my favorite shade of green and has white polka dots and just makes me smile.
I'm searching for a tray to corral my dish soap and lotion bottle near the kitchen sink, but I need something very thin to fit. The space next to the sink is only about the width of the bottles- maybe 3 or 4 inches. Does anyone have a good lead for a skinny, long tray?