Scrap Wood Project: Mirror Tray // DIY // Woodworking

By raiding your scrap wood pile and picking up a few new materials for very little money, you (yes, YOU!) can make a mirror tray similar to this one. Watch my process and check out the project total at the end of the video to see how easy and affordable it can be to make a one-of-a-kind tray that you can use for yourself or give as a gift to those who need to carry important icy beverages from one room to another.

The wood for this project was from the scrap pile, the mirror was from a local craft store, and the handles were from a big box home improvement store. The rest of the materials (glue, stain, paint, etc.) were supplies that I had in the shop. The idea here is to use what you've got and transform it into something new. This 2x6 board was from some project years ago and since it wasn't a really "nice" piece of wood, I decided to use it on this project and make it feel a bit more rustic and worn (the handles were an inspiration for this design choice).

But you could easily make this project without the handles and without the mirror. Make a tray with carved out handles, or make the handles out of the same 2x6 material and stain it all. Use what you've got, think about it in a new way.

// PROJECT INFO //

1. I wanted more use of my router, so that's why I ultimately chose to use the router to cut out the circle shape. If you don't have a router or don't want to use a router, you can easily get a circle cut out with a band saw or jig saw. There are tutorials online about using a table saw to cut a circle as well. Do some research and determine what is the best method for you.

2. For carving out the material where the mirror sits, I used a chisel which took a very long time. Ideally I would like to install a large face plate on the bottom of the router that would be able to ride the edges of the tray so that the router could be used to carve out the excess wood.

3. Handle installation: I used epoxy to hold the handle screws in place. An alternative to this would be to drill a hole through the backside of the tray and thread the entire machine screw into the handle. Don't cut off the head of the screw, but determine how long the screw needs to be to travel through the entire tray and into the handle securely (and then cut off any excess from the thread end if necessary). I did not do this here because of the chamfer edge on the tray, and I'm not transporting bricks or heavy weights on this tray so I feel confident about the epoxy holding the handles in place.

Hopefully this gives you some insight on how to create one of these for yourself. Please like and subscribe and share the video with your friends. Every little like and share helps keep me in the shop.

// DEVIN TRIER // MAKER //
www.devintrier.com/
www.instagram.com/devintriermaker/