zebra tray {diy style}

My daughter is turning one in about 3 weeks, and I have been trying to do a little here and there to keep myself for feeling overwhelmed right before the party. I knew a few months back that I wanted to use zebra print and hot pink in her party {with a little flair of poodle... I know that sounds strange but I promise it will be so cute... just you wait}. 


I started searching a few weeks back for some cute zebra print serving trays. Here are a few that I found that I loved...

"More than Paper" Zebra Tray- $40

M & N's Custom Monogrammed Gifts- $42

Haiti Gallery Art & Home Decor- $24.95

Any of these trays would have been a perfect fit for the party, the only problem was the price. I am working with a pretty tight budget for this party, and I could in no way justify spending that much on something that was going to be used for one party {I am sure I would reuse it for other special occasions, but not that often}. 


So, I decided to create my own zebra tray{s} and they turned out perfect for what I needed. It took me about 30 minutes to make both trays and it required no glueing, no sewing, and no clean-up! 

{what you need}:
~cookie tray {I picked up 2 at the dollar store}- $2
~ zebra print duct tape {I got mine at Michaels with a 40% off coupon}- $2.99
GRAND TOTAL {for both trays}- $4.99


Disclaimer: I did not take pictures of the process... in fact the tray in the above picture is one of my old cookie trays, hence the reason it looks a bit *ahem* loved. I will try to explain the process the best that I can.


{here's what I did}:
{one} cut 4 small strips of duct tape and attach them to your four corners {this is important because it creates a buffer, in case all your corners don't line up perfectly}
{two} cut and stick long strips down on the top of your tray, going slightly up on the walls of your tray. 
{three} cut strips of duct tape the length {plus a little wiggle room} of the four sides of you tray. 
{four} doing one side at a time cover the four walls of your tray, lining up the edge of your duct tape to the place were the flat part of your tray and the wall match up and then working up and around the back edge. 
{five} continue with all four walls and you are done!

{what I LOVE about this tray}:
~ It wipes down easily without worrying that you are going to ruin it.
~ When you get bored of the zebra print you can remove all the duct tape and make a different try to match your next party {or better yet just cover over the duct tape}
~ It was EASY!
~ It didn't cost an arm and a leg {I think that may be my favorite part}

I am still throwing around the idea of adding a little monogram to it but I am not sure yet. The tray will be used for food, so the monogram will most likely end up covered up... Hmmmm.... What do you all think? Should I add the monogram or leave it as is?