The humble & hard-working tray
Why it deserves an OBE for its service to the interiors community
I set out this morning to write about playing it safe with interiors, something I’ve always railed against and have written about in all my books, yet have found myself edging closer and closer to in my recent renovation. But it’s a big topic and since I can never keep things surface-level (everything is a deep conversation with me) even when I’m talking about interiors, it will take me all day. And frankly, as much as I’d like to spend the day writing ( I would and could) it’s a working weekend for me as I prepare for another big shoot.
But as I sat down to write I glanced at a tray in the middle of our huge dining table, set down last week because I couldn’t find a spot for it. Not a particularly special tray, like many things it was purchased for a shoot and somehow found its way into daily use afterwards. Over the course of the week, as I packed and then unpacked many props for a shoot, it became a receptacle for random bits: first a plant that had to be moved from the dusty hallway away from the building works; then some bird books and field glasses I’d just found at a charity shop as I prop-shopped (I’m a bird watcher now didn’t you know?) and wanted to keep in sight so I didn’t forget to use them; a candle brought out of storage to mask the smells of building materials; some coasters to use on the highly impractical leather pouffe that serves as a coffee table nearby.
All of a sudden, I’d accidentally created a moment of organisation in the middle of the second summer of chaotic building works at the house and it had an instant calming effect. Sounds silly writing that, but when all around is disorganisation, one small dot of tidiness calmed my anxious mind. Because just beside the tray are boxes of toiletries ousted from the old bathroom cupboard until the new one is built, covered by a linen tablecloth to preserve some of my dignity - because not everyone who pops by needs to see my sanitary products or out of date medicines on the dining table. On the floor next to it is a box of props leftover from a shoot that I need to donate. And on the other side is a drying rack of laundry because damn this rainy British summer. Having a little rectangle of organisation amidst this mess feels good. Small and silly, but good.
Using trays to corral odds and ends isn’t a new idea, but I’ve mostly used them in the kitchen, next to the hob/stove for oils and seasonings or in the bedroom for perfumes, jewellery and other random dressing table bits. Perhaps because creating my first home years ago coincided with having a small child, I never got into the habit of the coffee table tray. In fact I probably thought it was a bit too precious, something reserved for people who bought overpriced candles and didn’t have small children to knock things over. But now years later, that’s basically me. The children and their curious little hands have flown the nest and I am a coffee table (or in this case, dining table) tray convert.
Like any container used in the home, be it a drawer or a cupboard or a box under the bed, a tray that starts out pretty and organised can quickly become a magnet for junk. Mine has already attracted a couple of alan keys and some rubber bands. I’m a big advocate for a healthily messy junk drawer, so once in a while give the tray a declutter and relegate those bits to the drawer.
Next time I’ll try to share my thoughts on why/how I’ve inadvertently played it safe in my new home’s design, but for now I’ll leave you with a few trays that are working hard and looking good.
