Make A Sturdy And Attractive Sofa Tray With IKEA Products

By Suzanne Brons
An image of an upside down book and a coffee cup and napkin on a wooden sofa tray. Evgeniia Siiankovskaia/Getty Images

Finding a place to rest your snacks and drinks while you are lounging on the couch can be an issue, especially if you have a large couch or a corner sectional. Only the people who sit closest to the end tables get the luxury of fuss-free snacking, which hardly seems fair. Of course, TV trays can be set up on the floor in front of you. And there are those that lie across your lap. Those types still make you to sacrifice a bit of comfort, either by requiring you sit further to the edge of the cushion than you normally would or to forgo the cozy blanket that's keeping you warm. 

A solution to your couch snacking problem lies in sofa trays — the kind that wedge between the couch cushions. A decent intercushion wooden tray can cost around $75, though. Fortunately, there is a way you can make your own sofa tray using a set of IKEA SMÖRLING serving trays that cost just $18. This hack involves cutting one of the serving trays (they come in packs of two) in half and securing one half to the bottom of the whole tray to create the wedge.

This inexpensive IKEA hack is so easy that you'll wish you'd known about it sooner. It's customizable, as well. So, you can say goodbye to snackless evenings or having to remove stains from your couch due to fumbling with your late-night treats, with a sofa tray that's exactly what you need.

How to make a sofa tray with an IKEA SMÖRLING tray set

@kjg_home

Ikea hack! We popped into @IKEAUK on Saturday and got some furniture pieces to help revamp the hallway and saw this tray two pack and I immediately knew what I wanted to do with them. It’s a lazy but great option -having your snacks and drinks literally next to you wherever you are on the sofa-it just fits right in and is super secure. I used a super strong glue (that I used to make my art frame) it’s the no nonsense mitre glue and comes with an activator so the fin part won’t fall off🙌🏻 You could do this with any type tray and colour to match your aesthetic to be fair just not too big otherwise you might not fit on the seat with it. . #ikeahack #ikeahacks #diyhomedecor #neutralaesthetic #ikeafinds #ikeahome #diyprojects #tvtray . Would you or your family find this useful?

♬ original sound - kjg_home

For this IKEA hack, start by cutting one of your SMÖRLING trays in half lengthwise. This can be done using a table or circular saw. Then, apply wood glue to one of the halves and press it onto the bottom of the other tray. Allow the glue to dry, and that's it. You now have a sofa tray for your snacks and drinks. To customize your new tray, you can paint it to match your home's decor or use stencils to paint on designs. To give this as a unique gift, you could monogram it, as well.

While this is a super-easy hack, it won't work for everyone. For those with understuffed couch cushions, this tray will likely tip when someone sits on it or repositions themselves. Tipping can happen on stiffer couches, as well, but it's less likely. If you plan on using this tray for drinks, a router can be used to make a circular indentation for cups. An IKEA LÅNESPELARE cup holder would be a great addition to this tray, as well. You could remove the clamp (optional) and secure it to the top of the tray using wood glue.  Depending on the width of your couch's arms, you could secure both halves of the one IKEA tray to the bottom of the other tray and make a more stable unit that sits on the couch arm instead of between the cushions.

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