Decorating with Trays

"Everyone should own a silver serving tray. . .use it to serve guests when you're entertaining, keep it on your desk to harbor note cards, pens, and stationery, and even use it in the bathroom to hold hand towels.  It will never go out of style. . ."  -Kelly Calvin Robson, in Matchbook Magazine, March 2011

After I read that, I felt the need to have a silver tray in my home.  I had also seen that Emily of cupcakes and cashmere suggests using a vintage tray in the bathroom to hold treasures, and she used a tray here to hold things on her nightstand.  I decided I wanted some little trays to hold things in the bathrooms, and maybe some for my jewelry or perfume in our bedroom.  I searched thrift stores and antique stores until I finally found one silver tray that wasn't too beat up.  It was larger than I had wanted for the any of the bathrooms, so I decided to put it in our guest bedroom with a few things on it in an attempt to make our guest bedroom more welcoming.

some books for a little reading before bed

I love everything mint, so of course had to offer some

to soothe dry hands

silver tray on top of bookshelf

I would still like a few more smaller silver trays for holding things elsewhere.  Do you use trays in your decorating?  Don't have a tray?  Emily also placed a beveled mirror on top of vintage suitcases to make a nightstand, and Real Simple took a gilt frame and used it as a vanity tray.