My Friend’s “Tray” Trick Is So Brilliant, I Had to Steal It from Her

My friend Sarah’s house is always a little more organized than mine. You’d never lose a canned good in the back of her pantry. She has a Buy Nothing-to-Craigslist hand-me-down pipeline to die for. And, even with two dogs, her house is pretty clean, to boot. So, on one of my latest visits to her house, I noticed a brilliant trick and I had to steal it: drip trays.

All over her house were drip trays, the kind you’d see a mechanic use to keep oil off the ground during an oil change. She used them by the front door to stop muddy shoes from getting on her old wooden floors, under indoor plants or plant stands to prevent any water or soil spillage, and even beneath dog food bowls to contain any messes. 

I was so inspired by Sarah that I decided to get some drip trays. I opted for these smaller black plastic trays because they have a nice lip around to prevent anything from spilling over and can easily fit in corners .

My first drip tray location was by our back door. When the weather gets nice, my kids are constantly in and out of the sliding back door which leads to our deck and then the woods. Thus, dirty shoes are constantly piling up on the rug just inside. I also put a drip tray by the front door so that shoes can go there as well, whether it’s from the kids as soon as they come home or guests that we have over. 

I, like Sarah, also put drip drays under my dog’s water and food bowls, as well as some plants. Although, I may need to get larger ones for any wide plant stands. When the time comes to propagate my many monstera or pothos plants, I know one of these trays will come in handy.

And when my kids break out their craft supplies, such as modeling clay, kinetic sand, or tiny beads, I plan to use a drip tray to contain their various pieces.