Top Bunk Bedside Tray

If you have bunk beds in your house, you know that it can be hard for whoever's sleeping on the top bunk to find a place to put a glass of water or book. I was looking for a solution to this problem and after considering a variety of options, I came up with this simple idea.

If you want to get fancy, you could use/build a wooden box and attach it to the bunk bed frame with metal clamps or hang it on hooks. I decided to use cardboard and zip-ties, since it's lighter and easier.

I decided on a "tray", with sides all around to prevent things from falling out, rather than a "table". You can make the sides of your tray however high you want. I just went with the height that the sides were on the box that I used, which were about 4" high. My box is about 9" wide by 12" long, but you can use whatever you find/prefer.

MATERIALS
- sturdy cardboard box, extra pieces of cardboard
- scissors, exacto knife
- pencil, ruler
- zip-ties
- glue gun and sticks
- duct tape, contact paper, fabric/glue, or similar items to cover/decorate the box, if desired

1. Remove any labels or extra tape from the box.

2. Glue down the flaps inside the bottom of the box.

3. Glue the top flaps to the sides of the box, either on the inside or the outside.

4. Measure the size of the inside of the bottom of the box and cut a piece of cardboard to fit it. Check the fit.

5. Cover this piece of cardboard, if desired.

6. Cover the sides (inside and outside) and bottom of the box (outside), if desired.

7. Glue the inside bottom piece into the box.

8. Hold the tray up to the side of the top bunk and determine where you want to attach it to the rails. I attached it in three places at the top and bottom.

9. Carefully cut holes through the side of the tray and insert the zip-ties.

10. Loop the zip-ties around the rails and tighten them. Trim away the excess tail.

DONE!