The Surprising Baking Tool That's an Organizer's Dream

Welcome to Your No-Sweat Guide to Spring Cleaning, a month-long series that puts the fun (yep, for real!) back into cleaning. We’re talking spruce-ups that take less than five minutes, why-didn’t-I-think-of-that hacks, and hands-off cleaning tasks that basically…do themselves—plus our trustiest tools and helpers. The goal: clean less, go outside more.

Until recently, I believed that I was immune to the “Target spell”. The phenomenon of walking into a Target thinking you’re going to walk out with the dish soap you needed, and only the dish soap you needed, but walking out with a yoga mat, an impossibly fuzzy blanket, and a whole set of acrylic paints—because this quarantine hobby will pan out, right?

On a recent catharsis trip to said retail heaven, I thought I’d pick up some cleaning supplies and that’s pretty much it. To no one’s surprise at this point, I walked out with much more than that, including a couple of sturdy, lightweight baking sheets in the quarter- and eighth-sheet sizes (read: the cute ones).

I had visions of baking pint-size slab pies (because, at the moment, I don’t have 40 people to feed, but I love that shape), mini crumb cakes, individual Detroit-style pizzas, the list goes on.

Save to Collection

7 Smart Ways to Organize Your Kitchen So It Works for You

Read Article

Save to Collection

This Is IKEA's Most Versatile Item. No, It's Not the Billy Bookcase.

Read Article

Ultimately, and unexpectedly, I ended up using them in various rooms in the house outside of my kitchen. Because I repurposed them while new—and therefore shiny and not marked by the oven—I could use them for non-cooking purposes and they didn’t look or feel out of place. They began to serve as organizers, mess-catchers, and crafting tools, their sturdy build making them striking as they are dependable. I reach for them in a number of ways around the house—including more unexpected ways in the kitchen.

Here are just a handful of ways I truly think these little trays could be helpful around the house:

Crafting Stations

Admittedly, I am the above-mentioned acrylic paint-buyer and have tried my hand at various projects over quarantine. The eighth- or quarter-sheets could certainly be used as a perch for paints, as well as a drip-catcher, brush rest, and general art-making or kids’ crafting station (with all of the inevitable mess-making that comes with that). My next plan is to use mine as a home-base for collaging, to catch all of the little cut-outs that I otherwise just gather in a random pile or that fly off to random corners of my room (much more likely).

Household Organizers

I use my quarter-sheet to corral my miscellaneous candle collection, and plan to use an eighth sheet to organize all of the serums and skincare accoutrements that otherwise make a randomized mess of my bathroom. And yes, I’ve heard of vanity trays, but the brushed silver look, low price point, and easy-to-clean surface make these trays a great solution for collecting bits and bobs in one place (at least until I find the perfect vintage iteration on Etsy, after many rabbit-hole searches).

Mess-Catchers

Both smaller sheet sizes can be used as little utility stations outside of crafting. The eighth-sheet could be used as a place to gather oils, vinegars, and seasonings to keep the items tidy (stove-side or in-cabinet), in the refrigerator to group leftovers, or for your condiment collection to avoid spillage. Personally, I’ve used it as a bottle-making station when babysitting my nine-month-old nephew. The sticky baby formula never makes it neatly into the bottle and I hate wiping it off the countertop, so it’s nice to have one spot for formula to hang out where it won’t make a sticky, smelly mess of everything else. Then, later, I can just throw it in the sink to clean.

Serving Trays

Personally, this is my favorite way to use my lil’ baking trays: eating dinner (and lunch and snack) in bed. I’m pretty sure no one actually owns one of those breakfast-in-bed trays that children bring to their mom on Mother’s Day in the movies and, turns out, we never needed them! My quarter sheet is the perfect size for a tray of sushi and glass of wine and very much enables my dinner-in-bed-with-TV habit (and I don’t mind one bit). Founder of Seemore Meats and Veggies Cara Nicoletti is a fan of this move, and makes way prettier displays of it than I ever could. As far as food goes, I also wouldn’t say no to using it as a charcuterie board or hors d’oeuvre tray, either.

And, in the end, if you do find a vintage vanity tray you’ve always wanted or give up your burgeoning painting hobby, you can always wash the trays and use them for what they were intended: baking off a single cookie every night before bed, or roasting veggies and the like, like you maybe normally would.

From Our Shop

Nordic Ware Naturals Prism Aluminum Baking Sheets

More Sizes

Shop Now

Latex-Free Cleaning & Dishwashing Gloves (Set of 2)

More Options

Shop Now