Patent ID: 7648022

Claim:
A portable paint tray including a lid for preventing paint from drying, said tray comprising: a paint roller including a handle and a shaft directly conjoined thereto, said roller further including a padded applicator removably and rotatably positioned about said shaft; a pan including front and rear sections and an opening defining a receptacle for receiving paint and said roller therein, said pan further including a notch formed medially of a top surface of said front section, wherein the notch has an arcuate lower edge for assisting the user to maneuver said roller along said lower edge during operating conditions, said pan further including a monolithically formed flange portion protruding outwardly and inwardly from a top surface of said pan and about an entire perimeter of the opening; and a lid sized and shaped to cover the opening of said pan, said lid forming an air tight seal around a perimeter of the opening of said pan, said lid including a monolithically formed lip portion extending orthogonally downward from said lid and about a perimeter thereof, said lid having substantially planar top and bottom surfaces, respectively; wherein a proximal portion of said shaft is telescopically positional through the notch so that the user can house said roller within said pan while said lid is attached thereto; wherein an insert and the notch have an arcuate lower edge for assisting the user to maneuver said roller along said lower edge during operating conditions; wherein said lip portion covers said flange portion after said lid is attached to said pan such that said lip portion maintains a frictional engagement with said flange portion; wherein said lid includes at least one finger member monolithically formed with said lip portion, said at least one finger member extending orthogonally and outwardly from said lip portion; wherein said at least one finger member has an arcuate top surface contiguously traveling along a bottom surface of said notch so that the handles is evenly guided through said notch.