Cover up

So yesterday we discussed how to put holes in your wall to hang pictures, mirrors or that naked poster of yourself (well, if your name is Posh Spice). But what if you messed up and now have an unsightly hole in your wall? Or, what if you're moving out of your apartment and would like to collect all of your security deposit back?

Back in college, we used to use toothpaste to cover up wall holes in our dorm rooms. Toothpaste might still work if you've got tiny pin holes and a blind landlord. But if you're looking for some longer-lasting stuff that doesn't smell minty fresh, the answer my friends, lies in spackle.

Spackle is like the grown-up version of toothpaste...for walls. Like Kleenex and Xerox, Spackle actually a brand name that people have now used to refer to the generic version- tissues, copies and drywall filler. Anyway, enough with the history lesson- how do I fill my nail holes!?

Step 1: Head over to your favorite hardware store and pick up some spackling paste (you can also find this in powder form, but why do extra work when you don't have to?). Look for the lightweight vinyl kind- it has minimal shrinkage and sagging. And nobody likes shrinkage and sagging. Also, pick up sandpaper (something on the finer side- 100 or 20o) and if you really want to look like a pro, a spackle knife like shown above. However, depending on the size of your job, you could be just fine with a butter knife or bag of wooden tongue depressors stolen from the doctor's office. Also, paint for your walls if the apartment requires it, though many states require apartments to be repainted before the new tennants move in, so check and potentially save yourself a step here.

Step 2: Back at home, don't be alarmed if your putty looks neon in color- they will dry white-ish gray. Using your knife, thinly spread a layer over your repair area- just like spreading peanut butter on toast... if you were on a diet. Let dry.

Step 3: Sand down your dried spackled area so it blends in the the surrounding areas.

Step 4: Paint! You're done!

Note: There are a number of videos out there that show you how to repair drywall. If you've got bigger holes to patch, check out this guy here. He's kinda cute.