Putty Trick

When filling nail holes with putty, I sometimes smear the putty around without too much thought. This can cause problems if the putty is lighter than the wood around it, resulting in large ugly blotches (instead of tiny nail-sized spots). Fortunately, I found a better way to fill the holes with less mess.

Before picking up the hammer, I apply a strip of masking tape over the area where I'm going to set the nails. Then I nail and recess the heads as normal. 

When I fill the nail holes, the putty goes in the holes and never touches the surrounding wood. After I remove the tape, I simply sand the small bump of putty that remains.