It's Time to Eat

Main Dishes

Crescent Pepperoni Rolls

http://www.plainchicken.com/2011/12/crescent-pepperoni-roll-ups.html

Crescent rolls, pepperoni (turkey OR pork depending on your preferences), string cheese (I use light), and garlic powder. Doesn’t get much easier (or faster)! Awesome for late nights or long days when “20 minutes or less” is your mealtime slogan. I personally use Pillsbury “Big and Flaky Buttery” (or some word combination of those three attributes) rolls. For a dipper we use ranch instead of pizza sauce since we ALWAYS have that on hand! If you don’t have garlic powder here’s what you can do: Melt a tablespoon of butter and sprinkle garlic salt in it. Stir, then brush over the rolls when they come out of the oven!

*Note: If your family doesn’t really consume cheese like it’s the most important food group on the planet you don’t have to spring for a large bag of string cheese. They usually sell them in singles right next to the bagged version. Just buy 4 of those (or 1 for every 2 rolls you’ll be making).

Pizza Casserole

http://formamas.blogspot.com/2011/08/pizza-casserole.html

Great to use up those pepperonis leftover from making the crescent rolls (and they keep for a long time in the fridge so it isn’t like you have to enjoy eat pizza themed food two nights in a roll. I have made this two ways – the second way to accommodate an unexpectedly slashed budget thanks to our dog needing $700 in medical bills – and both are fantastic. The first was as recommended in the blogger’s original recipe and the second was cutting out the hamburger meat. I actually think I prefer it without hamburger…though that may be because when I order pizza I am that really unadventurous person who insists on ordering “just a cheese pizza”. I will eat pepperoni pizza but I have to pick the pepperoni off, eat it, and then I’ll eat my cheese pizza. But that’s a whole different subject entirely.

Mozzarella Pizza Bread

http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Mozzarella-Pepperoni-Bread

MOAR PIZZA OM NOM NOM! If you’re under a strict budget but have mouths to feed this is perfect to combine with the pepperoni rolls! To get 2 nights worth of stupendously easy meals you can buy a 2 c. bag of mozzarella cheese, pepperoni, 1 can crescent rolls, and 1 loaf of bread. You can make the crescent rolls by sprinkling mozzarella cheese in them but to me it’s much less satisfying than a huge chunk of string cheese =D This recipe calls for French bread but I adore the softer texture of Italian bread! For an extra unhealthy kick I melt a tablespoon of butter, sprinkle in a little garlic salt, and brush it over the bread when it’s out of the oven. Tastes just like pizza crust!

Crock Pot Buffalo Chicken

http://mykitchenapron.blogspot.com/2011/07/crock-pot-buffalo-chicken.html

This stuff is the best. The best. We’ve experimented with several flavors and brands of sauce! So far we’ve done Sweet & Spicy Chipotle, Hickory BBQ, Honey Mustard, and Spicy Honey. We liked the Chipotle the most out of all of them but really it’s all good! And super SUPER easy. I recommend using a crock pot liner so you don’t even have to bother with scrubbing the crock pot after dinner. Just pull it out and throw away…perfectly suitable to a busy family <3

Oh and btw I was very apprehensive about what kind of sauces I could use. To save you guys the hassle look in your condiment aisle where they sell ketchup, ranch, hot sauce, ect. Look for bottles of sauce like this (http://www.walmart.com/ip/Kraft-Barbecue-Sauce-Honey-Mustard-Barbecue-Sauce-18-oz/10295781). But you can use any brand (like Sweet Baby Rays or Kraft) and flavor you think you’d like!     

Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings

http://www.polishthestars.com/2011/11/slow-cooker-chicken-dumplings.html

Another “dump and go” crock pot recipe! This has not failed me once and I’ve made it several times…in fact 2x in one week at Seth’s request! We both love this soup. The dumplings are super nice and fluffy! And I’m not big on the extra labor of cutting an onion so half the time I don’t use it…stills turns out awesome!

Sweet & Sour Chicken with Fried Rice

http://life-as-a-lofthouse.blogspot.com/2010/09/baked-sweet-and-sour-chicken-with-fried.html

This tastes just like the restaurant. I promise. I knew I’d picked a good one when Seth’s eyes rolled back in his head at the first bite. And when he went on about it well after we were done eating. This is a Johnson family favorite! For the rice I just use the Great Value brand (and I make it on the spot…not a day later like it recommends) and I always omit the onion. I seriously hate cutting an onion and feeling like I’ve been pepper sprayed. 3 CUPS IS A LOT OF RICE. For just us 3 I make 2 cups and we have plenty leftover! It reheats perfectly <3 It might look like a lot of work but it’s really not! Anyone who likes Chinese should just try this once…you’ll never order take out again!

Lasagna Roll Ups

http://homeiswheretheholmansare.blogspot.com/2010/08/lasagna-roll-ups.html

I make this instead of “bonefied” lasagna because…we’d waste a lot if I made a whole dish. Plus this is a lot neater to serve and it’s fun for Abigail to try and spear it on a fork. The first time I made it I made several errors and changes (I bought ‘oven ready noodles’ by mistake, browned up my turkey with good ole cooking spray instead of oil, forgot my garlic clove, didn’t have Oregano, AND omitted the red pepper since Seth and Abigail don’t appreciate spice). It STILL turned out yummy! Oh and btw in case you buy oven ready noodles like me do this: boil them for 8 minutes! Then they’ll be good to go =D

And here’s a quickie favorite that I have in one of my books:

Creamy 3-cheese Pasta

1 box elbow noodles
1 can Cream of Mushroom soup
1 cup milk
1 package (8 ounces) shredded 2-cheese blend (any blend of 2 cheeses)
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400F.

Cook pasta according to directions and drain. Blend the soup, milk, and cheeses in a bowl and stir in pasta. When well blended pour into a casserole dish.

Bake (uncovered) for 20 minutes.

I have plenty more recipes were that came from but this should hold down the fort for now! Enjoy! And I’ll try to update more regularly ;D A lot has been going on around here…I have so much to talk about I don’t know where to begin!     

Make Your Own Popcorn

I’ll confess that my snack menu is pretty much lacking in nutrition. By “pretty much” I mean “absolutely”. I’m a 400 pound man trapped in a less than 400 pound woman’s body. Chocolate, potato chips, gardettos (I will defend the fact that they are not chips with my LIFE), yogurt ice cream…and recently popcorn! Popcorn and I go way back. But like most good friends we sometimes drift apart for no reason at all and then reunite and catch up on what’s been going on in our lives since we last saw each other. Unfortunately popcorn is expensive. Popcorn doesn’t want to be my friend unless I am willing to hand over $6 for 5 dates (because Lord knows if I have popcorn over Seth has to have popcorn over). That gets uncomfortably expensive…especially considering popcorn is competing with other delicious snacks.

But I found an easier way! I make my own damn popcorn. Screw you, CP (corporate popcorn)! I made a new friend called PBP (paper bag popcorn) who knows what it’s like to have once survived on the dollar menu and ramen.

Paper Bag Popcorn

1 bag popcorn kernels (I bought the Great Value 32 oz bag)
1 package flat bottom brown paper sacks (just like you used to pack your lunch in)

- Put ¼ scoop of kernels in paper bag

- Fold top of bag over twice*
* There is an argument over whether or not stapling the bag would affect the microwave due to the staple’s small size. To be on the safe side I opted not to staple.

- Set your microwave for typical popcorn cooking time (for me it’s 1 minute 45 seconds). If unsure about the time follow this advice: when the popping sound begins slowing at a rate of 1 pop every 2-3 seconds it’s time to take it out. So if you set it for 3 minutes and it starts slowing down at 1 minute go ahead and take it out.

- Top with desired flavors and enjoy!

32 oz. bag Great Value popcorn kernels - $1.48
100 count Great Value flat bottom bags - $2.50

Total Cost: $3.98

Roughly 16 bags of popcorn per 32 oz bag = $0.25 per bag (Then roughly $0.09 a bag for 6 more batches until the paper bags run out).

I’ve been doing this for the past 3 nights now and I gotta say I’m impressed. The flavor is perfect and I noticed I don't spend an hour with my fist in my mouth digging for kernels stuck in my teeth. Also I discovered some interesting information as explained below.

Here’s the ingredient list from the Act II popcorn page on Amazon. Note: This information cannot be found on the company’s website.

Act II Popcorn Ingredients: Popcorn, Partially Hydrogenated Soybean Oil, Salt, Natural and Artificial Flavors, Annatto Color. Contains: Fish, Milk

CP’s been lying to me. I had no idea it’d been hanging out with fish and dairy before rolling around in my mouth.

Now for toppings!

Popular toppings
Mexican: Add chili powder, hot sauce, and salt.

Kiss My Breath: Shake in onion powder and garlic powder.

Cheese Please: Mix in Parmesan cheese with a little salt.

Sweet Tooth: A dash of cinnamon, a sprinkle of sugar, and a topper of honey.

Classic: A shake of salt with a pat of butter.

To butter mine up I use spray butter (though I like it just as well plain). I also thought it was completely ingenious to sprinkle the dry ranch mix over the popcorn. DO NOT ATTEMPT. It didn’t stick to my popcorn so every other bite the powder just drifted down my throat and tried to choke me to death. So now I am also wary of anything topping that involves powder…

Hope you find this useful! It’s not quite snack time but maybe I’ll cook up a batch for Abigail and I =D

Original Source is from here!

Eco-Friendly Household Alternatives

I've been seeing Country Wisdom rising in popularity so I thought I'd copy/paste an older article that I wrote rather than go pilfer through other blogs and relay their information over here. Not that I won't later...but I'm taking the quick route for now. And as proof that this is my article you can find it here on Squidoo <3

Household Item #1: Toothpaste

• Save your laminate countertops from scorch marks by buffing at the burn with a 50/50 mixture of toothpaste and baking soda. If available you may also use car wax. Why bother? Because many chemical cleaners are abrasive and will likely remove only the finish of your countertop.
• Remove water rings from your wooden tabletop by polishing it with a rag applied with a 50/50 mixture of toothpaste and baking soda. Rub parallel to the wood grain. Wipe it away and polish with lemon oil if desired. Note: A hair dryer set on low can often nix a fresh water stain from forming.
• Cover nail holes in your drywall and plaster without spackle by dabbing them with plain white toothpaste that will dry and harden for painting over. You may also substitute with a 50/50 mixture of baking soda and white glue or even mixing cornstarch with salt (2 tbsp. each) with enough water to make a stiff putty.
• Tackle rust on your bathroom porcelain by squeezing toothpaste onto a retired toothbrush and scrubbing it away. But remember that in general the older the stain is the harder it is to remove.
• Neutralize offensive odors on your hands left from food by wetting a wash cloth with cold water and squeezing some toothpaste onto it. Then simply scrub your hands. This is especially useful when you've directly handled strong smelling foods such as onion, garlic, and fish.
• Repair small scratches on your car by polishing them with a dollop of toothpaste. You may use an old toothbrush but make certain the bristles aren't so stiff that they can cause additional damage. Afterward buff the area with a clean cloth.

Household Item #2: Dishwashing Liquid

• Take immediate care of red wine or similar carpet stains by mixing 1 tsp. dishing washing liquid with 1 c. warm water and pouring a small amount over the blemish. Blot -don't rub- with a paper towel and repeat the previous procedure using a solution of 1/3 c. white vinegar and 2/3 c. water
• Stop dust on your ceiling fan from spreading by using an old cotton sock moistened in a mixture of 1 tsp. dishwashing liquid and 1 gallon water. Simply dip the sock into your solution, wring it out, place it over your hand, and use it to attract dust collecting on fan blades so that it doesn't get sent floating around the room.
• Repel mice safely and effectively by brewing up a quart of peppermint tea. To do this you will need to boil 2 c. water, turn off the heat, and steep 4-6 peppermint tea bags for 6-8 hours. After this is completed add 2 tsp. dishwashing liquid to help the tea solution linger on surfaces. Pour your mixture into a spray bottle and spray it onto baseboards or suspected entry points. This is safe for people and pets alike!
• Subdue the pain of band-aid removal by thoroughly rubbing the bandage's edges and surface (avoid soaking the gauze area) with dishwashing liquid or baby oil. If during removal the bandage begins to stick rub a bit more of your chosen product onto that area.
• To safely clean your wallpaper apply a mixture of ½ c. lemon juice, ½ c. dishwashing liquid, and 1 quart water. Note: Make certain that your wallpaper is waterproof. If uncertain it is best to test this solution on an indiscreet section to make sure it will not adversely affect it.

Household Item #3: Salt

• Soak up ketchup stains by sprinkling salt over the spill. Leave for a few minutes before vacuuming. Sponge up additional residue and continue salting and vacuuming until the stain disappears. Note: This is only effective on wet ketchup stains. Once it sets (dries) it is impossible to remove.
• Prevent diaper rash during teething by gently wiping a solution of 1 tbsp. salt and 4 c. boiling water onto the baby's bottom. Allow the solution to cool to room temperature before applying! For added protection you may also use a zinc oxide lotion of your choice.
• Repel fleas from your dog's outdoor sleeping area by pouring salt into all of the doghouse's crevices. You may also discourage fleas by placing a fresh pile of pine needles beneath their dog bed.
• Keep grease spills from baking onto your oven's surface by sprinkling salt over the spill before it has a chance to bake onto the interior. Afterward simply close the oven door and continue cooking as usual. By the time you're ready to clean you'll find that the pesky spill has transformed itself into a convenient, easily removable lump of ash.
• Delay the formation of mildew on your shower curtain by soaking it in salt water before hanging.
• Treat the formation of mildew on your shower curtain by applying a past of vinegar and salt to the affected area for 1-2 hours before cleaning it off with a damp cloth.
• Soothe a sore throat by gargling a solution of homemade salt water. To make this you just dissolve ½ tsp. salt in 1 c. warm water. Gargle this solution for 10-15 seconds (spit it out rather than swallow) 3 to 4 times daily for instant relief.

Household Item #4: Garlic

• To boost the cold fighting power of chicken soup add 2 peeled and minced garlic cloves to your simmering soup. Garlic contains antiviral sulfur compounds that will help stimulate your immune system in the fight against bacterial infection.
• For a natural, safe, and fast acting remedy to treat earaches you can create a homemade solution to store in your refrigerator for on hand use. In a clean jar, combine 1 crushed clove garlic, 2 tbsp. dried or fresh (minced if fresh) mullein flower, and ½ c. olive oil. Shake thoroughly to blend and store in your refrigerator, shaking daily to redistribute contents (strain into a fresh jar every 2 weeks). To treat earaches bring the solution to room temperature (or hold under warm water) and add 2-3 drops to the ear canal using an eyedropper.
• Quickly dry up and treat pimples by rubbing a freshly cut clove of raw garlic against the blemish.
• Cure stubborn warts by binding a slice of freshly peeled garlic clove against it with a gauze bandage. Leave in place as long as you're able, and repeat the treatment both morning and night.
• Safely protect a cut or abrasion from infection by bruising a garlic clove and pressing it against the wound for 5-10 minutes.

A Quick Change of Pace

The world of home remedies is ever growing. Honing in on a single item's capabilities is a wonderful way to expand your general knowledge but by doing so you might miss out on a truly remarkable discovery. So before I end this lens I'm going to bring in a change of pace and provide you with a list of random tips that I thought provided amazing alternatives around the home.

• To unclog your showerhead without removing it pour a dental tablet solution into a plastic sandwich bag and secure it to the shower head with tape or twist tie for 1-2 hours. To create this solution you dissolve 4-5 tablets in a bowl of water. You can use white vinegar instead.
• Stunt the severity of the common cold by setting your hair dryer to warm -not hot- and holding it around 18" from your face. Inhale the warm air for as long as you can (20 minutes is best but 2 is helpful). Why does this work? Warm air helps kill rhinoviruses sneaking up your nose canal and thus will prevent you from suffering the full effect of the invading bacteria.
• To treat mild scorch marks on wood surfaces you should gently rub a small amount of mayonnaise onto the area. Allow it to sit for a few minutes before wiping off with a clean, damp cloth.
• Find a wall stud without a specialized tool by using an electric razor. Place your razor flush against the wall, turn it on, and as you slowly guide it along the wall listen to the pitch of its buzz. When the pitch rises you'll know you're directly over a stud.

Frugal Febreeze #2

Hey Nicole I started thinking about how you said Sheldon was allergic to most fabric softeners and went on a search for ways to make febreeze without using fabric softener! For those truly worried about the chemical properties of fabric softener you might enjoy this version better.

Frugal Febreeze Alternative #2
8 drops lavender oil
4 drops each bergamot and clove oil
2 drops oil of peppermint
½ cup vodka
½ cup distilled water
-Mix and shake well in spray bottle.

I got the recipe from The Conscious Shopper courtesy of the majestic machine known as Yahoo! search. Oh…I can feel the chill of your stare. You’re a Google person huh? I’ve noticed that people who use Google tend to scoff at other search machines. It’s not that I’m knocking the ever popular Google but during my precious, tender preteen years when my fingers first learned how to fly over the keyboard I defaulted to Yahoo. It’s a simple matter of loyalty -chest thump-

But back to the topic! I’ve never used oils before so seeing things like ‘bergamot’ and ‘clove oil’ is pure jibber jabber to me and so I’m much more likely to just stick with the fabric softener. Plus it lists vodka which brings back the memory (or lack thereof) of my worst New Years Eve ever and I know I can never touch a bottle of that again lest I get a phantom hangover via osmosis. Also I’m likely to try and sneak tap water in place of distilled water…

I digress. Not a recipe for me. But if Seth broke out into hives every time I squirted fabric softener on the couch I’d probably do it. Probably.

Depends on whether or not he’d irked me recently.

Homemade Ranch Dressing

I am one of those freaks that puts ranch on everything. I normally wouldn’t be so quick to whip out the label ‘freak’…but when you hunch possessively over your McDonald’s ranch packet while dunking both fries and McNuggets (or pouring it on your McChicken sandwich if it’s a Dollar Menu kind of day) no other word really matches.

But even though I recognized that I use the heck out of liquid ranch I have recently obtained a lot of recipes that require the dry packet. I didn’t really realize how often I was buying them until I was scanning over old receipts: around 4-5 a month at times. And that can get pretty expensive! Not to mention liquid ranch isn’t that easy on the wallet either. So here’s a remedy!

Homemade Ranch Dressing Mix

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp dried parsley
• 1 tsp dried dill
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp dried basil
• 1/2 tsp pepper

---

Directions

• Add each of the dried spices to a lidded container and shake well to mix.
• Store in a resealable plastic baggie or small container with a tight fitting lid.
• To make the ranch dressing, whisk together 1/3 cup mayonnaise with 1/4 cup milk (more or less depending on the consistency you want) with 1 Tbsp of the homemade ranch dressing seasoning mix.  Season with salt, to taste. Use immediately and can refrigerate for up to 3 days.
• Makes about 4 Tbsp worth of mix. Or use the ratios above and mix up however much you’ll need!

NOTE
For a healthier alternative you may substitute either greek yogurt or sour cream in place of mayonnaise!

Easy yeah? I’m not really great at herb gardens but I bet the ranch would have a wonderful flavor using herbs from your own home!

Frugal Febreeze

I’ve always been a dog person but I’ll be the first to admit that no matter how clean you keep them (and mine are admittedly not bathed regularly) they carry a certain smell. The kind of smell that permeates even the cleanest household. I can walk into a house without knowing anything about it and immediately determine whether or not they have pets. It’s not necessarily a bad smell…but it is distinct!

I don’t like ‘distinct smells’ in my house.

I have heavily invested in candles, air wicks, febreeze, febreeze knock offs, fabric softener sheets, those candle chunks you melt on a hot plate, scented oils, and those little wooden stick things you put in a vase filled with oil. My house smells pretty good. But it is an expensive, and often space consuming, past time. Febreeze is my favorite…especially after I vacuum (holy crap spell check just had a seizure when I tried to correctly spell that).

But febreeze, despite its wonderful scent, is friggin expensive. I last paid $5.95 for a bottle. Seems like a pretty good deal until you calculate that you might go through 2 bottles a week – not to mention if you have pets during a ‘rainy season’ – so you’re looking at forking over around $12 a month…PLUS whatever you spend on candles and whatnot. Us women love candles ß Take note, Seth!

So let’s add that up:
2 bottles of febreeze/month @ $5.95 = $11.90
For one year = $142.80

Jeeze!

So I surfed around on the net and found some interesting referrals to homemade Febreeze. As far as I can tell the original creator is lost in the Internet machine…I traced it back to Homemade Mamas. I don’t like giving her credit because she lists specifically that she got it from somewhere else…but I got it from her so I’m giving that much credit to her!

Fake Febreeze

2 cups warm water
¼ cup fabric softener (your favorite scent/any brand)
1 tsp. baking soda

- Mix all ingredients into a spray bottle and shake well. Spray on any surface.
- Shake well before each use

Makes 14 fluid ounces!

The average febreeze bottle is 27 fl. Oz (I think at least) so you need to roughly make 2 batches to equal out a single febreeze bottle. I only made one batch, sprayed it all over my house, and barely used half an ounce so I’m just sticking to one batch at a time. But let’s do the math on that! We’ll use what I bought.

1 (4 lb.) box Baking Soda - $2.12
1 (44 fl. Oz) Purex Ultra Fabric Softener, Lavender - $2.98
1 (24 fl Oz.) spray bottle - $1.00
Water – Depends on my monthly usage =D

Total: $6.11 for starter supplies

Divided into batches possible

[96 tsp. in 4 lbs. x 4] 384 tsp. of Baking Soda
[2 fl. Oz. in ¼ cup] 22 ¼ cups of Fabric Softener
Unlimited free use in spray bottle
Unlimited free use in water

= At least 22 batches of fake febreeze

Compared @ $5.95 for febreeze it costs $0.27 per batch

Savings

2 bottles of febreeze/month @ $5.95 = $11.90
For one year = $142.80

2 bottles of fake febreeze/month @ $0.27 = $0.54
For one year = $6.48

Total monthly savings: $11.36

Total yearly savings: $136.32

WOW huh?!

I have read over concerns comments from other blogs where people are raising the red flag on fabric softener containing a link to pancreatic cancer and other maladies. While I appreciate their concern I justify it by saying I use this stuff on my clothes anyway…and I am in no way saturating surfaces or spraying it directly on people/pets. However! I have heard rumors that you can make your own homemade fabric softener!

Homemade Fabric Softener

2 cups of hair conditioner
4 cups of white vinegar
6 cups water

-Mix and use!

I hadn’t discovered this recipe until after my grocery trip…so it’ll have to wait for me! Until then I’m going to keep happily spraying my pancreatic cancer on the carpet. Btw I sprayed it about 1.5 hours ago and the place still smells fresh. And I texted the tip to my Mom and she made it within 5 minutes of receiving it…and gave it a glowing review =D

So keep your head up high, pet lovers! Keep that ‘distinct smell’ at bay another day!

The Evolution of a Pantry: Spackle Interlude

Well I hope the Diet Coke Brownies turned out delicious for everyone! We’ve had our first batch at the Johnson house for a little over 24 hours now and we have just under half a pan left >_>;; I call that a success! Although…I’m pretty sure the health benefits of it are all for naught after you devour 3 of them vs. 1 of the original. I might be wrong though…so I suppose one more brownie won’t hurt.

I kid. I’m too health conscious to eat 4 brownies. 3 is my limit. I filled the rest of my day with sour jolly ranchers (Except cherry…screw cherry!), some Little Caesars, and an orange. WHOA LOOK OUT WEIGHT WATCHERS THERE’S A NEW DIET GURU IN TOWN. Seriously it’s not always like that here. But I’m a firm believer in the occasional “eff it” day where anything goes (and if it’s edible it’s probably going to go in my mouth).

Anyway I said I was going to hone in on the details of my spackling adventure. Recap: Previous owner of the home was apparently a lunatic and sheet rocked his home…then decided he didn’t want to paint so he paneled over it. Only 2 rooms were spared from this foolishness: Abigail’s room and the laundry room.

When we first bought the house it was hard to overlook the darkness of it. Verticle strips may be rumored to make a woman look tall and slim but they do nothing for a house. Especially if it’s paneling in its raw form. Example(s):

 

Paint has done temporary wonders for the house but simply painting over the panels is not the end to my compulsive madness. I want the paneling gone. Period. But that can be quite a burden on the budget. I’m certain if we concentrated all our DIY funds to the walls we could have them replaced within a few months. But then what of the 50 other projects I want to start?

…so you see my problem.

When we build the pantry I decided to perform a small experiment. I wanted to see if I could take regular paneling and make it look more “sheet rocky”. So here’s how that went.

Step 1) Purchase spackle of your choosing. I found my brand at Lowes at $5.48 for a 3 pound tub. I didn’t even use a quarter of it…this stuff goes a long way. An additional supply to consider is a cheap plastic spatula. I’ve admittedly used my fingers to spread the spackle around (it has a very curious texture) but it’s just easier to use the spatula.

Step 2) Spread your spackle into the grooves and joints of your paneling as though you were filling in any ordinary nail hole. I found great success in applying the spackle like I did for the tile grout. Take a large glob of spackle, drag it down a single groove with the spatula, and then drag the spatula horizontally across the spackled groove to smooth.

Step 3) Allow spackle to dry according to manufacturer’s directions. Then – and stay with me here- repeat step 2. WAIT WHAT?! Yes. I only did a single layer on one wall vs. two layers on another and there was a noticeable difference in the edges showing up. So just suck it up and go at it again. It’s better to do this now than go through your sanding, painting, and drying only to still be able to see the lines. You can go for three if you want



Step 4) Allow the spackle to dry at least 12 hours. I know most advertise ‘fast drying’ but trust me…it’s so much easier to sand if the stuff is dry. And I tell you this as someone who got too impatient and tried to speed things up >_>;; And then had to start all over.    

Step 5) Sanding. WARNING: Do this only if you can have adequate ventilation (open windows, fans, etc.) and are using a safety mask. The one I used is this model from Lowes. The spackle makes a huge, dusty mess! It’s unbelievable! I used an orbital powered sander (partially for speed and partially because I’m lazy) but you can easily sand it by hand. And if it makes a difference I use 120 grit sandpaper (it’ll be labeled on the package when you buy it).  Just sand it to the point where the bumpiness of the spackle is taken care of and when you run your fingers along it you can’t tell the different between the edge of the spackle and the paneling.

Step 6) Dust and paint. Be sure to take an extra rag (I used a simple, dry paper towel) to brush away the spackle dust. Then paint! And marvel at your work!  

The overall look

Spackled vs. Non Spackled

Pan out view of one side

Up close and personal!

So that’s how I took my ambition and set it into action. I’m very pleased with how it turned out! But to be fair there are pros and cons…and here they are.

ProsTurns any grooved surface such as paneling into a smooth surface like sheet rock.
Does not require any knowledge of power tools.
Is not time sensitive (you won’t screw it up by spackling part way and then stopping to do something else before finishing).
Budget friendly.

ConsDusty. Very messy. Requires ventilation safety.
Time consuming if your must cover large areas (due to the repeating of steps.

Not very many cons but I can’t stress to you the amount of dust this project will kick up. I managed to get it done while Abigail was in a Blue’s Clues trance (and my project happened to be located next to an outside door that I kept open) but it would make me very nervous to have children in the same room this was being done in.

The pantry is going great and tomorrow is pay day so I can’t wait to start finishing up the projects we’ve started since the beginning of January! Mainly the kitchen floor and Abigail’s closet. We’ve gotten a lot done on her room (including a custom closet that I designed myself) and I can’t wait to start revealing it! I hope everyone enjoyed their weekend…until next time!