On a recent kitchen remodel, I needed to fill a few nail holes in some prefinished crown molding. The new cabinets and the crown molding were finished in what the manufacturer called “dusty rose,” a fancy name for pink. I searched the local hardware stores and home centers for a suitable filler. No luck.
That evening, I was gazing at a print of a Monet painting when an idea came to me. I stopped at an art-supply store the next day and picked up a small tube of cadmium-red oil paint. I mixed a dollop of the paint with a golf-ball-size lump of DAP glazing compound. Both are oil-based and, hence, mix together without a problem. A note of caution here: Cadmium is toxic, so don’t touch the paint. Use rubber gloves or a mixing stick for this part.
I compared my pink putty with the cabinets, and once I had a good match, I filled the nail holes and wiped down the excess with mineral spirits. This solution turned out to be simple, effective and inexpensive.
Robert V. Harrington, Milford, CT
