Applying the Second Coat

With the first coat completely dry and any ridges knocked down, you can get ready to apply the second coat. This coat will be a little thicker than the first coat. You want to try to completely cover the tape and the surrounding area. Use a wider knife like an 8". Apply it and then wipe it smooth. Try to feather into the existing wall. This is an art. Sometimes it is beneficial to press on the knife so that one side is in contact with the wall and the other side is 'floating' over the patch.

The big thing here is that you don't want any tape showing through. If the patch is small enough, you can fill the entire area with mud. In the picture here you'll see that I didn't waste time trying to just finish the seams. Applying mud to the entire hole saves a lot of time and will help make the patch less obvious.

The Third Coat

Hopefully the second coat is a little smoother, with no ridges. Once it's dry, you'll have to apply a top coat. This is the final coat so it has to look the best. Rub your hand over the second coat. Is it bumpy or pointy? If so, you may have to knock it down again with a light sanding, but remember, light. On a patch this size, you'd spend all of 4 seconds sanding.

Get a wider knife (12" or so) and now we're going to make this patch look like we know what we're doing! Drywall finishing is a very tricky technique. It's not that it's realy hard, but it is real hard to demonstrate it with just a few still pictures. Apply a good bit of mud and then you end up wiping most of it back off. The knife I have here was meant to finish seams and has a slight arc in it, but y ou can use a regular 12" flat knife by feathering to the outside.

To feather to the outside, (and I've over emphasized these photos, don't really push this hard) press the part of the knife that touches the wall and stroke. This leaves a thicker coat in the middle, and a thinner coat on the edge.

Sanding

With your top coat completely dry, give it another light sanding and feel it with your hands. The transition from painted wall to patch should be drastic. Now you're ready to paint, but that's another article.