When I told my brother I had spent the day before smooshing, he told me not to talk so loudly about adult things around the children. "No," I said, "smooshing is pattern painting." It's kind of like finger-painting for big people. If you want to add zest to the interior of your home, you'll love smooshing, sponge-painting and the like. To smoosh -- simply paint the wall as usual, but before it dries, place a plastic dropcloth onto the wet surface. The wet paint will hold the plastic in place. When the plastic is peeled away the painted surface will look like a sheet of polished marble. Sponge-painting is done with a sponge instead of a paintbrush. The stroking movement used with a paintbrush is replaced by dabbing a sponge. Several coats -- each in a different color -- can render Rembrandt-like results. And that's the On The House tip for today.