What type of paint to use?

[lovetoscrap]

I just can't decide what to do. We are painting our Dining Room (not formal) and Kitchen. It is basically one large room with the kitchen at one end and the informal dining room at the other, with counters and cabinets that divide the space.

I love Satin and have used it everywhere else but I am really worried about how it will hold up in the Kitchen, and the Dining room is a main traffic flow area that gets a lot of use. I know that I really should use Semi Gloss for the Kitchen but am afraid it will be to shiny for the Dining room. The room flows together so we have to use the same thing for both. So how do you decide what to use?

I just cleaned some bad spots on our living room Satin paint and it left visible places where you can see that it is now different-- like it lost some of the shininess? This is really scaring me about using it in the kitchen.

I have already changed the paint color 3 times so DH will kill me if I don't choose the finish I want the first time!

 

[AKL_Megs]

I can tell you satin is better than flat, but I still prefer semi-gloss in EVERY room.

When we bought this house, it was painted the same tan color in every room... satin finish.

After this past Thanksgiving, I wish I could convince my DH to repaint our kitchen, dining room, and living room (all connected, with vaulted ceilings). Let me explain...

After the oven and stove on ALL DAY cooking food, we noticed DRIP marks from the steam. Because of the satin paint, they dried and you could see them. Our office is connected to the kitchen by a door, and that room had the drip marks as well, but we have semi-gloss in there, but once everything was said and done, the drip marks in the semi-gloss room had dried with no leftover evidence.

I had to carry the ladder in and wash EVERY DARN WALL in all three rooms where there is satin paint.

I HATE satin paint! Never again! Never in a high moisture room.

 

[AKL_Megs]

Just to add, IMO, satin paint is only useful if you have lots of wall blemishes. It hides them. Semi-gloss brings them all out.

However, semi-gloss hides everyday stains better. Satin just looks dirty all of the time. You notice every speck of dirt.

 

[SpecialK]

I use an eggshell finish everywhere and don't have a problem with clean-up. It might depend on the brand of paint you're using. I think semi-gloss should only be used for doors and trim.

 

[lovetoscrap]

Any other opinions? I am still not sure what to do. Probably going to have to hope whomever is working when I go to get it can help.

 

[golfgal]

What BRAND of paint are you using that it rubs off the walls when you wash them? We have eggshell finish everywhere, including the kitchen, and have no issues at all with cleaning the walls as needed.

 

[JLTraveling]

I ran a remodeling and decorative painting business for a few years. My recommendation is Behr eggshell paint for walls and ceilings, and Behr semigloss for trim. We tried numerous brands and finishes, and Behr won out every single time. It's a slightly different formulation than other paints, and it's fantastic for both application and wearability. You shouldn't have a bit of trouble washing it.

 

[lovetoscrap]

Behr Satin is what I had the problem with.

Interestingly in our old house we painted with Walmart cheap Satin paint and never had a problem with it.

I haven't even looked at Eggshell? I had read that it was "delicate" (thus the name eggshell?) and not for high traffic areas? AHHHHHH!

I guess I will just ask at the store. I have a Sherwin Williams near me and and Lowes and Home Depot are close to each other. Need to zero in on the exact color.

 

[cabanafrau]

We've been big fans of Behr paints for years, but tried out Valspar when I couldn't find a shade I liked for the kitchen. I went a little overboard w/ my colors at first & had to go down a good two shades, plus cover up the semi gloss the clerk convinced me I needed in the kitchen. Colors, yuck. Finish, yuck.

Decided to go w/ the eggshell finish because the can says it's scrubbable & I like that much, much better. We used their all purpose primer to kill the strong colors & the semi gloss finish. I then put up my lighter colors in eggshell. Covered in one coat & the primer wasn't tinted either! Very washable, durable & nice looking finish.

We have wet plaster walls in a 60+ year old house that are a PITA to say the least. In spite of my initial poor color & finish choices, this was BY FAR the best & most rewarding paint job in over ten years in this house.

 

[MaryAnnDVC]

I haven't even looked at Eggshell? I had read that it was "delicate" (thus the name eggshell?) and not for high traffic areas? AHHHHHH!

I think eggshell just refers to the level of shine. I THINK it's just a step up from flat?

I love flat, everywhere.

 

[hambirg]

We had a painting business for years and personally I love semi-gloss. It's just much easier to take care of, and with 3 kids, I want to be sure I can wash it with no problems. I know that satin looks nice, but I will only ever use it in the bedrooms. Our stairway is in satin and it looks terrible and it is a PITA trying to clean it.

So for me it's got to be semi-gloss with high gloss trim.

 

[TriMom]

I just repainted my kitchen (again - it's a sickness, I know) The previous coat was a semi-gloss, and when I repainted, I went with satin. I didn't realize how shiny semi-gloss was until I in the middle of painting, and had the two paints side by side on the wall. I much prefer the satin look for my kitchen - it seems less industrial. And I haven't had any problem with cleaning it.

I used Valspar by Lowes - and it is by far the best paint I have used in the house. But since I repaint something every 18 months ( I said I had a sickness ) I don't want to uber expensive paint. So I haven't tried any of the Sherwin Williams or Benjamin Moore paints.

Good luck with your project!

 

[pixiewings71]

We did our entire house with an eggshell finish. We've been back here for 4.5 years and it still looks great. I don't like satin finishes they are too shiny, but didn't want flat so eggshell as the perfect solution. It looks great!

 

[lovetoscrap]

But since I repaint something every 18 months ( I said I had a sickness ) I don't want to uber expensive paint. So I haven't tried any of the Sherwin Williams or Benjamin Moore paints.

Good luck with your project!

That is a sickness! It takes me more than 18 months just to pick out a color.


Went to Sherwin Williams and the very nice and very helpful man there said he had EXACTLY what I needed Then showed me their top of the line $45 a gallon paint. The best part was when he took me to their demo to show me how easy it cleans up. He took a marker and wrote on it then sprayed water so I could see how easy and great it was. Would have been great but he was using a Crayola WASHABLE marker! I really wanted to tell him to show me that with a Sharpie

So on to Lowe's and HD. Guy at Lowes was a jerk, guy at Home Depot was wonderful. Want to guess which place I bought from? They were all unanimous in saying that I really had to go with Semi Gloss. So I have Behr SG and will see how it goes. I actually like a little shine and love the look of Satin. Our trim is all wood so we don't have any trim to paint, thank goodness.

My main concern is that I am using a yellow and am afraid with a gloss to it we will need sunglasses in the Dining Room. The yellow isn't bright-- very muted and more towards a gold but yellow is yellow and can be too bright very easily. But I have to have washable and durable. It has taken me 6 years to get DH to paint and most likely it will be another 20 before he agrees to do it again! I hope yellow kitchens are still in fashion in 2025!