Paint Sheen: What Goes Where

Paint sheen varies from flat to high gloss and each sheen has its own characteristics - as does each room in your home. Let's play matchmaker and find the perfect sheen for the rooms in your home. 

High Gloss

• The most durable and easiest to clean
• hard, ultra shiny, and light reflecting
• Where to use:
  • a great choice where sticky fingers come into play; think kitchen cabinets, trim, and doors. 
  • However, high gloss is too much shine for walls. Think about spandex: shows every bump and roll there is. If you do choose high gloss for walls (and the higher sheens: semi-gloss, satin, eggshell) don't skip on your prep work! Read our blog about drywall finish!

Semi-gloss

• Great choice for rooms with moisture! Think of a long hot steam shower or Grandma's fried chicken recipe. Also, semi-gloss works great for trim that takes a lot of abuse. We all grab tightly to that trim when swinging around the corner of the house. 
• high durability
• Where to use:
  • kitchens
  • bathrooms
  • chair rails
  • trim

Satin

• Despite the name, this finish has a velvety texture. It is a beautiful paint to use in showpiece rooms like your foyer, family room, hallways, etc. 
• Easy to clean and works great for high traffic areas
• Biggest flaw: it reveals every paint stroke and application, so touch-ups can be tricky. Also, satin requires a higher level of sheetrock finish. 
• Where to use: 
  • family rooms
  • foyers
  • hallways
  • kids' bedrooms

Eggshell

• Between satin and flat sheen is eggshell, named for its flat finish with very little luster - literally, a chicken eggshell. 
• medium durability, but covers wall imperfections well
• This product is great for rooms with little traffic areas:
  • dining rooms
  • living rooms

Flat

• If you have a wall with ugly imperfections and looking for a paint to cover everything up, then choose flat.
• lat hides all imperfections because the sheen soaks up light rather than reflecting.
• Most pigmented, and provides the most coverage. Think full coverage makeup foundation.
• Biggest issue: flat sheen paint is really tough to clean. Get something on the wall, and you can count on wiping the paint off when you clean it. 
• Where to use: 
  • adult bedrooms
  • any rooms that don't have potential for a child's beautiful Crayola artwork or spaghetti fingers

A Few Tips: 

• Dark and rich paint color requires a high sheen, but with a high sheen comes a shiny effect. If you don't want the shiny effect, set[ down at least one level of sheen. A darker, more rich color will only enhance the sheen. 
• The higher the sheen, the more defects will show
• The higher the sheen, the higher the cost