We always suggest flat paint for home interiors (except for possibly bathrooms). It is the easiest to clean and touch up, it doesn’t show drywall imperfections as much, and will look great for many years.
It depends on the material and the room. For instance, you may use a flat in the bathroom, but decide to go with satin in the bedroom. Trim is typically always semi-gloss. But, the other rooms of the house depend on your preference.
Flat is great for hiding imperfections and ease of cleaning.
Eggshell is a step up and can be a good option for a living room or bedroom.
Satin definitely has more sheen and gloss, which means that the imperfections in the drywall will show more clearly, so make sure to have a well-prepared wall. However, satin sheen is a great sheen for a bedroom, but not so good in the kitchen.
Semi-gloss is mostly used on trim to make it stand out. But, do not paint your walls in semi-gloss.
We suggest a satin/eggshell finish. It adjusts to the light intensity and reflects the tones evenly throughout. It makes wall clean up easier and blends touch ups better than other sheens.
Your options are slim when considering this area. You would have to ask a few questions first: What am I using this room for? Is this bathroom with a shower well ventilated? How many kids will be running through the house with markers and crayons?
Flat finish - seems to be a common sheen to use in many of the common areas of a home such as: entry way, living room, offices, dining room, hallways, etc.
Matte finish - is a little tricky as it is basically a flat finish, yet (depending on retail provider) could have a slight enameled sheen that can stay practically hidden based on natural light entering the room. Not all paint retail providers have this type of sheen available.
Eggshell finish - has become a family lovable favorite. Used on walls or cabinets. With it’s mid to low enamel sheen, this makes it easier to take a wet cloth to when dealing with dirt or finger painting delinquents, though it is not guaranteed.
Satin finish - a middle ground when it comes to the sheen scale. It has been popularly used on cabinets, trim (casings, doors, baseboard, etc.) and (Quintero Painting Company) recommended when a least amount of sheen is desired for a bathroom with a shower.
Semi-gloss finish - has been your past time most common popular finish for use on all trim, while also including bathrooms, laundry rooms, kitchen and anywhere else most condensation will happen. Still used to day in these areas it is becoming highly an uncommon choice.
Gloss finish - is rarely chosen due to it’s high enamel base. While this sheen is by far the easiest to clean it is also the most glaring when light strikes it.
always use satin or a washable flat from sherwin williams.
In my opinion sheen should be decided per room basis. Bath rooms generally should be semi gloss or at the least satin because of the moister.Lighting can play a big roll in deciding a sheen, Satin and eggshell sheen’s are great because they work well in natural and artificial light.
Flat is great for ceilings, but in this day and age with the awesome paints that we have why go flat?
Flat does hide a lot of mistakes in drywall if you have that problem.
Satin and eggshell cast soft reflections of light for a warming look.
Richard Smith Painting.
For decades our default sheen was eggshell for walls and semi-gloss for trim. Since moving to Florida from New England about ten years ago, we have made some changes due to customer preference and drywall texture. Here satin is commonly used for walls, and we have used semi-gloss in some applications. High gloss is commonly used for trim. I find that the higher the sheen, the more durable the finish and the easier it is to clean. Of course, the quality of the paint is a greater concern than the sheen, both in terms of durability and cleaning ease.
We always recommend flat. Anything above flat paint can not be spot painted or touched up only. You will get a flashing effect and see it. Flat paint also hides a lot more of the defects from the hand finish of the drywall. If touch up is needed for flat paint, all you have to do is shake the paint can, take the lid off and hold it upside down, tab a brush on it and touch up the area. All paints are bound to damage sooner or later, whether it is a hole or a scuff mark. Flat paint is the easiest to apply also, which will keep your labor price down.
I like to go with a flat, velvet, or eggshell on living area walls. I like semi-gloss enamel in the bathrooms, laundry, kitchen areas and all woodwork (doors, doorjambs, baseboards, window sills). When I paint white ceilings, I use flat paint in the living areas and semi-gloss on the bath and laundry ceilings. I like to paint the closets white also.
Without going into all the details and different reasons for different sheens, you can almost always be safe with a satin sheen (except for ceilings of course, which should always be flat). If you have walls with noticeable defects, waves, unevenness, etc, you should definitely use a flat or matte sheen.
H L DAVIS PAINTING / Greenwood, SC
It has to be decided on the quality of the wall. The higher the gloss the more imperfections you will see. I personally do flat on the ceiling and eggshell or maybe a satin on the walls.