Picking the perfect paint color for your home can be at times overwhelming — the paint store has no short of colorful and enticing options but which one will look good on your walls? 

And once you finalize your selection, now you’re left with another equally (or more) challenging decision to make… drumroll please *wink*

What paint finish to use?!?!? 

You bet boo, there are different finishes of paint you should use in various applications (walls, ceilings, millwork) but you also don’t want to select the incorrect finishes for specific rooms in your home (rooms with high-moisture, areas with high-traffic, etc). 

GASP! 

The one thing you can always count on to be true about home: there’s no shortage of design related decisions to be made. LOL! 

But rest assured there’s good news too. And that is that over here at Elegant Simplicity, we’ve got your back!

So… let's dig right in + talk about different finishes of paint + when you should use them :)

P.S. If you're struggling with selecting the right paint color we’ve got you there too. Check out these two blogs: The Emotional Impact of Color in Your Home + What Colors Are Good For Creating Positive Energy In Your Home.

The Importance Of Prep

Likely you’re using the best professionals in your area to paint your home BUT regardless you want to be certain those you higher are taking their time to do a quality job on prep work.

Our contractors break down prep work into a few basic phases…

Quick Clean

This includes running the shop vacuum to get any loose particles off the floor before wiping down all surfaces to ensure the masking + tape adequately stick to where they need to.

Taping / Masking

From trim to walls, taping allows you to move quicker + lessons the need for touch-ups in the end.

Masking

Covering cabinets, floors, furniture + in some instances millwork, walls or ceilings prevents overspray of paint from traveling into unwanted places.

Sanding

Any holes that need to be filled in walls or millwork, once hardened, will also need to be sanded. And while we could talk at nauseaum at prepping cabinetry or millwork for painting — the sanding process that is involved is exhaustive *wink*

Why Paint Primer Is Used

Prior to painting — a primer coat is, typically, essential. It’s this undercoat that ensures the paint adheres to the surfaces you’re painting correctly. Which in turn, creates a more durable finished product. 

There are several types of primers that painters use so let’s take a look at them :)

Drywall Primer 

Is often used when building new homes or during a large scale renovation as drywall is often extremely porous. Not using a drywall primer means you’ll not only use more paint but could even lead to paint being soaked up by the drywall in an uneven + ultimately unappealing look. 

Wood Primers

Often used for millwork, wood primers are used to ensure the paint adheres properly to the wood. Without a wood primer, the paint wouldn’t penetrate the wood enough to ensure a durable finish coat.

Masonry Primers

Well, by now you’re certain to be getting the drift. 

Masonry primers go on stone prior to painting in order to… yep, you guessed it ensure a durable finish coat. However, when it comes to stone, brick, etc if a primer is not used — encrustation can occur. 

Multi-Purpose Primers

There are a couple other basic primers, often called multi-purpose primers which can be used for bonding or stain-blocking on various different surfaces. However, it’s important to not forget that primer, sometimes included as paint + primer in one also helps when painting from light to dark or specifically from dark to light.

How To Select The Correct Paint Finish

Selecting different finishes of paint can sometimes be an aesthetic decision but more often than not, as we said in the 7 Elements of Interior Design, understanding the “why” behind the decisions you’re making in your home is imperative to really get the “what” correct. 

When it comes to different finishes of paint there are several choices: flat, matte, velvet, eggshell, satin, semi-gloss, and gloss. 

So… what’s the difference? 

Well in general there’s a few differences + one (or two) catchy phrase to help explain…  “the higher the sheen, the brighter the shine” or “the better protection, the more reflection.”

Ok… I made that last one up *wink* but it’s true. 

The more sheen a paint finish has to it, the more durable it will be (which is a good thing) but it will also reflect more light which means it will show the imperfections of the surface in which you’re painting. 

In a lot of projects, determining the different finishes of paint you should use comes down to:

What’s The Area Or Room That Is Being Painted?

Is it a high-traffic area? A wet zone with more moisture? Millwork? A ceiling? 

Depending on the surfaces + the areas in your home being painted there are a few different finishes of paint that can be used. Not to fret, below we break down all the paint finishes but first let's briefly talk about paint surfaces.

Painting Walls

When it comes to painting walls, we recommend a finish like satin, eggshell or matte where durability is part of the decision-making process. That’s because as we all know — homes with big family gatherings, pets and kids playing means someone, or rather something, is going to accidentally rub against your walls. 

Being able to wipe your surfaces clean and know that the finish you’ve had painted on the majority of the walls in your home will live up to everyday wear and tear and be forgiving is worth a lil added sheen to your home *wink*.

Painting Ceilings

Unfortunately, unless you're an interior designer… Most people don’t think about ceilings but when it comes to painting them selecting the correct paint finish can make a huge difference. 

Ceilings don’t have to withstand people rubbing up against them like walls or trim but in some areas they do have to endure moisture or vapors that come from running hot water, cooking where grease or smoke rises to the surface.

When it comes to painting, we recommend either a flat finish for non-wet zones or a satin + we breakdown why, below.

Painting Trim

Painting trim or millwork like doors, windows, and moldings at least one sheen higher than your walls will accentuate the difference between the two and add a slightly contrasting detail. 

Trim is often painted in a satin, semi-gloss or gloss finish for durability and cleanability.

So with all of that said — let's dive into more on what each different finish of paint is + where it's best to use them.

Types Of Paint Finishes

Flat + Matte Finishes

A flat finish is ideal because there is no sheen to it (whereas a matte finish has a very low sheen). In either case this means that they’re both very forgiving paint finishes. So if whatever is being painted has blemishes or imperfections then for this reason it may be a good paint finish to consider. 

Unfortunately though, because flat or matte finishes hide imperfections incredibly well they’re more difficult to clean. So, flat or matte finishes shouldn’t be used in rooms with high-moisture because regardless of how good the ventilation is almost anything will be difficult to get out of your walls, ceilings or trim without repainting.

Flat finishes are often used on ceilings whereas matte finishes are often used in bedrooms.

Velvet Finish

Some paint experts will lump matte + velvet finishes together as many of the applications for each finish are the same. Velvet finishes have a similar sheen to them as matte finishes which makes them slightly more cleanable than a flat paint finish. However, they are still unideal for easy or regular wiping. 

At Elegant Simplicity, we often use matte or velvet finishes in bedrooms, living rooms + family rooms. 

Eggshell Finish

An eggshell finish is probably the most universal or popular paint finish used. And that’s for good reason because its sheen is higher but still not overpowering to the eye which makes it easy to clean. 

If your home is full of lil tykes running around or you’re painting a very high-traffic area like a hallway we recommend an eggshell finish. Eggshell is also a safe choice for higher moisture areas as it's easier to clean.

So, what’s the downsides to this all-around most common paint finish? Simply remember that “the higher the sheen, the brighter the shine” meaning the more imperfections will show on your surfaces.

Satin + Pearl Finishes

When it comes to painting high-traffic areas or millwork, a satin finish is typically the way we lean in our large-scale renovation projects + new construction homes. Because it’s stain-resistant and more durable, a satin finish is an excellent choice for kitchens, bathrooms, and other high-moisture spaces like laundry rooms.

Semi-Gloss Finishes

Like a satin or pearl finish, a semi-gloss finish is best in rooms like wet areas, painted on millwork or in high-traffic spaces because it’s very durable and typically easier to keep clean.

Even a semi-gloss paint finish shows imperfections as the light reflects off of it so you want to be mindful of how good the prep work was done prior to painting something semi-gloss.

Gloss Finish

Well, we’ve reached the most durable and easy to clean finish — gloss. A gloss finish with the highest sheen is best suited for millwork but will still show even the tiniest imperfections.

A gloss finish can create a glam feel to the finished project which in the right space can be a perfect paint finish to use. 

Other Factors To Consider When Selecting Different Finishes Of Paint

Above, we’ve outlined each paint finish + some of the basic pros and cons to using each finish. But there’s a handful of other things to consider before communicating with your contractors.

Sheen Alters Color

It is certainly not true across the board but in general, you should proceed as if higher sheens can change how you perceive color. Again, this won't always be a drastic enough change for you to go from loving to hating a color but it could be a big enough factor to make you consider a slightly different shade of the same color.

And this shouldn’t be a shocker — a color selected in a flat finish that has no shine to it will look different than that same color in a gloss simply because it will reflect a lot more light.

So… what do you do? 

Paint it out. Yep, throw that color in the correct finish on the surface so you can get an accurate assessment and make a decision one time. Trust me, your painters + contractors will love you :)

Sheens Are Different From Brand To Brand

This one is fun. I kid. 

Unfortunately, paint sheens are different from brand to brand + there is no standard. In some paint brands, a satin may be closer to a semi-gloss whereas in another a semi-gloss and a satin may be drastically different.

So… what do you do? 

Paint it out. Like anything around painting, the only way to truly know is to paint a test area. This will give you the confidence that the finished product is exactly what you’re hoping for.

And that my friend is all the complexity around different finishes of paint. If you loved this blog post you’re absolutely going to go bananas for our FREE 4-Days To A More Beautiful + Functional Home video course.

You can also check out our amazing FREE resource library + if you’re feeling overwhelmed with your design project, book a FREE 30 min.Clarity Call and… let’s chat!