Choosing Right Sheen For Your Paint
March 4, 2009
The look of your room gets drastically affected by the sheen or the gloss level of the paint in your room decor. The function for which the room is used and also the aesthetic sense determines the sheen/ gloss to be given for the paint in your room. A number of sheens are available in the market and these are discussed here. However, the names and gloss level can vary from manufacturer to manufacturer.
• Flat or matte finish paints hide little imperfections in the wall since there is no shine. Normally they are not resistant to stain; however, some matte finish paints are available nowadays which have high stain resistance.
• Eggshell paints or velvet-finish paints that have low sheen or gloss level provide a soft and warm look to the room and are preferred in bedrooms/ living rooms. These are very easy to clean.
• In order to highlight architectural details/ focal points of the home you must use paints with satin or semi-gloss finish; in addition they can be used in kitchens and baths because they are easy to clean.
• Doors and trims can have high gloss or sheen paint; also they can be used to create special effects.
• Choosing sheen level In order to get optimum sheen level of your paint the following guidelines are given.
• It is easy to clean a room/ area if they have a higher gloss or sheen level.
• Since these paints distract the onlooker from any imperfections in painting they are suitable for amateurs.
• High gloss paints can be used in bathrooms and kitchens that are frequently visited by people thereby requiring frequent washing and cleaning.
• High gloss paints are stain resistant as well as wear and tear resistant.
• High sheen paints can be used either in kids room or fantasy room décor where you would like to give focus or bold color scheme.
• You can use bright high sheen primary colors in kids’ room in order to provide different patterns such as polka dots.
• Paints that are flat or having low sheen or gloss level should be used only by professionals to make the surface appear smoother and more uniform.
• Use flat paints in newly constructed homes/ less used areas at home.
• In case you are going for a vintage type home décor, you could use flat paints on a wall near the fireplace whereas pillars/ columns in old homes are to be painted with warm earthly hues.
• Use different combination of paint sheens to produce interesting dramatic effect.
• Customized effect can be produced by using a monochromatic room décor in two different sheens; these effects can be stripes, blocks or other geometrical patterns.
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