Understand your Sheen
When you finally set out to transform your house by looking at many different paint options, you would notice that there are a lot of different paint sheens out there. Paint Sheens are the final finish or the final product of what your walls would look like after they have been coated with conventional paint. One major confusing aspect about this is that many different paint manufacturers have different names for these sheens that make it all the more confusing for normal people who wouldn’t have any knowledge in this whatsoever to choose from.
Getting the sheen right for your walls is just as important as getting the paint color right, because the sheen ultimately determines the final finish of your homes. And this is why you have to go about choosing your sheen carefully. For a lot of your painting work, you would have more than two types of finishes that you can choose from, and it is very important that you get your basics right before deciding to settle upon one.
How to Choose the Right Paint Color for Your Home
Starting Somewhere
You have been wanting to repaint or paint your the rooms from scratch in your house and it has been months. You finally settle upon a color that you can go with, but you have no idea what sheen to use. The sheen or the paint finishes can make a huge different in your paint projects! It consists of all the differences that are just right that make the original Mona Lisa painting more beautiful than the many different reproduces out there.
Paints are available, as mentioned before, in a variety of different sheens. And also as mentioned before, paint manufacturers tend to make it very much confusing for the normal end consumer when it comes to choosing a paint sheen, because, like many other companies, they resort to brand their products in complex ways to make it look cooler, rather than making it easy for consumers.
The Basics
Paints without a shine or a sheen are referred to as flat or matte finishes. They tend to diffuse the light that reflects the paint, and this means that the light that hits the painted walls are diffused in many different directions, with no shine whatsoever. A glossy, or a semi glossy sheen will reflect the light in a lot of the ways that mirrors do when they reflect the light. So these sheens create a shine off the surface. Nearly all of the available sheens can be used in each and every room of the house, but it all depends upon how smart you are in making these decisions, and how appealing it is to your room.
If you would like to incorporate two different sheens, then you should because then you would get a combination of two different sheens and hence the design pattern would fall somewhere in the middle.
The Different Types of Paint Sheens
Flat
The flat kinds of paint sheens look just as plain as they sound: Flat. There is nothing more and nothing less to these kinds of paint finishes. These finishes create a dull and almost smooth finish that are mainly appealing to living rooms, offices, and dining rooms. They are not complicated, and don’t need the incorporation of any tricks in the book to make it look really good. These flat paints are one of the most easiest sheens to touch up on because of their simplicity, and they do add a really nice depth for the walls. One problem associated with this is that they are prone to getting dusted up, and stains and cannot be washed easily. Hence, it is not a great idea to use them in children’s rooms and other rooms which are highly used.
Low Sheen
Low sheens are known as eggshells, or satin, low-luster or silk. Low sheens are often a lot less porous than conventional paint sheens, and they are not shiny at all whatsoever. But one advantage associated with this type of paint is that they can be washed down, and hence they are a perfect choice for washrooms and kitchens. Additionally, they can also be used in bedrooms, hallways and rooms where there are always a lot of people around.
High Sheen
This is one of the most hardest and smoothest finishes that you can find in any paint sheen that is available in the market today. High sheen paints also have a very glossy look going for them, and hence they appear to be very shiny. Because of their obvious beautiful lustre, High Sheen paints are the best choice for doors, windows, and any other places that get a lot of use on a daily basis. Dirt and stains are not prone to sticking on high sheen paint making it very easy to clean, and maintain on a frequent basis. This finish is never supposed to be used on walls and ceilings.
We hope you got enlightened with the different types of sheen in this article, and will be able to choose the right sheen before you start the paintwork in your house! Stay tuned for more content, and let us know your thoughts in the comments section down below!