Matte Vs. Eggshell Paint

Do you guys have matte or eggshell paint in your house?

I have BM Aura with the matte finish in my house and I love the way it looks.

We are doing some more painting on Sat and I am not sure if I should get eggshell this time since I now have a baby and soon he will be running all over. I dont think you can wash matte but eggshell you can.

What do you guys recommend?

Thanks

Message edited 10/27/2011 9:09:44 PM.

Re: Matte Vs. Eggshell Paint

Re: Matte Vs. Eggshell Paint

Thanks!

Re: Matte Vs. Eggshell Paint

Please do eggshell no matter what you read or what anyone says!!

I have had flat (not matte but similar) and it was a nightmare!!! My new home, with my child now...I only used eggshell and nothing beats eggshell for washing off CRAYON, vomit, formula, FOOD thrown, etc, off your walls! Trust me, it WILL happen.

Please dont make a mistake and use anything other than eggshell.

Message edited 10/27/2011 9:55:17 PM.

Re: Matte Vs. Eggshell Paint

What about eggshell vs. satin or semi-gloss or high gloss?

Re: Matte Vs. Eggshell Paint

I have semi-gloss in the kitchen and the bathroom- places where I want to be able to really wash down the walls. It does have a bit of shine to it, but I would rather that than stains. I have eggshell everywhere else in the house.

Re: Matte Vs. Eggshell Paint

Re: Matte Vs. Eggshell Paint

I have Matte and everything wipes off of it EVERYTHING! SS opened a can of Chef Boy Ardee (sp?) once and it splattered everywhere. I couldn't believe the mess it made lol It flung across the kitchen walls all the way into the entryway which is a light taupe color (Matte). It all wiped right off. Same thing with Sauce I was making once.

I have had flat and that was a nightmare. Not sure what the difference is with Flat or Matte technically but in my experience, it was a big difference.

Also, the Matte makes the color look so svelte. It's a personal choice but I love the look.

Re: Matte Vs. Eggshell Paint

I love behr ultra paint and primer. I use thier flat enamel. Its a washable flat paint. I love it. We had to touch up a few spots and you cant even tell. I have even color matched BM colors and they came out great!

Re: Matte Vs. Eggshell Paint

Re: Matte Vs. Eggshell Paint

Re: Matte Vs. Eggshell Paint

I went with eggshell in all of my living areas. It's easier to clean and maintain, but also, the previous owners had a ton of wallpaper up. We had a professional come in to take down wallpaper and repair the walls and paint, but even still, the walls were far from perfect. The pro painter recommended eggshell because matte shows every little flaw in the walls. Unless you have new construction, or just put up new sheetrock, your walls are probably not perfect.

I agree with pp's recommendation of semi gloss for the bathrooms and kitchens. That is what are painter recommended because of the high moisture content in those areas and the need to be able to wipe down the walls.

Re: Matte Vs. Eggshell Paint

I made a mistake of painting my ivory door matte and every freaking smudge shows up and it's annoying having to clean it! Never do matte if you can help.

Go with eggshell all the way, unless it's a kitchen or bathroom, then go semigloss.

But be mindful, semigloss will allow imperfections of a wall to be more obvious..

Re: Matte Vs. Eggshell Paint

we use BM Matte on all walls in our house. I have never had a problem washing the matte paint.
I had a chocolate fountain that malfuntioned during a party and splattered melted chocholate all over my dining room walls. It cleaned off perfectly.
I also love the look of matte and I don't know how but our painter has touched up a few high traffic spots and you cannot tell it was touched up.

Re: Matte Vs. Eggshell Paint

I always use eggshell and I LOVE it! I love the finish. I actually dislike matte paint, it's chalky and you can't clean it. I like that eggshell isn't too shiny and isn't too dull. It's a nice balance.

Re: Matte Vs. Eggshell Paint

My whole house is matte, benjamin moore aura, except for the trim (doors, windows, mouldings...). I love the look of matte, BUT i would never use it again. Just looking at it makes a mark on the wall! It su*ks. The semigloss trim is sooo much easier to clean then the mat walls. Anything that rubs against the walls leaves a black mark. I have a 17 month old who leaves greasy finger points all over the walls and my dog scratched the crap out of the paint by our front door. I really wouldnot recommend matte. I joke with my husband that next time we paint it will be semigloss everywhere. I dont care how shiny it is even if we have to wear sunglasses inside!

Re: Matte Vs. Eggshell Paint

Re: Matte Vs. Eggshell Paint

We have Satin and I haven't had any problems.

Re: Matte Vs. Eggshell Paint

Thanks everyone! I got eggshell and it came out great! It doesnt look that much different from the matte I have in my house. (love love love the matte look) I am so happy I went with eggshell because it is so close to matte and will be easier to maintain!

Re: Matte Vs. Eggshell Paint

Re: Matte Vs. Eggshell Paint

I have BM eggshell throughout my house and I HATE it! Juice fell on the wall and I went to go clean it up and you can't, you see every little touch up! I got furniture delivered and they made a hole going up my stairs and they had to come and fix it, and they had to paint the entire wall because he even said you can't just do 1 spot. We have matte in our bedroom and I really love it, but I haven't tried to touch it up.

Re: Matte Vs. Eggshell Paint

we have eggshell all throughout the house except in the kitchen.