Paint? I Don't Know What to Buy!!

We love Valspar from Lowes and usually use eggshell. Valspar paint goes on smooth, dries quickly - and very little odor.

Hi there! my husband is a painter and he uses Dunn Edwards (brand) versaglo- semigloss for walls and doors and versaglo flat for the ceilings. For my kids nursery i bought some paint from home depot and my husband hated it, it was super sticky. You want to use semi-gloss on your walls so it will clean up better vs using flat because when you try to clean a spot on your flat wall, you will now have a spot 3X bigger. Doors and molding should be semi gloss too, and bathrooms especially should be semigloss b/c flat will grow mold! He only uses flat on ceiling, just not your bathroom ceiling, use semigloss for that. Good luck!!

I like eggshell. Easier to clean than flat, doesn't peel and blind like the gloss finishes.

gloss is easy to clean so alot of people use in bathrooms. i know people who used it in their kids rooms b/c they wanted to be able to wipe it w/out the paint coming off. semi gloss is half as glossy as gloss and flat is no gloss. you can get a sample card of the different types to see the difference at the paint store.the behr brand is always good, but def more expensive. you can go to the paint store and get a little sample can of paint so you can paint a small section to see what it will look like. good luck!

Gloss and semi-gloss are for wood trim. Don't use flat if you have children because it is difficult to scrub, but it does hide imperfections. Flat white is great for ceilings. For walls use something like an eggshell or velvet type sheen, even in a bathroom. Use a good line of paint like Sherwin Williams. It is VERY worth it when you consider the time and effort involved. Make sure your walls are clean. If painting the kitchen, use TSP cleaner to de-grease. If painting woodwork scuff sand and clean the wood first. Water based paints are great these days. No need to mess with oil. Also, use a GOOD brush and roller. Again, the cheap tools make your job more difficult. Have fun!

We really like the Valspar paint at Lowe's. We use satin for pretty much everything. It only looks bad if you have really bad (rough) walls. In that case, I'd go with eggshell. The slight gloss (in satin/eggshell) will help reflect light and make the room look brighter. I hate flat paint. It's boring, always looks dirty to me, and is hard to clean. High-gloss or semi-gloss should be used on door & floor trim & on crown molding if you have it. It's much sturdier against scuffs and dings and is easy to clean. Besides the finish, there's also the design aspect, I like to paint the ceiling a coordinating color (in bedrooms & sometimes bathrooms). For example, our bedroom was a medium-tone periwinkle (purple/blue) so I painted the ceiling the palest shade of blue I could find. In my daughter's room we painted a medium-tone teal and the ceiling a very pale seafoam green. The theory is that it doesn't look as stark contrast as if you had a white ceiling. Of course, if you're painting the walls a very light color, a white (or off-white) ceiling would look better. I have also painted a bathroom with a pretty light ocean blue and painted the ceiling the same color. The shower stall, floor, and 1/2 wall wainscotting were a beautiful tan tile, so the blue on top really contrasted nicely. And, it was such a small room that having a white ceiling would've stood out too much.

Good luck! Nothing like a fresh coat of paint to make your house feel spring clean!

Valspar Ultra Premium Plus from Lowes is what we have always used. The more expensive paints always promise 'one coat coverage', but I've yet to find ANY paint that met that standard, for me anyway, lol.
Gloss finishes are advised for baths (steam from shower/bath won't affect it) and for kitchens, spills are easier to wipe off. Thats what 'they' say anyways.
For what it's worth. Good luck.

We like Valspar,Behr and Glidden for brand,
As far as the sheen ( glossy, semi gloss etc) if what is painted there already is glossy you HAVE to use glossy , you can't paint eggshell over glossy.
Generally walls are eggshell or semi gloss.
Talk to the people at the paint counter at a place like home depot or lowes, They will be able to help you choose what type is best for your rooms. Home depot has samples they can make of colors to help you choose colors that your want. Not just the little cards but actual tiny bottles of paint.

for the bathroom, there is special 'bathroom' paint that won't mildew.
I usually go with a semi-gloss.

If you are trying to cover up an existing paint job, go with a paint that has a built in primer, or get a primer that is the same color as the paint you are using. Ace Hardware has some really good 1 coat paint. I don't know if it has the built in primer.

If you are painting over wallpaper, or panelling, use a primer first or the paint will just soak into the walls.

Eggshell or Satin is best and alot easier to clean than flat paints. You can use them anywhere in the house.

The people in the paint store (like Kelly Moore) or paint dept. (Lowes, Home Depot) are really good at helping you choose what type you need in different rooms, trim, indoor/outdoor, etc.
Get a few small cans and paint some large (at least 12 inch square) swatches on the wall so you can see how it really looks. Live with it for a few days. Sometimes a color looks very different in the natural morning light vs. the evening/electric light.
Do NOT get paint at place like Kmart or Walmart, the quality is just not that good, and you won't get the same personal service.

Behr paint is the bet if you have a HOme Depot near you. I thought I liked Menards but they do NOT know how to mix paint and the color was always off for me. I used a satin in my bathroom once...never again. It looked horrible. Eggshell is a good choice if you have kids. My brother would prefer flat. And you can use the paint through out the house, no need to have one type for the bath, one for the kitchen etc even though some places will tell you otherwise. Make sure you get good brushes and rollers or you will have bad lines and fuzzies stuck in the paint.

I use Benjamin Moore paint ONLY.
I used the Aura paint for the bedrooms and it was terrific, but expensive.
I use the Pearl finish for the walls in the rest of the house and high gloss for the trim.
Flat paint shows every defect in your walls, so you might want to stay away from that.
YMMV
LBC

I like the "eggshell" finish for walls. It's sturdier and easier to clean than flat paint, but it has less sheen than semi-gloss. On trim, I use semi-gloss.

I've purchased paint from Home Depot and Lowe's - principally Behr at Home Depot and Valspar at Lowe's, but there are other good brands. Many brands offer little trial sizes of paint, and they're wonderful! You can try a color on all your walls - in substantial places, if you like - and see how it looks in different light situations (such as in my bathroom which has no windows!). It's easier to work with than paint chips. Frequently I try things out and, once I've found a color I want, I just wait until it goes on sale.

Sometimes it's worthwhile to buy primer for your walls as well. It's cheaper than the paint, and you may actually save on how much paint you'll have to use. Talk to the paint department people.

Sherwin Williams Pro-Mar 200 interior latex paint....with an eg-shell finish!
I never painted in my life....and we did a full repaint of every wall in the house we just moved into and it is AMAZING! made me look like a pro painter!
cleans up well, has amazing covereage (2 coats though....but you'll want that for it to look right...think of nail polish...1 coat looks bad, 2 pro) that is for the walls. You'll want a semi-gloss for trim and doors, and flat for the ceiling!