At the old house, I painted with a semi-gloss or something even more shiny than that. I wanted the walls to be washable. Granted, it made it harder to put on the next coat of paint because the walls had to be sanded or roughed-up or treated in some way so that the next coat of slicky paint wouldn't slide right off the undercoat of [older] slicky paint.
The new house has an "eggshell" finish which is not washable. Every time I hit a fly or smash a mosquito, there's a blood splat on the wall. Finger-marks don't wash off. Food splashes in the kitchen don't wash off. These walls are going to need to be painted a whole lot sooner than if they were washable. I hear frightening stories about normal people who paint the insides of their houses every 2-4 years; apparently that's just what you're supposed to do. Well, if I can paint with washable paint every 9-12 years, I'm saving time (and money) even if I have to spend twice as long on the paint job!
Monday, June 23, 2008
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I'm right there with you on the 9-12 (+ actually 14) year plan. Most of the house hasn't been painted since we moved in. This summer is when I need to get it done though. Trying to declutter so there is less to move to get the painting done.
ReplyDeleteI've used a satin finish on most of the rooms we've painted over the years. It scrubs up just fine and it isn't as difficult to paint over as semi-gloss.
ReplyDeleteI love to paint. Since we've never lived anywhere longer than 2.5 years we paint every 2-3 years :) This is going to be the first house that we get to paint the outside. We found nice tongue and groove wood siding under the cheap, cracked vinyl so we are making plans to paint in the fall.
I concur that satin is best for the average room. Our basement was like the paint you're dealing with. Nothing would wipe off of it. But the new satin will be much easier to deal with for real living!
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty sure that painting every 2-4 years isn't "what you're supposed to do".... I can't think of anyone I know that paints that much! Probably crazy people in Dallas who are constantly redesigning do. But not normal people! ;) We've been in our house 30 years and some walls have only seen their second covering (wallpaper off, paint on) in the last few years. =)
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