What we tell every client about wall paint (that no one else does).
Nine out of ten homes we visit have the wrong paint sheen. Not the wrong colour — the wrong sheen.
The paint conversation with a client, in most homes, is about colour. Which grey. Which off-white. Which soft green. This is the wrong conversation. Or rather — it is one of two conversations that need to happen, and it is not the more important one.
The more important conversation is about the _sheen_ of the paint. The finish. How reflective it is.
The four sheens and what they do
Paint comes in four standard sheens:
Matt (or _flat_): Almost no reflection. The paint absorbs light. Colours look deep and quiet. Marks show easily. Almost impossible to wipe clean without leaving a shine.
Eggshell (or _low sheen_): Very slight reflection. Wipes gently. This is the default premium sheen for most rooms.
Satin (or _mid sheen_): Noticeable but soft reflection. Wipes well. Used in kitchens, bathrooms, high-traffic corridors.
Gloss (or _semi-gloss_): Highly reflective. Wipes easily. Used only on trim, doors, or specific accents. Never on walls in premium homes.
What we specify by room
Bedrooms: Matt. The bedroom is where the light is softest and the paint should absorb it. A matt wall makes the room feel like a room, not a photograph.
Living rooms: Matt or eggshell. Eggshell if there are children who touch walls. Matt if the room is adult and the client will accept that marks will accumulate.
Kitchens: Satin, always. Grease, water, and fingerprints will accumulate. The paint must be wipeable.
Bathrooms: Satin or gloss. Humidity requires a non-porous finish.
Corridors and stairwells: Eggshell. Traffic is high; light is neutral.
Ceilings: Ultra-matt (which is a fifth, specialty sheen). Ceilings should absorb light entirely to make the room feel taller.
A wrong colour is a repaint. A wrong sheen is the whole room feeling wrong for the next decade.
Why the sheen is more important than the colour
A wrong colour is easily repainted. A single coat, one day, ₹15,000, done.
A wrong sheen changes how the room _feels_. A gloss white in a bedroom will make the room feel like a hotel bathroom regardless of the colour. A matt white in a kitchen will hold every grease mark within three months.
We have visited homes where a client spent ₹50,000 on Italian-imported paint in a beautiful colour, applied in the wrong sheen. The room does not read as premium. It reads as clinical, or dated, or unkempt, depending on the room. The colour was correct. The finish killed it.
What to ask your painter
Which sheen are you using in each room? They should have an answer per room, not one answer for the whole home.
Which brand of paint? Asian Paints Royale Aspira, Dulux Velvet Touch Diamond Glo, Nippon Momento, or Berger Silk Illusions are our common premium specifications. Below these, sheen becomes inconsistent.
How many coats? Two coats is the minimum for premium finish. Three coats for dark colours. One coat is not acceptable.
The colour will be your decision, and it should be. But the sheen is the decision that will determine whether the room feels considered or careless.
Ask about it.
— Mahesh