Paint, the DIY sort

I personally prefer a Matt finish as the other two have a shine to the paint work...in a way its like choosing Matt or gloss on photographs ...

Will you be doing the painting yourself?

For woodwork you can use either gloss or eggshell, but when it comes to the walls there's even more choice!

it used to be just matt or silk emulsion, but there is now special light diffusing paint (apparently makes rooms look lighter and airier) plus extra hard wearing emulsion for high traffic areas (Dulux endurance) which is supposed to be more scrubbable (think little hands on the walls of a staircase)

Whatever you go for on the walls, do try a few match pots first. The colour I thought was perfect for our sitting room was much too dark once I'd started slapping it on!

We prefer a matt finish. Only used satin finish once and
were not so keen, but it is of course personal preference and both seem popular. I wanted to change the woodwork to eggshell room by room but it has not happened so far. DH is resolutely for gloss.
Does it have windows along the long side, either end or just one end? I suppose it would depend on how the light falls and gets reflected and, of course, the colours of carpet and furnishings.

Oh and don't be tempted to use B&Q own brand white emulsion for the ceilings, out hall ceiling took 3 COATS and still isn't very good!

I meant silk, of course. And thankyou for the tips, phoenix, we will have to do hall, stairs and landing one day soon, and I keep thinking about the effect of little fingers on paler walls.

Matt definitely, unless you have very new smooth walls with no lumps or bumps. Satin doesn't look good on uneven surfaces, as it casts shadows and makes them look worse.

All I will say is this; because matt is more modern now we have this everywhere and it was a mistake in some rooms because matt is much harder to clean than silk paint.I have gently sponged marks off high traffic area to matt paint and it looks different now to the rest of the wall [even though you are supposed to be able to do this.] Marks have been cleaned in the same way off silk emulsioned walls in our last house a few years ago, and came off better, and it didn't show a difference. We will be redecorating again in a year or two and we will go back to silk.

DH used Johnstones white gloss for the woodwork in the study and is very pleased with the result so far.

When my large light sitting-room was redecorated 4 years ago at considerable cost, I was persuaded to change from white gloss to eggshell/satin finish for skirtings, doors and panelling. Regretted it within a year as chips and cracks appeared. Although it's quite an undertaking, including 6 large sash and case windows, I feel it will have to be redone as soon as I can bear the effort, stress and expense involved!

Matt for me. I did one room with Farrow and Ball, v expensive, but 3 years on, it still looks good, whereas the Dulux/Crown walls haven't worn anything like as well. Spring gets me every time - always see things that need fixing, despite the fact it's raining and grey again today.

That's interesting, mcem, I will remember that as the hall, stairs etc will get more traffic and need to be robust

Is F&B washable/durable?

We got B & Q white gloss for the woodwork, our DIL was the painter, and she complained vociferously about the terrible finish, said it shows all the brushmarks up, and it certainly didn`t give a high gloss finish. We won`t be buying it again.

I have F&B everywhere because it is what my SiL (a decorator) uses. All finishes in my home are matt /eggshell. F&B is not bad for wiping also you can paint over any bad marking and it blends well. It is pricey and I am lucky as I get it at trade prices..mates rates! I would not use a brilliant white paint anywhere as I find it a bit harsh. however itf you like a F& B colour but want a washable finish take a swatch to B&Q and get it colour matched in a finish you want!

Decent gloss paint is Dulux or Crown. My satin gloss was supplied by professional decorator and was useless. Don't buy any own-brand gloss. It just isn't worth trying to save a few pounds and ending up with a nasty finish. On the other hand I recently found Homebase's matt emulsion gave good results in bedroom. Not sure if it would be suitable for heavy traffic areas and colour range was a bit limited but just what I needed for spare room!

I have used Dulux gloss and emulsion paint all my married life. I know its more expensive, but it goes on better, and gives a better finish all round. My preference is for Matt finish in the good rooms and satin or "washable" paints, for high traffic area's.

Berdie when I did my own decorating I used Dulux too. Now I am lucky to have it done for me I am not quibbling about the paint

We use Crown non drip white gloss for skirtings and doors/doorframes etc. It leaves a nice shine and is hard wearing, but most importantly, keeps its colour. We find that Dulux tends to go rather yellow quite quickly.

I agree about F&B being pricey and other makes also now do "heritage" colour ranges BUT F&B has a quality of pigment (as well as wonderfully subtle colours) which makes it worthwhile every time. Mouse's back/chalk white/clunch anyone?

As we have a lot of new interior doors [and I had to paint them all] once the basecoat was on I used Crown Solo gloss [I think it was satin gloss] and you only need one coat each side. If you have a lot of gloss painting to do this helps a lot.

Soutra, clunch in our front sitting room, I love it. I shan't re-decorate with anything but F&B in future. We had the hall and stairs done (it's getting a bit much for either of us) and the decorator muttered on about our friends who recommended him to us "they're odd as well, books everywhere and all the paints in F&B" he grumbled.

F&B sounds great and def the one for me but I do not know what F&B means?? please forgive my ignorance

Farrow and Ball, manufacturer.