Experiences with eggshell/satin/low-gloss kitchen cabinets?

[havoc]

Having got some sample doors/drawers from a couple of suppliers, we've decided we don't like the semi-gloss look that painted-wood cabinetry seems to come with (foiled MDF appears more resilient to glare, but we're heavily leaning towards timber).

...but reading around today, a semi-gloss finish seems to be recommended for kitchen cabinets, particularly in darker colours (we're looking at mid-dark blues or possibly greens).

So I was wondering if anyone else had gone for low(er)-gloss cabinet paint in their kitchens and how they found it (keeping it clean / whether it chips/scratches/damages easily) and how it looks visually, not just on Day-1 but after a few years?

Thanks,

Martin.

[squishy]

My recommendation is avoid matt finish like the plague. I have matt grey shaker style cabinets and they are a b**ch to keep clean. Not helped when the wife uses her paws directly on the cabinet doors rather than the handle to close cabinets.

[Elderly]

Irrespective of the finish, I would avoid acrylic based paints in the kitchen.

[bennno]

cabinets with handles are 80% of the solution.

take a look at the painted oak shaker cabinets at howdens

[havoc]

bennno said:

cabinets with handles are 80% of the solution.

take a look at the painted oak shaker cabinets at howdens

Funnily enough, that's exactly what we don't like - the sample drawer-fronts we've had from them look semi-gloss - as soon as you get any reflection on them the colour washes right out, and even without that there's too little saturation in the colour. Look great under showroom lighting, but naff under natural light.

Have a sample foil-wrapped MDF drawer-front which is a little different / little better (reflective index looks lower and the saturation higher, so i think it's to do with their paint process, as the Second Nature and DIY Kitchens painted-timber samples we've seen don't seem to have quite the same problem)...but we don't want foil-wrapped MDF (certainly not from Howdens).

[loughran]

Are you having a kitchen hand painted ?

Perhaps an eggshell finish would suit you. Oil based.

[havoc]

loughran said:

Are you having a kitchen hand painted ?

Perhaps an eggshell finish would suit you. Oil based.

That's where I'm leaning (although it'll add cost), but I can't find an example.

[loughran]

havoc said:

loughran said:

Are you having a kitchen hand painted ?

Perhaps an eggshell finish would suit you. Oil based.

That's where I'm leaning (although it'll add cost), but I can't find an example.

Check through my instagram feed, pretty much any painted finish you see there is Johnstone's oil based eggshell.

It's a paint that appears rather shiny once it's on and takes a couple of days to become eggshell.

If skilfully applied it's an excellently hardwearing and chip resistant finish. Repainting is often done every seven or eight years.

[havoc]

loughran said:

Check through my instagram feed, pretty much any painted finish you see there is Johnstone's oil based eggshell.

It's a paint that appears rather shiny once it's on and takes a couple of days to become eggshell.

If skilfully applied it's an excellently hardwearing and chip resistant finish. Repainting is often done every seven or eight years.

Thank you - that definitely helps!