What Is Eggshell Paint Used For – 15 Surfaces For Eggshell Paint!

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As the popularity of eggshell paint continiues to grow at an exponential rate, we have noticed more and more people reaching out to ask what eggshell paint should be used for as well as for recommendations on surfaces to paint with eggshell paint. Due to eggshell paint being somewhat versatile these days, we have decided to publish this dedicated article going over the fifteen use cases we often see people asking about.

Depending on exactly what you are looking to do with your eggshell paint as well as the goals for your home decor, you may want to pick and choose from our list below to match everything with your tastes. That said though, we hope that we can help inspire you with what to use your eggshell paint on as well as help you avoid some common mistakes.

As we are covering so many questions all in the same article, we have decided to add our table of contents below too. This should make it easy for our readers to quickly and easily navigate to specific sections of the article that they want to read without having to waste large amounts of time.

What Is Eggshell Paint Used For?

Eggshell paint is usually used to try and create a relaxing atmosphere due to it being popular in light and pastel colors. It only reflects 10-15% of the light that hits it too helping to prevent overly light rooms adding to the relaxing vibe of your room.

The more modern eggshell paint formulas on the market are excellent for most use cases while also being relatively cheap. This has helped to add to the exponential growth of the paint formula as very few people end up running into budget issues when opting to use eggshell paint too.

You are able to use your eggshell paint on a range of different surface types too such as walls, wood, and metals. Just keep in mind that you may be better off using a specifically designed paint formula for some surface types to ensure that you get the best possible performance.

Is Eggshell Paint Good For Bedrooms?

Eggshell paint is a very popular option for bedrooms due to it helping to create a relaxing vibe in any room that is painted with it. The paint is available in a wide range of colors helping to ensure you can match the paint with the rest of the room without running into issues too.

One thing that you should note is that eggshell paint does not tend to be as robust or washable as gloss or semi gloss paint. This can go against it for use in the bedroom of a young child who may draw on the wall requiring it to be washed on a regular basis.

That said though, eggshell paint is a greater choice for use in a bed room when you don’t expect to have to wash the walls regularly. As we lead busier and busier life’s, more and more people are looking to switch over to a relaxing vibe in their home decor, especially in their bedroom with eggshell paint being an obvious winner.

Is Eggshell Paint Good For Bathrooms?

One of the few weaknesses of eggshell paint is that it tends not to handle moisture well. Due to this, we usually don’t recommend that our readers go with an eggshell paint finish in their bathrooms due to issues with color fade, peeling, and flaking.

Although there are eggshell paint formulas on the market that have been specifically designed for use in bathrooms or other rooms with high moisture content, they tend to be expensive. This is why we often recommend our readers consider either a gloss paint or a semi gloss paint for their bathrooms.

They tend to do well in rooms with large amounts of moisture and not have any issues with color fade, peeling or flaking. Just keep in mind that a gloss paint reflects considerably more light than eggshell paint but a dull semi gloss can be somewhat comparable.

Is Eggshell Paint Good For Kitchens?

Due to most kitchens having a high amount of moisture in them, we usually recommend against using an eggshell paint in them. Eggshell paint tends to perform badly on surfaces with constant moisture exposure and quickly have issues.

Depending on how much moisture you have in your kitchen, a gloss paint may be the best option but kitchens usually have less moisture than a bathroom. Due to this, many people will be fine with a semi gloss paint offering a similar light reflectance to eggshell paint provided you go with a dull semi gloss paint.

If you have the budget available then you can use one of the eggshell paint formulas that have been designed for use in kitchens and bathrooms but we don’t think that they are worth the higher price. If you are dead set on using eggshell paint all through your home to keep the theme the same then it maybe something to consider though.

Is Eggshell Paint Good For Kitchen Cabinets?

We usually recommend against using eggshell paint for use with kitchen cabinets for two reasons. Firstly kitchens usually have higher levels of moisture and kitchen cabinets are often wood or varnished.

This does not offer an optimal surface for your eggshell paint to work on and it is likely that a regular eggshell paint formula will start to flak and peel quickly. A gloss or semi gloss will usually be a better option and even specialist eggshell paint formulas designed for use in a kitchen can have issues with kitchen cabinets.

Some people can get away with an eggshell paint formula designed for use on wood that is outdoors due to it being designed for use with wood and to withstand the elements though. These paint formulas can be expensive too though so you have to factor your budget in for a decent paint formula.

Is Eggshell Paint Good For Interior Doors?

Eggshell paint can work very well on interior doors with eggshell commonly being used on doors in the home. The wide range of colors for eggshell paint makes it very easy to match your door color up with the rest of the room too.

Although some people do tend to prefer to use an eggshell paint formulas specifically designed for use with wood on their interior doors, you can often get away with a regular eggshell paint. Many of the modern eggshell formulas will work fine on wood provided that it is kept indoors and not exposed to the elements.

This allows you to use your eggshell paint paint on your interior doors and walls without having to purchase additional tins of paint. If you are on a tight budget then this can be an excellent option to take to help keep your costs as low as possible.

Is Eggshell Paint Good For Skirting Boards?

Eggshell paint is commonly used for skirting boards to help to complete the look of a room and bring the overall vibe together. Some people prefer to have a slightly different color of eggshell paint on their skirting boards to their walls but there are plenty of color options available.

Many of the modern eggshell paint formulas that people use on their walls will also work perfectly fine on your skirting boards too. Although some people will opt out use a specific eggshell paint formula that has been designed for use with wood, there is usually no need to.

One potential issue with using eggshell paint on your skirting boards is if you have pets as eggshell is not as robust as other paint types. If your pet likes to lay near the skirting boards then the wear and tear of of the pet and you washing it will take its toll otherwise it should be fine.

Can You Use Eggshell Paint On Ceilings?

Eggshell paint can go well when used on the ceiling of a room with it helping to add to a more relaxing feel by drastically reducing the amount of light reflected downward into the rest of the room. More and more people are starting to use eggshell paint on their ceiling for this reason with it constantly growing in popularity.

The ease of application of modern eggshell paint formulas definitely helps when using your eggshell paint on your ceiling though. It used to be a pain to quickly and easily apply the paint to a ceiling using the older formulas but thankfully times have changed.

Due to eggshell paint only reflecting between 10-15% of the light that hits it, using eggshell paint for your ceiling really is an excellent option to reduce the total light in a room and keep it relaxing. Using eggshell paint for the walls in the same room compounds this effect and can create a nice, soothing atmosphere for the room too.

Can You Use Eggshell Paint On Furniture?

Although you can use eggshell paint on some types of furniture, there are a number of variables that you have to factor in for optimal performance. The overall look and feel of the room that you are decorating will also come into play too.

Things like tables, chairs, and bookshelf’s tend to work very well when painted with an eggshell paint, especially if the rest of the room is painted in eggshell paint too. This helps to bring everything together and complete the overall look and feel of the room by keeping everything consistent.

That said though, some furniture that has other materials on it rather than just being wood can look a little strange with an eggshell paint. Furniture with cloth or glass on it can look a little out of place with an eggshell paint so be sure that you actually want to paint your furniture prior to starting.

Can Eggshell Paint Be Used On Walls?

One of the main use cases for eggshell paint is to use it to paint the walls of the rooms in your home. It is a very popular option for bedroom, dining room, and sitting rooms of your home as well as hallways helping to create a nice relaxing feel to your home.

It is easy to find eggshell paint that has been designed for use with the walls of your home too with it usually being the cheapest formula of eggshell available too. This allows you to paint larger rooms with a large wall area without having to break the bank or risk going over budget.

You are able to apply your eggshell paint to the walls of your home using the majority of paint rollers and paint brushes too. This makes it very beginner friendly and allows you to quickly and easily paint large walls with your eggshell paint in the smallest possible time frame.

Can Eggshell Paint Be Used On Wood?

More and more people are using eggshell paint on wood both inside and outside of their home. We would recommend that you use a specific outdoor paint formula for any wood outdoors but it can work very well.

With many people using eggshell paint for wooden furniture in their home such as tables, chairs, and shelves, eggshell paint formulas really have been tried and tested over the years. This has led to more and more people doing the same due to it offering such a soothing look when used to paint wood.

More recently, people have started to experiment with using their eggshell paint on wood surfaces outside of their homes. Although this can work well, we would always recommend that you use a specifically outdoor eggshell paint formula for any wood that is outside to protect it from the elements.

Can Eggshell Paint Be Used On Metal?

Although eggshell paint can work on metal, it can be hit and miss and usually depends on how smooth the metal surface is as well as the specific paint formula you are using. Unless you have the time to test different eggshell paint formulas on the metal, we usually recommend against using eggshell paint on metal.

There are a small number of paint formulas that are available with an eggshell finish but they tend to underperform and be overpriced unfortunately. You will probably have better luck by simply experimenting with regular eggshell paint formulas and seeing what option works better for you.

If you are looking to use eggshell paint on metal that is outdoor or ends up exposed to heat on a regular basis then we would recommend against it. The paint will start to peel and flake quickly resulting in a waste of time and money for you.

Can Eggshell Paint Be Used On Radiators?

We do not recommend that our readers use eggshell paint on radiators due to the heat from the radiator usually causing the paint to peel and flake quickly. A specialist radiator paint will always be the best option for use with radiators due to the constant heat the paint needs to be able to withstand.

At the time of writing, we are not aware of any specific radiator paint that is available in an eggshell finish so your options are limited. You will probably have to go with a gloss or semi gloss finish with any radiator paint products.

That said, this is only due to the heat from the radiators when used. With more and more people opting not to use their radiators you may be able to use a regular eggshell paint on your radiator if you know for a fact that it will never be turned on.

Can Eggshell Paint Be Used Outside?

There are a number of eggshell paint formulas on the market that have been specifically designed for outdoor use and perform very well. We would always recommend that you use a paint formula designed for outdoor use though as the elements take their toll on indoor formulas.

Although outdoor eggshell paint formulas are a little more expensive than the normal formulas, the difference is minimal while the actual improvement in performance really is day and night. If you use an indoor eggshell paint formula outside then the wind, rain, snow, and sun will quickly start to cause issues with it.

The outdoor eggshell paint formulas can be a little harder to find though and your local home decor store may have to specially order it in for you. This will often require you to order multiple tins of the paint so you will have to factor this in too if you only need to paint a small area.

Can Eggshell Paint Be Used On Trim?

Eggshell paint works well on trim and is an increasingly popular option for many homeowners. For optimal performance we usually recommend that any existing paint on the trim is sanded off prior to applying your eggshell paint.

The majority of modern eggshell paint formulas will work well on trim and you should not have to order a specific formula intended for use on wood. That said though, you can get slightly better results if you do use a specialist paint formula and have the budget available.

That said though, the majority of people will just use the same color as their doors and skirting boards for their trim to keep everything matching. To do this, they usually just use the exact same paint from the exact same tin.

Conclusion

That brings our article going over what you can use your eggshell paint for to a close. In our opinion, these are the most common use cases for eggshell paint and the ones that we see the most people reaching out and skiing questions about. That said though, you are only limited by your imagination and you are able to experiment and get some excellent results.