No matter how diligent you are, you can’t protect your home’s walls from every scratch, mark, or ding. Fortunately, you can often remove many of these unsightly blemishes with proper cleaning or paint touch-ups. But perhaps you’re tired of dealing with these issues altogether. In a perfect world, your walls would be impervious to any and all damage. This is a mere fantasy, though. Still, while you can’t prevent every imperfection, you can at least hide wall marks with the help of certain paint colors. Let’s explore which colors do a better job of covering up these imperfections, and why.
Lighter Colors Enlarge but Reveal
Light colors like white, off-white, and beige are commonplace in modern homes. These lighter shades reflect light, making rooms look and feel larger than they are. The major drawback of these shades, however, is that they also reveal imperfections. Most marks will appear darker than the wall’s paint color, and the light reflected off the surface will pronounce the marks even more. If you’re looking to invest in some new interior painting colors with the goal of hiding potential scratches, keep in mind that lighter shades won’t do you any favors in this regard.
Darker Colors Shrink but Conceal
Conversely, darker shades do a better job of hiding unwanted wall markings, but at the cost of making rooms feel smaller and more cramped, absorbing light rather than reflecting it. Dark colors were indeed once a popular choice for residential painting, but this trend has mostly gone away. You’ll still find some newer homes with darker color schemes, though, incorporating dark greens, clays, and blues. If hiding wall marks is your first priority when it comes to home painting, you should go with darker colors such as these, but only if you like how they look, of course.
Don’t Forget About the Finish
Color isn’t the only factor in concealing imperfections. The paint’s sheen or finish also plays a role. The glossier the finish, the more reflective the paint, no matter what color it is. And the more reflective the paint, the easier it will be to make out wall marks. However, glossier finishes are also more durable and easier to clean than flat or matte finishes, meaning they’re not a bad option if you’re trying to protect your walls from potential damage. Interior house painters can tell you that those flat finishes will help you hide wall marks, but won’t do as good a job protecting your walls from getting damaged in the first place. You must find the balance between concealing and protecting your walls. As such, many homeowners go with eggshell or satin finishes, which fall between flat and high-gloss options.
To sum up, generally speaking, darker colors and flat finishes can hide wall marks while lighter colors and glossy finishes can expose them. Of course, for most homeowners, concealing imperfections is just one factor informing their decision. You also want to choose colors that will enhance your home’s beauty and atmosphere. If you need help choosing the right colors for your home, the residential painting contractors at All American Painting Plus can help. To learn more about all that we can do for our clients in Northern Virginia, give us a call at (703)-620-5563!
