Paint brand recommendations

[Eleoura]

We are having a 2 bed flat re-painted. When prompted, the painter recommended valspar brand, but the reviews online are dreadful. Should I get a trade brand instead, or the valspar- in the hope that being professionals, they will get a good finish? Any other recommendations?

No allergies, kids, pets and we will be moving out when the painting happens, so no issues with paint smell if relevant.

I hated Valspar when I used it, rubbish finish and it took a lot of paint to get full coverage. I'd go for trade instead (or F&B but people don't always rate that on here!)

Dulux Trade or Albany from a paint merchant such as Brewers. They can mix almost any colour if you see something you prefer in another brand.

I actually quite like painting with Dulux, especially for my non 'feature' rooms - corridors, kids bedrooms etc. I found the OneCoat particularly easy to work with, and it genuinely does only need one coat, even on my dire walls.

For fancier paints, I rate Farrow and Ball (as PP said, it gets a bit of hate on MN for being hard to use, but that's not my experience at all). I also really like Mylands, it goes on like liquid velvet.

I hate hate hate hate hate Little Greene, which gets a lot of love on here - beautiful colours, but the only room I did with it took twice as much paint as F&B (three coats, and really needs a fourth), was very very hard to appply with either brush or roller without being streaky/patchy, and where my ladder chipped a patch and I dabbed a bit over, it shows really badly (touch ups have blended seamlessly wtih F&B and Dulux). Hate it!

Dulux. Honestly, it's just so easy to work with and leaves a great finish. If you prefer the powdery F&B effect then it might not be for you though.

After flirting with all sorts of brands I always seem to come back to Dulux, particularly their Heritage and Light & Space ranges.

Have just painted DS’s room with combination of F&B and Little green company-beautiful colours and great coverage of both

F&B modern emulsion has been absolutely great in all 5 rooms I've painted this year. Estate emulsion is much harder work.

Dulux easy care range here in every room.

Deluxe trade , thicker paint , great finish

Someone suggested 'Manor coatings' brand. Apparently as good as dulux trade but much cheaper due to very little advertising. Anyone have experience of it?

Agree with a pp that Dulux Light & Space is very good but limited colours.

Avoid Valspar paint - truly, utterly awful.

F&B - lovely if you don't have children, never touch a wall and will never need to touch up.

Little Greene is best of recent purchases, plus Benjamin Moore.

I love F&B (2 kids, no issues, pick the appropriate finish), Little Greene and Mylands. If I were on a strict budget I'd use Dulux over Valspar.

Nothing wrong with Valspar , it's not too selling paint in the US fir nothing

People don't know how to apply it properly that's all. Prep is everything but the V700 is the best by far

Most paints these days are water based so won't smell much

Avoid Valspar!

I've decorated my whole house. Dulux and Wickes were best of the non F&B type brands. Crown ok too.

We used Valspar all over out house. We got the kitchen paint mixed and the ordinary walls are from the gold tin.
No issues and the kitchen walls are scrubbable.

I can’t rate ‘Elle by Crown’ highly enough for your walls. The finish is great and the shades are amazing! Expensive though but worth it.

For everything else, Dulux trade every day.

There was a thread on here the other day about a bedroom that smells of urine. Lots of people asked if they'd painted it with Valspar paint as they'd noticed a wee smell at certain temperatures. You may wish to avoid that brand.

@bigbluebus

There was a thread on here the other day about a bedroom that smells of urine. Lots of people asked if they'd painted it with Valspar paint as they'd noticed a wee smell at certain temperatures. You may wish to avoid that brand.

No

That was when they took out a chemical ( due to paint regs changing) and the one they added in its place caused the smell

The paint was recalled with a new batch minus that chemical which is fine

Those having the smell are using old paint. And nobody should be painting in this weather anyway because that can also affect the paint

And that s ANY brand of paint

Johnstones trade.

Money no object = Lakeland, better than anything else in my experience.
You can't go wrong with Dulux Trade.
I've also had really good results with Valspar

Dulux Easycare every time. Lovely to use, redcoats perfectly for touch-ups, durable and wipeable.

*recoats!

Dulex all the way.