Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Hallmark Ceramic Matte Finish: A True Story of Children and Paint

Well, I'll start out by admitting that I know I'm probably biased.  I know that I work for RepcoLite Paints and that I'm writing on a RepcoLite Paints Blog and that I'm going to plug a RepcoLite Paints Product.  And I know that all of that makes me somewhat biased.  But as you read this, everytime you start to think that "the guy writing this is just blowing smoke because he's trying to sell something", I ask you to refer to the photo at the left.  Whenever you're tempted to doubt the honesty of this post, check out that picture.

Alright, with that out of the way, let me tell you about my back entry....

About 2 years ago I painted it a muted, olive green color.  In the photo it looks more tan, but that's because the camera flash washed the color out.  In reality, it's more green.  Anyway, that's not important.  About 2 years ago, as I said, I painted the back entry.  When I finished with the paint job, I remember standing there, marveling at my work (patting myself on the back) and congratulating myself on another job well done.  And then I looked down and saw that the paint I used was RepcoLite's Hallmark Ceramic Matte Finish

Well, when I saw that, I immediately thought, "oh no!  Matte!  I meant to use Eggshell so it'd be more washable!"  Yes, somehow, in all my wisdom, I'd grabbed the wrong can off the shelf.  But, being opposed to extra work just for the sake of it, I decided to leave it be and repaint when absolutely necessary.

OK, that was 2 years ago.  Now, I know--because I work at RepcoLite--that Hallmark Ceramic Matte is a washable, durable flat finish.  But I also know it's still a flat finish.  Which means that it's washability will be less than a shinier paint.  However, knowing all of that, I cannot believe--I literally cannot believe--how well this stuff has held up.  

It's amazing.   I have 5 children.  And some of the time, they're pigs.  In fact, their favorite thing in the world seems to be to eat ice-cream or pudding with their hands and then walk down our back steps, through our back entry, trailing their dirty, grimy fingers along the wall, leaving trails for the ants to follow. 

When this first started happening, I thought I'd be repainting that back entry very soon with a more washable finish.  But before I cracked open a gallon of Hallmark Eggshell, I thought I'd wipe the walls down and see how much of the junk came off.  Well, I did that and all of it came off.  All the gunk the kids put there that first time came off.  Easily.  The finish didn't dull or get shiny and the walls, when they dried again, were flawless.

"Hmmmmm," I thought to myself.  "That's a good sign . . . but I wonder how long before it doesn't wash up anymore?"

Well, day after day, month after month, I'd walk into the back entry . . . see the filth the kids had wrought . . . break out a damp rag . . . and clean the whole thing up.  Time after time.  With no dulling on the wall.  No burnishing of the finish.  No visible flaws at all.

I was literally amazed at the washability this wall--this most trafficked area of my home--was displaying.

But then came the day of the picture I posted at the beginning.  That was sometime last August.  Hannah, my 2 year old had been quiet for too long and when I found her, she was in the back entry with a pack of crayons, coloring all over the walls.  ALL over the walls. Big, sweeping, little-kid-circles all over the walls.

Well, at that point, I figured the gig was up--I figured my paint job had lasted two full years when I didn't think it'd last a couple weeks.  I figured I got my money out of it and now . . . with the crayons all over it . . . I figured my run of good luck was over.  I figured it was time to repaint.

But, before I cracked open the lid on that gallon of Eggshell, I figured there'd be no harm in scrubbing the wall, you know . . . to see what would happen.

And so I did.  I grabbed a little scrubby pad out of the sink, dipped it in water, and started scrubbing.  And you can see the results.  I scrubbed the top section of Hannah's crayon artwork and removed ALL OF IT.  I was so shocked, I grabbed my camera and snapped a shot--I figured I'd use it on the website or in a blog somewhere down the road.  (The spot I cleaned is shiny because it's still wet, but when it dried out, it was perfect.)

Anyway, after I put the camera down, I easily scrubbed off all the rest of Hannah's crayon-work.  When the wall was clean again, I hauled my gallon of Eggshell paint back downstairs and put it back on the shelf. 

Now, as I said, I know that my opinion is suspect because of my close affiliation with RepcoLite.  But also, as I said, I'd refer the questioning reader back to the photo.  It's not touched-up in the least--it's just a snapshot (and not even a very good one) that shows the excellent washability of RepcoLite's Hallmark Ceramic Matte.
The bottom line here is this:  I wanted to show you . . . in the context of a real event . . . how practical and washable and durable Hallmark Matte Ceramic is.  It is the ideal product to use in any situation where you desire a flat finish.  And you can only get it at RepcoLite.  So check it out!

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