From my painting experience and using Aura sheens and linen white, JMHO, I would stay with the eggshell being your son is still a little one. I might say Aura matte "only" because of the color you have chosen. Any touch ups will less likely show. The eggshell is not a bright sheen so you should be safe using this for your sun exposure times.

Just wanted to add, that is unusual for a little one 7 yrs to request a white. Way to go- I love different flavors of white on walls.

I keep forgetting to press "submit" after I preview! what I said earlier was:

I absolutely LOVE this forum! Thank you so much for your help. It is amazing to be able to reach out and find someone who knows the products, finishes and colors and get such great advice. And yes, I absolutely love different flavors of white, too. I was sort of counting on my son to add a burst of color! LOL. I really hope his Linen White walls work with the Marscapone trim and Mayonnaise ceilings that run throughout the house. If it works, it could glow--if not, we'll adjust something. Thank you again!

I think BM Linen White in Aura Eggshell will look wonderful in your son's room with the Marscapone trim and Mayonnaise Ceilings since he gets a lot of light. I loved the BM Line White in my home office in the day near the window but I just did not like it on the side of the room with no light. It is a happy color and I dislike flat paints. Too me Eggshell does not look shiny but also feels better to touch and not chalky like flat paints.

Please post pics when the room is completed.

I was never one for "flat" paints, but the Aura Matte finish has made me a convert--LOL! It is not dead flat, rather, it has an almost velvety texture, and is not chalky in the least. Scrubs beautifully, too.

Just some food for thought.....

BM eggshell might start out a little shiny, but it does dull down. And with a 7 year old, you really want to be able to wash that wall when you need to.

I've been a big fan of eggshell once I realized it does dull down a bit, and after I painted with flat and realized it showed every single imperfection in the wall.

(Glad to hear others have textural issues--my son can't stand when people rub their hands together, he's 17 now, and my 19 yr old dd won't step on carpet in bare feet. I've heard it is a sign of intelligence--and it seems to be true!)

Thank you all! Cat_mom, I had heard about that velvety matte texture in Aura. I once had dark walls in Restoration Hardware's "velvet wall finish" and loved them-also not flat-flat but instead a nice visual texture and physical feel. Thinking Aura might be similar.

So here is a follow-up question. I'm painting our north-facing (but still quite good light--maybe reflecting off garage?) bedroom in BM Aura Barrista, a medium chocolate Affinity color with subtle red undertone. ( I chose warmer than beautiful, dark Bittersweet because of the north light.) My husband is on board with this, but nervous the room will be too dark. To boost the light in the room a bit I went with Aura eggshell (apparently a bit shinier than Regal eggshell) when I gave the builder my color list the other day. Anybody think I should switch back to Aura matte in this grown-up room--knowing that Aura is washable in matte and not dead flat--to keep that velvety texture of the matte? Or does the eggshell still have that? Thanks for your thoughts!

A shinier paint will not boost the light in the room. It may change the apparent lightness or darkness of the color due to the reflectivity, but the level of light in the room will be the same. I'd get the sheen you like.

I think the bad rap that matte paints get is old news. Chalky is from cheap flat paint -- builder flat. The good flat paints, like Aura, are more like velvet. Aura is relatively new, but I expect that over time it will continue to look fabulous and not degrade like cheap builder flat.

All the Affinity colors are available as samples pmacbee, and they are Eggshell finish. If you are unsure, you could always try it and see if it has too much sheen for you. Also, you could always have a qt of the color made up in the Matte finish. We did that when we'd narrowed down our white paint choices (to 4 or 5!). We wanted to see the colors we were considering in the actual finish (so as not to be influenced by other factors, like texture/sheen).

Good luck!

good point! I did test the Barrista, and liked that finish, so I think I'm good to go.