Aura vs Ellen Kennon ICI paints (cross post)

15 years ago

I asked this on the paint forum too, but I know a lot of people here are paint experts, so I figured I'd cross post this.

Has anyone used both Aura and Ellen Kennon's paints? How do they compare in paint quality/application/clean-up? What about durability/wash ability?

I've only ever used BM Regal paints before (but I could have sworn it was a latex back 10yrs ago), so I don't know how to compare them.

I'm attracted to both the Affinity and EK FS colors, but I want to know how the actual paint performs. I have kids with grubby hands and a German shepherd who tends to dirty up the walls, so I need to be able to wash down the walls once in a while. I also really want a flat paint because I live in a 125yr old house, which means the walls are definitely not perfect!

Always ;-)

Hunzi

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Comments (5)

nmladybug
15 years ago
Hi Hunzi,
I am by no means an expert but I do have both Aura and EK paint in my house. Currently the office, playroom and a bathroom are EK and the kitchen, family room and breakfast nook are BM Aura. The dining room is SW (I like to be fair :)) I would say that the paint I am most impressed with in terms of quality is the Aura. It does take a wall or two to get the hang of how to apply it but the coverage and durability is absolutely amazing. I personally don't think they did too well with the color selection but if you do find one you like I would say to absolutely go with it.

The colors offered by EK are by far the prettiest. However, IMO I think the actually quality of the paint (ICI if I remember correctly) is just so-so. There is absolutely nothing special about the actual paint as far as I can tell. If I had to go back and do it over I don't think I would have used EK in the playroom or bathroom b/c of the wear and tear in those rooms.

Hope this helps!
amysrq
15 years ago
I have used a lot of EK and just tried Aura for the first time last week. I did not love the Aura. It smells worse than EK and the short open time makes catching drips and clean up both problematic. I don't know how the long-term durability of Aura will stack up against EK, but I am assuming it will be a very strong product in that regard. BM does a lot of testing before they release product.

I used EK throughout my last house and found the scrub-ability of the Velvet Sheen to be outstanding. I used Classic Cream on a wet kitchen wall (sink, window, espresso machine) and not only did it wash up well, I was also able to make invisible touch-ups over the years. I don't know if I would have had the same success with a darker color.

As for colors, I have had EK match for me and my BM store matched colors in the Aura formula so I could play with it. So, do not feel limited by the palette offered by either brand.
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Ok, let me expand on tr65 said First let me preface it with the fact that I own and operate a store that sells BM Aura and has a web presence, I know many of my customers on line have found us through this web site. So while my post here will certainly favor BM Aura, I will try to give a unbiased explanation of everything. First of all, The Affinity Colors are special in 2 small ways. 1 They are designed(or selected) to harmonize with one another. You can pick any 3 colors and they blend together, its kind of like a "color selection for dummies system". Secondly, none of them require the use of the Aura Foundation Coat. The Foundation coat is a specialty product for use primarily with certain reds and yellows mainly from the Color Preview Collection. If you choose a color that requires it, use it! Otherwise you will not get two coat coverage. The foundation coat acts as a first coat, with the actual Aura providing the second coat, giving you the two coat coverage(You shouldn't need a coat of the foundation coat then 2 coats of finish paint). Secondly, Aura can be mixed in ANY Benjamin Moore color, and almost any competitive color. One thing you will hear, that was even mentioned in another post is that some colors do not match well. Depending on how you look at things this can be seen as true. Aura gives you a greater depth of color. It is not a full spectrum paint like EK, but it does behave more like one that traditionally mixed paints. This is why some colors do not seem to match particularly well. When you move into the world of full spectrum paints, and paints that behave more like them(such as aura) you have an issue with color metamorism, colors changing in different lighting conditions. Since I ship Aura, I always check the mixes against a color swatch just to be sure. I have had one particular instance where a color did not seem to match particularly well(and I am pretty anal about this). I wasnt going to ship the gallon. I then took it under another light source, and it was a dead on match to the chip. So did it match or not? In one light I thought it was an "ok" match, it could have been a little better, but then under another light source it was perfect. I think this is why major paint companies have stayed out of the full spectrum ring, it is very difficult to depict these lively colors on a color chip which gets produced by a printing process. Next...the colorants. If you get a gallon of Aura (or any other of Benjamin Moores new Waterborne Products, such as WB Eco-Spec, WB Ceiling Paint, or the forthcoming Natura) it will be mixed with the Aura Colorants(these are reffered to as the Genex Colorants). It doesn't matter if the color is an Affinity Color, another BM color, or a competitive color. 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In my opinion, Aura has a lot of good marketing points(better leveling, better coverage, very low VOC, etc) but the ColorLock is the most important and impressive. The color just does not rub off! Now, as for Afinity colors in Regal Paint. BM provides formulas for some of the Afinity colors to be mixed in Regal but not all. My experience in doing this has not been good. I tried to mix Wenge in Regal. First I scanned the chip with our color computer and mixed the formula it gave me. It came out AWEFUL; not even close. I then called BM and had them scan it for me and mixed that formula(paint companies have better equipment than you will find in any retail store for computerized color matching). It was equally bad. I also tried to mix Dinner Party in Moorglo exterior. I had the same results. After about 10 attempts to try to get that can right (including having to scoop some paint out of the can to make room for more tint), I got it close. Retailers who do not have Aura will tell you its ok, out of both lack of experience, and not wanting to miss a sale. If you do decide to try this, please.....try a quart first!!!! Personally I wont do it without explaining to the customer the results I am expecting, and saying outright, that if i do it, the can of paint is theirs, I am not promising accuracy. And frankly, it has nothing to do with preferring they buy Aura, or making a few extra dollars on a sale. We are a family owned business operating under one family for 55 years, "upselling" someone on a gallon or two of paint isn't a good long term idea for customer relations. As for a 125 year old house...One thing that I will recommend is BM's new Waterborne ceiling paint. It is in the 25-30 dollar per gallon range. I recommend it because it is a DEAD FLAT, and because of this, it hides surface imperfections like nothing else. 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hunzi
Original Author
15 years ago
Ok, thanks y'all! I posted this same message at the Paint forum, but I figure I'll get a different perspective over here.

I need you to hold my hand a little more and walk me through this....I think my problem is I want EK colors, but I really want Aura paint!

I don't think I can get a match to EK colors, can I?

If not, then help me understand the whole Aura/Affinity thing. Are the Affinity colors just a color palatte of "new" colors for Aura? If I get a color match/custom blend of another BM color from the other paint palettes, do they use the same colorants that are used in the Affinity paints or the old universal tints? There is a difference isn't there?

Sigh. Think EK would create a new color palette for Aura? ;-) I'd really like Aura FS paints! ;-)

So who wants to help me pick out colors for my LR, DR, entry, and PR? The only one I already know for sure is the Library - Caliente, baby! And then there's the whole paint the trim white vs leave it stained thing....oh and ceilings...white, cream or colored? I'll work on figuring out how to post a few pictures.

I think I'll just go bang my head against the wall for a while....

Always ;-)
Hunzi
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Lori A. Sawaya
15 years ago
Hunzi,

I've spec'd and painted with Aura and ICI mixed FS a lot. Rarely do I spec or use anything but those two. I like ICI's LifeMaster in eggshell. It, IMO, has a comparable *hand* to Aura Matte. ICI's Velvet Sheen and LifeMaster are similar to SW's Super Paint in that just about anyone can paint with them and end up successful -- they are very DIY friendly.

Can't say that about Aura. It takes a certain knack and many DIYers (and painters) have to rethink and then adjust how they brush and roll the paint. There are several threads about that on here already.

When it comes to color, there is nothing like full spectrum. Nothing. FS is an age old topic around here. Full spectrum mixed in Aura paint would indeed be it-on-a-stick and then some. Don't see that happening any time soon. :-D

Affinity is the name of the color palette designed to go with the Aura paint. There are 22 colorants. Having had a handful of *regular* colors mixed in Aura I can say that 22 colorants does give the mixer person a better shot at getting a good match, but 22 colorants in the wrong hands can be about 20 colorants too many. As we all know from the years and years of full spectrum color discussions, it's as much about how all those colorants are balanced and mixed together as it is about the actual number used. Once you gets passed the basic spectral seven, one has to question what is necessary -- if ya need more representation in a color than the basic seven, maybe it's time to revisit color mixing philosophy and/or skills... or, maybe not. IMO, more is not always better. Which leads me to my critique of Affinity colors.

They are rich, they are complex, they are pretty, they can have an edge of deadness and a feel of limited dimension. They are not full spectrum color. Having *regular* color mixed via Affinity processes can leave you with a can of paint that looks *puddled* with colorant, overworked, overdone. Totally depends on the color. Restraint with all that color power at one's fingertips is paramount. Doubtful that there are too many other people on the planet who would share that opinion with me. A lot of people really want Aura to be it-on-a-stick, all that and a bag o'chips in its own right. I think it's great stuff, lots of positives, but it does not hold all the allure and wonder of color to be had in the universe. Just like every other brand, it has pluses and minuses.

At the end of the day, having to make the decision between Aura paint and full spectrum color is a pretty darn great place to be!
hunzi
Original Author
15 years ago
Ok, I think I'm going with Aura! I still have the EK samples up though. I love the EK colors more, but need washibility of the new Aura.

Y'all wanna have some fun? Let's pick the colors! Don't feel locked into suggesting Affinity colors!

My major challenge is low light levels in the house. Trees and wrap around porches tend to limit the direct light into the house on the 1st floor. Rooms aren't open, but have views into others. I have a large number of doors and windows!

Right now, we're picking a color for the LR, but the DR is next up. I'm pretty sure the Library, given it's very limited exposed wall once we build in floor to ceiling bookcases, will get Caliente! Fun and dramatic, but not so much red as to look dark and scary in low lighting. After the DR, the PR and Hall will be up for grabs.

This is a very slow DIY type project. Lots of wall plastering needs doing. Woodwork needs to be milled and replaced. We'll probably keep the trim stained, but I'm open to suggestions as to whether to keep it the current color (easiest) and match the new trim to it (not quite as easy), or strip it and stain it darker (serious PITA, but could be worth it!) and then stain the new trim to match (also no fun!)

Ceilings will all get skim coated smooth and painted a light cream.

Colors I like: Obviously, creams, golds, yellows, reds, and oranges, maybe brown.
Colors off the table: Anything pink, purple, green, gray, blue, or putty/beige/taupe.

Here are photos of the house (warning super cluttered/junky!) I feel soooo exposed! You never realize how bad stuff looks until you see it in a photo!

Be gentle!

Always ;-)
Hunzi

Here is a link that might be useful: Paint Hunzi's House

Aura vs Ellen Kennon ICI paints (cross post)

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nmladybug

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Aura vs Ellen Kennon ICI paints (cross post)

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