rhondave- I was actually worried about that myself, but we've been in the house for a little over a year and it has been super easy to take care of. I couldn't be happier with it! We don't often fry, except we do usually fry some bacon every Sunday morning, but the grease splatters just wipe right off, same for tomato/pasta sauce, ect. And the splatters don't leave spots, stains or residue. It looks just the same today as it did when we moved in. Ours is southern yellow pine that I whitewashed with SW Marshmallow HGTV paint, 1/2 paint- 1/2 water. Love it! Good luck!

IMO, just use a flat or eggshell finish with a good quality latex paint. You encouraged me to do a little research because you confuse your paint terms in your post. There are in the main two types of paint on the shelves for the homeowner: oil-based and latex. There are four basic ingredients in paint: carriers, binders, pigments and additives. Carriers usually make up the largest percentage of volume in a can of paint and transport the essential ingredients from the can, to the brush or roller and onto your wall. Water is the carrier in latex paints and mineral spirits is usually the carrier in oil-based paints. Binders are the expensive part of the paint can and the essential element to a paint's performance on your wall. Latex paint binders are often acrylic, vinyl acrylic or styrene resin. Binders are also responsible for a paint's sheen. 100% acrylic paint is typically a better paint (but not always) than vinyl acrylic, which is often used in cheaper paints. Pigments give paint its color and Additives provide enhancements for workability, performance and other benefits like mold deterrence. Flat paints have a higher concentration of pigment to volume than gloss paints and because binders are usually an expensive component, this is why gloss paints are usually more expensive than flat paints. Flat paints will hide dimples, dents, saw marks and other imperfections in the shiplap better than gloss paints because of the greater pigment coverage and less attention-grabbing reflections from high and low points. There's really no need to use oil-based paints these days. Latex paints have progressed in technology to the point where arguments against bonding capability, uniformity, pigments, wear, life expectancy, etc., in comparison to oil based paints are all moot and the traditional advantages with cleanup and ease of use are still there. Plus you don't get high for a week or two after application.

I'm no expert, but I don't think you should do shiplap or paneling, even though I have a house full of dark paneling from the 60s that I painted white in the 90s and I am reasonable happy with the look. I would remove the framed mirror from the dining wall and leave that wall blank. I would also remove the white relief artwork from the hallway--I don't think that every wall needs to be decorated. Remove the "C" above the sink and the tchotchkes over the kitchen cabinets and elsewhere else in the room. I would also look at inspiration photos to figure out something simpler and bolder for the mantel decor, because I would think that's where you want the focal point of your kitchen and dining area to be.

Not at all equal. 4 years ago, it was being done in just about every new build, and the real thing was bought from a real lumber yard. Now it has completely disappeared in new builds, and is rarely seen in remodels. Once terrible quality fake materials reached the mass retail box stores, it was an way over saturated trend that was done with. The designers washed their hands of it and were off to the next trend of fake wainscotting.