The Complete Guide to Painting Skirting Boards and Architraves: Satinwood, Eggshell, Oil vs Water-Based
A professional guide to painting skirting boards and architraves in London homes — covering satinwood vs eggshell, oil-based vs water-based products, preparation, and the finishes that last.
Why Skirting Boards and Architraves Matter More Than You Think
Walk into a room that's been professionally decorated and then walk into one that hasn't. The walls might look similar. The ceiling is probably white either way. But the thing that most often reveals the difference in quality is the woodwork — specifically, the skirting boards and architraves.
In a well-decorated London period property, the skirtings and architraves are crisp, cleanly cut, free of brush marks, and finished in a sheen that suits the room without looking plastic. In a poorly decorated one, they're clogged with paint build-up, showing brush strokes, dripped at the bottom edge, and pulling away from the wall in places where preparation was neglected.
Getting this right isn't complicated, but it does require the right products, the right preparation and a methodical approach.
Understanding Sheen Levels: Matt, Eggshell, Satinwood, Gloss
The sheen level you choose for woodwork is partly aesthetic and partly practical. Here's what each option actually means:
Full gloss is the traditional choice for skirting boards in period London properties. High-sheen, highly durable, and easy to wipe clean. The disadvantage is that it shows every surface imperfection — lumps, brush marks, drips — mercilessly. On perfectly prepared and sanded woodwork, full gloss looks magnificent. On woodwork that hasn't been prepped to a very high standard, it looks worse than a lower sheen would.
Satinwood is a mid-sheen finish — less reflective than full gloss, more reflective than eggshell. It's a more forgiving surface to work on, still cleanable and durable, and has become the dominant professional choice for residential skirting boards and architraves over the past two decades. Most premium paint brands — Farrow & Ball, Little Greene, Mylands, Dulux Trade — offer satinwood in their ranges.
Eggshell is lower sheen again — a soft, almost powdery look that photographs beautifully. It's less hard-wearing than satinwood, can be harder to wipe clean in a kitchen or bathroom context, and is more susceptible to scuffs and marks. But in a drawing room, study or bedroom, a quality eggshell on well-prepared woodwork is a very refined finish. Farrow & Ball's Full Gloss is actually a satinwood-level sheen — their product labelled Eggshell is notably lower in sheen than most manufacturers' versions.
Dead flat or matt on woodwork is almost always a mistake in practical terms, except for specialist applications (antique effects, certain heritage restoration contexts). It marks badly, is very difficult to clean, and doesn't read well adjacent to papered or painted walls.
Oil-Based vs Water-Based: The Ongoing Debate
This is the question London decorators argue about most energetically, and the honest answer is that both have genuine merits.
Oil-based (alkyd) paints — traditional gloss, traditional satinwood — have several advantages: excellent flow and levelling (they self-level as they dry, reducing brush marks), exceptional durability and hardness once cured, and a warm quality of finish that many professionals still prefer. The disadvantages: they yellow over time (particularly in rooms with limited natural light), they take considerably longer to dry (typically 12–24 hours between coats), they have stronger VOC content and odour, and they require spirit-based solvents for cleaning brushes.
The yellowing issue is real and relevant in London. North-facing rooms, hallways with no windows, and rooms that are kept darkened by heavy curtains will all show yellowing on oil-based white and off-white woodwork within a few years. On darker colours (navy, dark green, black), yellowing is invisible.
Water-based (acrylic) woodwork paints have improved dramatically in the past ten years. Modern water-based satinwoods and eggshells from professional-grade brands — Dulux Trade Diamond, Johnstone's Aqua, Zinsser AllCoat — offer very good durability, no yellowing, faster drying, and low odour. They're now the choice of most professional decorators for residential woodwork. The main limitation is that they raise the grain more on bare timber (requiring careful intermediate sanding) and they can be less forgiving on surfaces with a lot of texture or movement.
Recommendation for most London residential woodwork: A high-quality water-based satinwood (Farrow & Ball Modern Eggshell, Little Greene Intelligent Eggshell, Dulux Trade Diamond Satinwood). These products are low-odour, won't yellow, and give excellent results on well-prepared surfaces.
For high-traffic areas (hallway skirtings, stair strings, door architraves that see a lot of hands), an oil-based satinwood may give better long-term durability — but factor in the yellowing risk if the colour is light.
Preparation: The Controlling Factor
No product will disguise poor preparation on skirting boards and architraves. The preparation sequence for previously painted woodwork:
1. Clean. Wash down with sugar soap to remove grease, dirt and old wax. This is non-negotiable — paint won't adhere well to a dirty surface.
2. Sand. Fine grit (120–150) to key the surface and remove any sheen. Run the sanding block with the grain. For heavily built-up areas, use a more aggressive approach — a cabinet scraper or heat gun to strip back, then sand.
3. Fill. Any cracks, gaps at wall junctions (flexible decorator's caulk — silicone-free so paint can adhere), nail holes, dents. Allow to dry fully before sanding flush.
4. Prime. On bare timber, always prime — a stain-blocking primer on resinous softwood (knotting solution first on knots), a bonding primer on any filled areas. On previously painted woodwork in stable condition, a light sand and clean may be all that's needed before topcoating.
5. First topcoat. Applied thinly and evenly. On water-based products, work quickly and avoid overworking — water-based paints begin to set faster than oil-based, and brushing back into semi-dry paint creates drag marks.
6. Intermediate sand. Fine grit (180–220), lightly. This removes any nibs or dust specks and keys the surface for the second coat.
7. Second (and if needed, third) topcoat. The build is where the finish quality lives. Don't try to do it all in one heavy coat.
Colours and Finish Combinations That Work
In a period London property, the woodwork is almost always a neutral: white, off-white or a very light cream. The question is which off-white, and how it relates to the wall colour.
- Farrow & Ball Pointing or Wimborne White: Warm creamy whites that sit naturally with period plasterwork and natural timber floors. Very popular in Belgravia, Chelsea and Kensington interiors.
- Farrow & Ball Slipper Satin: A softer, warmer option with a faint blush quality — particularly good in reception rooms with warm-toned walls.
- Little Greene Slaked Lime or Intelligent White: Clean, brighter whites that work well in kitchens and modern extensions.
- Dark woodwork: An increasingly popular option — all skirting, architraves and doors in a deep shade (Farrow & Ball Railings or Off-Black, Little Greene Basalt or Obsidian) against lighter walls. Particularly effective in hallways and on staircases.
Belgravia Painters carries out woodwork painting to a very high standard across period and contemporary London properties. If you'd like advice on products and colours for your project, get in touch.