One of the most popular design styles currently in homes around the country is the Nordic or Scandinavian look. Praised for its simplicity and utility, it is also a beautiful style that can create unique looking rooms that allow you to add touches to personalise it. It is a pure and pared-back style that aims for warm functionality and clean lines. There is also a big emphasis on quality craftsmanship, seen in the furniture on offer from hfruk.co.uk for example. So how can you bring that Nordic look to your home?
Colour
At the heart of Scandinavian style is colour – but not always a complete absence of it. There’s a definite lean towards muted, neutral colour palettes with whites and off-whites featuring strongly. Shades of grey and beige are always a big part of interiors designed in this style.
But that doesn’t mean you can’t incorporate some colour too, if you are a colour fan. For example, shades of bright blue are a really popular accent colour for these designs. Colours of the sea and sky include duck egg, aqua and teal shades all pair well with the neutral palette and allow you to personalise your look perfectly.
You can also use a single hit of serious colour as a focal point for the room. An example is a big, bold and colourful rug in an otherwise neutral shades room. This draws the eye, acts as a focal point and breaks up the shades of white.
Materials
The other big thing that Nordic looks have in common is the use of wood and lots of it. It starts with the floor – completely carpeted floors never took off in Scandinavia for some reason so they have always favoured wood floors with rugs to warm the space and break it up.
But the love of wood doesn’t stop there. Wood furniture is another key component of this style of interiors and there are lots of great styles. From wood coffee tables to full beds and bedroom furniture, accent tables, mirrors and even wood frames chairs with leather seating, wood is everywhere in these looks.
Leather isn’t the most popular material in Scandinavian looks but there is a turn towards well-worn styles because they have a great natural texture to them. Don’t go as far as antique but look for chairs that have been around a while and show it.
Finishing touches
With its somewhat minimal look, Nordic and Scandinavian designs often don’t have the big focal place fire that we have in the UK – that’s because Scandinavians tend to have fireplaces in the corner of rooms, rather than dominating in the centre of the main wall. This is actually a good idea in a lot of cases as it means you can have that big wall for something else – place the bed against it, put the sofa in front of it or even place your TV on that wall.
While the style doesn’t mean you can’t have accessories or knick-knacks, it is definitely about making them minimal and generally decluttering a room. A few well-placed items can bring a room together, especially if it brings in some colour but don’t go for a shelving unit full of little vases and trinkets or a windowsill crammed with plants.
Eco-friendly options
Whenever you consider incorporating into your room to make the Nordic style, always consider the eco-friendly options because this is a strong underlying theme with designers working in it. Reclaimed and recycled furniture, environmentally friendly products, natural materials, these will all help you really embrace the Scandinavia style and bring authenticity to your room – you will be living the Nordic approach, rather than just styling it.
