10 Characteristics Of Scandinavian Design

A walk through your nearest IKEA might make you think you understand Scandinavian design, but buying all of your furniture and decor at the famous Swedish superstore only partially embraces what this style is all about. There’s much more to this classic style than a Billy bookcase and Klippan sofa.

Light wood tones, natural materials, clean lines, and simplicity are defining characteristics of Scandinavian design. The overall feel of homes showcasing the Nordic-inspired look is a cozy, warm, and welcoming ambience. Using neutrals like tans, creams, and grays, introducing color through fresh greenery, and choosing high-quality materials are other key features of Scandi style.

If you gravitate toward a more minimalist aesthetic but want to maintain a cozy edge, the Scandinavian look is a great option. The style blends form and function into a cohesive, comfortable masterpiece in practical sophistication.

The Start Of Scandinavian Style

Hints of Scandinavian design began to materialize in home interiors in the 1930s. However, the style really took root in the US in 1954, thanks to the Brooklyn Museum. The museum showcased over 700 contemporary furnishings from various Nordic regions in its exhibit Design in Scandinavia. The popular exhibit continued to inspire designers and architects as it traveled across the United States and Canada over the next three years.

Many classic Scandinavian pieces also became hallmarks of mid-century modern design, like Hans J. Wegner’s Wishbone Chair and Henningsen’s PH5 light. For this reason, you’ll find many similarities between these two styles, but they are not identical.

10 Main Features Of Scandinavian Design

Do you want to remake your entire home into a Scandinavian retreat? Or perhaps you simply want to incorporate a few elements of the style. If you’re not sure how to give your home a Scandi do-over without making it look like an IKEA showroom, start here.

These 10 primary elements define Scandinavian design, whether you choose to go all-in or start small. Either way, you’ll end up with a beautiful space that exudes simple elegance and celebrates practicality without sacrificing comfort.

1. Clean Lines

Clean, simple lines fit nicely with the streamlined appearance of the Scandinavian style. No fussy details or over-the-top ornamentation here. Instead, furniture focuses on function and practicality, yet doesn’t dismiss form altogether. Therefore, what you get are pieces that prize usefulness but remain beautiful.

2. Minimalist Aesthetic

Another reason clean lines are a primary feature of Scandi style is that they go hand-in-hand with minimalism. However, Scandinavian design is not synonymous with minimalist style.

It doesn’t require you to live sparsely or only keep the bare minimum when it comes to furniture and home accessories. But you won’t find a bunch of cluttered surfaces, knick-knacks, and endless throw pillows in a Scandinavian space.

The idea is that a person doesn’t need opulent furnishings and luxury items to attain good design. Instead, the Scandinavian aesthetic encourages one to find beauty in everyday items and simple lines, making incredible design accessible to everyone.

3. Natural Materials

The Nordic regions focus strongly on nature, full of breathtaking forests, rivers, and stunning landscapes. People who live in these areas have always had a deep connection to their natural surroundings, and this relationship carries over into their homes.

This affinity for the environment manifests itself in Scandi style through the use of natural materials. Popular choices are wood, stone, wool, leather, and rattan. Mixing several of these materials in one space (along with clean lines and minimal clutter) is a good way to incorporate the Scandinavian style into your home.

4. Light Wood Tones

As mentioned previously, wood is a top pick for furniture and other items in a Scandinavian space. Most commonly, you’ll find light wood tones, like ash, pine, birch, and beech. The wood is typically left its natural color, with minimal staining or painting.

In countries like Norway and Sweden, long winters mean limited daylight. Therefore, people living in these areas yearn for homes that are bright and welcoming. They want spaces that provide a feeling of warmth and comfort that contrasts with the dreary winter days. Light wood tones help keep the interiors light and bright.

5. High-Quality Pieces

There’s nothing wrong with filling in a few gaps in your design plan with some affordable IKEA staples. However, true Scandinavian style praises the use of high-quality furniture and items that withstand the test of time.

Part of this appreciation stems from a connection to using natural materials. When you make something well, there isn’t a need to replace it constantly, which gives you a more sustainable product. Plus, it links to finding beauty in simplicity, honing in on the craftsmanship of a piece instead of getting distracted by frilly details and bells and whistles.

6. Neutral Color Palette

Scandinavian design typically boasts a more subtle, neutral color palette. The most common color combinations include creams, ivories, whites, grays, and tans. Hints of color find their way in through subtle blues, mustards, teals, and other earthy tones.

However, there are more modern takes on the Scandi style that inject vivid hues into the palette. If you opt for this more colorful approach, stick with tints, shades, and tones you would find in nature to help maintain the Nordic-inspired vision.

7. Fresh Greenery

If you decide to stay with a more classic Scandinavian style, bring color into your space using fresh greenery. Find different ways to display plants, whether installing floating shelves for pots or hanging woven baskets with lush vines.

Set up a tall bookcase as the perfect plant display or place a large, indoor tree in a corner. The greenery adds color while providing another connection to nature.

8. Texture

Since Scandinavian design is all about practical and comfortable spaces, texture is key. Adding texture is the perfect way to soften the space. If you only focus on the minimal, a space can become cold. Likewise, if your only focus is on the function, you lose warmth.

Choose a few different textures and spread them throughout the room. A beautiful woven basket, a plush, velvet throw, and a soft leather chair are excellent examples.

Texture invites you into a space and begs you to explore. It’s what moves you to reach out, touch, experience, and sit. If your room isn’t feeling cozy, the odds are good you need to layer more materials.

9. Balance Form And Function

This quality is similar to balancing out the hard edges and clean lines with texture to soften the space. Scandi style also tows the line between form and function, which is something all great design should do. A successful representation of the Scandinavian style knows how to marry these two main points seamlessly.

10. Natural light

Scandinavian style tries to maximize natural light whenever possible. Natural light cheers up a room and the people in it.

People living in Nordic regions desire lots of natural light for the same reason they gravitate toward lighter wood tones. It makes homes brighter, cheerier, and more inviting, helping offset the long, winter days. Therefore, homes have large windows, minimal window treatments, and softer colors to optimize the sunlight.

You can mimic this quality in your home by choosing a lighter color palette and using sheers instead of heavy drapes. Strategically place mirrors around the room and opposite windows to reflect and augment the natural light.

Embracing Scandinavian Style

It’s easy to love Scandinavian style with its simple coziness and no-fuss approach. It shares plenty of qualities with other popular design trends, including mid-century modern and organic modern.

However, this Nordic aesthetic possesses distinct features that make it its own. Clean lines, a focus on craftsmanship and nature, and simple elegance are vital parts of the Scandi picture. How far you want to take it in your home is up to you.

Related Guides:

• Eight Characteristics Of Mid-Century Modern Design
• Seven Characteristics Of Organic Modern Design
• Design Rules You Should Never Break