Scandinavian Interior Design

Scandinavian interior design is a functional and minimalist style. It combines sleek, simple geometric forms with organic shapes using natural materials. Scandi style emphasizes the beauty of decorative elements like wood and glass by adding unexpected curves or textures. The Nordic countries represented by Scandinavian design all have much in common regarding materials, colors, shapes, and aesthetics. However, each culture brings its own traditions and unique elements. Scandi design of the past century has had a huge international influence on the popular minimalist, midcentury modern, and Japandi interior design styles.

Design Elements Common to Nordic Cultures

A pale palette

The Nordic countries are known for their embrace of a minimalist style and generally pale, neutral palette. White, cream, soft-to-medium greys, and pale blues are common. Perhaps because they have long, dark winters, the northern people embrace and emphasize light colors, and bring light closer to living spaces using a lot of pendant lighting.

Wood furnishings, simple & unadorned

The region is heavily forested, so pale woods like pine, birch, and beech are easy to obtain. (Paul McCartney said he and John Lennon were thinking of the inexpensive Norwegian pine panelling that was all the rage in London in the 1960s when they wrote the song “Norwegian Wood.”) Furnishings in these woods are common in Nordic homes. Giant furniture retailer IKEA, founded in Sweden in 1943, is famous for it frequent use of pale wooden furniture.

Scandi wood furnishings are rarely engraved with designs. They are, however, often gently molded, sanded, or carved into gentle curves. These mimick the curves of nature.

Scandinavian floor coverings

Floors tend to be made of wood as well. They’re not usually covered in wall-to-wall carpeting, but are dotted with throw and area rugs. In a pale, minimalist room, neutral, creamy natural fiber rugs or gentle geometrics are common. However, don’t overlook the idea of bold pops of color or oversized patterns on the floor in a minimalist home. These can give an otherwise tranquil room a joyful jolt. It depends on whether you want to emphasize traditional Scandi serenity, or pay homage to bold Nordic design innovations of the mid-20th century.

In the 1970s, boldly colored Swedish wool rya rugs with shag-like long pile were popular statement pieces. Now very collectible, they look wonderful in midcentury modern homes.

Organic, curvy shapes

The organic shapes of Danish modern furniture were popular in the U.S. from the 1940s to the 1960s. Danish modern pieces often incorporated walnut and teak, as well as the paler woods. Scandinavian interior design elements heavily influenced what we now consider classic midcentury modern furniture silhouettes. Chairs and tables in butternut tones with subtly sensuous curves incorporate midcentury Scandi style in a quiet but impactful way.

Danish architect and designer Arne Jacobsen was known for simple, functional, beautifully designed furnishings, especially chairs. His curvy Drop, Egg, and Swan chairs conform to the body, providing comfort and support as well as great style.

Nordic glassware and ceramics also take inspiration from natural materials, with their surfaces mimicking ice, running water, stone, or plants.

Danish modern style was an important element of midcentury modern interior design. To read more about Danish modernism, see my article When Danish Modern Style Ruled. To learn more about midcentury modern interior design in general, read my article Midcentury Modern Interior Design.

Simple window treatments

To make the most of precious light during summer months, Nordic people tend to avoid heavy draperies or curtains that impede sunshine. In winter, when daylight hours are very long, blackout shades in neutral pale colors allow for rest. Such shades all but disappear when the shades are open, and don’t fight with the minimalist Scandinavian esthetic.

Window coverings tend to be primarily functional in Scandi design. They’re often made of pale fabrics or light neutral woods so that they disappear into the background, letting the view be the star. You might want to filer the light by using white sheers. Pale, unlined cotton, linen, or hemp fabric with a bit of texture to it provides additional privacy while still letting light through.

Form follows function

Long, cold winters can make traveling to meet others more difficult. As a result, Nordic people have traditionally found ways to be comfortable with simplicity, self-sufficiency, and modest surroundings. These make the most of natural materials. Modern Scandinavian cultures gravitate toward unfussy, practical, and egalitarian living. Their home designs reflect these characteristics.

Does Nordic Design Equal Scandinavian Design?

People outside the Nordic countries often consider all Nordic nations to be Scandinavian. However, Scandinavia is composed of the countries Sweden, Norway, and Denmark. Finland, which has had a large influence on Nordic design, is not actually Scandinavian. Scandi people share languages with similar roots, but Finns speak a Uralic language closer to Hungarian and Estonian. They’re also ethnically different, being part of the Baltic Finnic peoples.

Finland shares borders with Sweden and Norway, and was formerly ruled by Sweden. Many Finns speak Swedish and intermarry with Scandinavians. Finnish culture and design have much in common with other Nordic nations, so Finnish design is usually classified as Scandinavian in design circles.

Lighting Up the Dark

Rather than resenting their long, dark winters, Nordic folk embrace them. They take harsh weather in stride, and to go out into the snow to ski, skate, or enjoy a communal sauna. They also see no shame in wanting to stay at home instead of feeling the need to socialize. This relaxed introversion is expressed in the concept of kalsarikännit. This Finnish concept means hanging out at home in underpants while getting drunk—no kidding. This embrace of an unfussy casualness is common among Nordic people.

Hygge—comforting coziness

A more photogenic variation on this theme is hygge, a Danish word that roughly translates as comfort or well-being. The recent hygge trend brought new attention to Scandinavian interior design. It also led to lots of blog photos featuring women in oversized sweaters holding cups of cocoa and staring into fireplaces. The chunky knitted throw blankets, fluffy white flokati rugs, and candles wrapped in birch bark were suddenly everywhere. Indeed, these items have now become home decor staples.

Candles of all sorts are a major element in hygge design. The Danes love them so much, they burn more candle wax per capita than any other nation.

Friluftsliv—Enjoyment of Outdoor Living

Around 2021, a Norwegian design trend called friluftsliv (literally “open-air living”) began to spread throughout home design media. People tired of quarantining during the early days of the coronavirus pandemic hungered for a sense of safe and serene outdoor life. The trend celebrates the joy we find in spending time outdoors with loved ones. It aims to bring that joyful outdoor experience indoors as well.

Let the right elements in

One way to bring nature inside is to add indoor plants. Another is to decorate with elements that celebrate water, land, and sky. Many of us have moved our living and working spaces to parts of the home that provide better views and more natural light. Feeling more connected with the natural world makes us feel less fatigued and disconnected. This is an important element of friluftsliv.

Nature’s own colors & textures

Not surprisingly, the use of green interior paint and decor items in a range of tones rose during the pandemic quarantine years as well. Shades include including grey-green sage, acid green, avocado, and emerald, among others. Scandinavian interiors are more likely to use the softer hues. However, pops of any kind of green look refreshing as decorative items in a Scandi space.

Natural materials like cane, cork, grasscloth, or sisal are common in Scandinavian interior design. They bring visual interest to an otherwise neutral space. Such materials bring a natural, welcoming touch.

Finland’s Colorful Patterns & Bold Textures

Go big & go bold

In design circles, Finns are well known for the bold and colorful patterns seen in textiles and housewares from the Marimekko design house. Founded by designer Armi Ratia in 1951, Marimekko began by creating simply shaped dresses in bold and oversized graphic designs. Since then, the company has expanded its emphasis on fashion to the home to become the giant lifestyle brand it is today.

Marimekko is best known for its trademark Unikko oversized floral print designed by Maija Isola in 1964 (available in many sizes and colors). The company sells sustainable fashion and home textiles, dining pieces, accessories, jewelry, bed and bath items, and home decor.

Finnish folkloric designs

Arabia Finland, the nation’s largest ceramics maker, was established in 1874. From 1976 to 1999, Arabia created annual collectible plates featuring scenes from the Kalevala, the 2,000-year-old Finnish national epic. With their square shapes and boldly outlined illustrations, Kalevala plates had a marvelous midcentury aesthetic very different from standard collectibles. They make arresting wall decor, but are sturdy enough for daily dining, and are collectible yet affordable.

The Finnish glassware giant Iittala has successfully expanded its offerings to dinnerware. Iittala has embraced folkloric designs as well. Its popular Taika (“magic”) dining and serving pieces display designer Klaus Haapaniemi‘s richly decorated, fanciful forest animals, including foxes and owls.

Icicles & dewdrops made of glass

Finnish art glass often mimics the beauty of ice, and is highly sought after. Iconic textured midcentury modern glass items by Iittala, which was founded in 1881, are avidly collected. They still produce many of their classic designs today. Iittala’s Alvar Aalto vases, inspired by those created by the great Finnish designer and architect Alvar Aalto in 1936, come in a range of sizes and colors.

Melting spring ice inspired Iittala’s highly textural Ultima Thule glass, created by Tapio Wirkkala in 1968. The design became a classic and is one of the company’s most popular designs. Their most-copied products are their Kastehelmi (“dewdrop”) glassware items. These are covered in rows of raised dots of varying sizes. Items from Oiva Toikka‘s 1964 design were reintroduced in 2010. The Kastehelmi range has been copied by countless companies. Department stores and discounters around the world still sell them. However, none can compare with the exquisite shapes and the harmonious balance of proportions found in Iittala’s own pieces.

Japanese + Scandi = Japandi

Scandinavian and Japanese interior design have a lot in common. The recently named Japandi interior design style takes Japanese and Scandinavian interior design elements and creates a harmonious hybrid that feels minimalist but cozy. As with Japanese style, Japandi style focuses on creating rooms that are functional, purposeful, and yet still aesthetically pleasing and comfortable.

Both Japanese and Scandinavian designs emphasize light and airy interiors, pale colors, and practicality. They share a common appreciation for sustainable materials; simple, squared-off geometric furnishings; and pale woods.

To learn more about the differences between Japanese and Scandinavian style, and how to mix the two styles effectively, see my article Japandi Interior Design.

At top:

Arne Jacobsen Series 7 chairs, Museet for Søfart (Maritime Museum), Helsingør | Bengt Oberger via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)