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Scandinavian interior design has been inspiring its fans for decades. The region’s iconic midcentury modern furniture, cool lighting, practical living spaces, and pretty patterns for textiles and wallcoverings have found their way into homes all over the world. Here, however, we’d like to shine the design spotlight on Scandi cool in situ and learn from the region’s experts how to get the look.
To showcase the best of Scandinavian style we’ve picked out five inspiring homes from the Nordic Region (that’s the name given to the area that includes Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, and Iceland, as well as the Faroe Islands, Greenland, and Åland). The interior designers responsible for each scheme have shared their thoughts and insights, highlighting key features that reference their region’s design heritage and typify its interior style.
Take the tour and be inspired, from a colorful home in Norway and a historic island home, to an elegant apartment in Finland and an 18th-century villa near Stockholm.
1. Colorful home in Norway
(Image credit: Nadia Norskott/styling Maria Hov Vestre/Koi Colour Studio)
First stop is a colorful family home in the Nordstrand district, just south of the Norwegian capital city of Oslo. The 1927 home has been brought to life by Koi Color Studio, specialists in creating complex color palettes with heritage references.
‘Norway has a more maximalist and colorful history than its Nordic neighbors,’ says Koi’s creative director and founding partner Dagny Thurmann-Moe, ‘with a great tradition of rosemaling decorative painting and Norwegian folk furniture. From that comes a deep, complex and saturated use of color that has affected our use of color for centuries.’
The kitchen ideas here reference classic Scandinavian kitchen design, adding a bold approach to tiles and color.
‘Green paired with black and white tiles is a classic combo, dating back to the early 1900s. Soft, desaturated green cabinetry in Farrow & Ball’s Lichen adds depth and warmth, while handmade zellige tiles in bold green and golden hues reference traditional checkerboard patterns. The contrast of oak worktops with the green enhances the timeless yet bold aesthetic of this space’ says Dagny.
(Image credit: Nadia Norskott/styling Maria Hov Vestre/Koi Colour Studio)
‘Terracotta and nuances of red have a long tradition in Norway,’ explains Dagny. ‘These are among the first colors we used to decorate our homes, together with yellow. Here in the living room, a sophisticated interplay of warm hues create an inviting and layered space.’ The ceiling and trim are painted in Chalky Coral, the walls in Skin Powder, both by Pure & Original.
Koi collaborated with interior designer and stylist Maria Hov Vestre for this home, with Maria sourcing furniture and furnishings to complement the new color palette. ‘The carefully selected rich textures, and warm materials bring depth and tactility to the living spaces,’ adds Dagny.
Iconic Scandinavian-designed pieces include the Little Petra chair from &Tradition; Post coffee table from Ferm Living; and Tiki sofa from Fogia.
(Image credit: Nadia Norskott/styling Maria Hov Vestre/Koi Colour Studio)
Terracotta tones in the dining area again reflect Norway’s color heritage. In this space Koi balances Scandinavian craftsmanship and maximalist decor.
The ceiling in India Yellow from Farrow & Ball and the walls in July Light, by Koi for Pure & Original create a luminous and uplifting atmosphere. ‘The use of natural wood, sculptural furniture, and tactile materials reinforces a sense of refined warmth, making this space a perfect backdrop for social gatherings and everyday meals,’ says Dagny.
Petite Friture’s Vertigo pendant light completes the look with a table and chairs from Ethnicraft.
(Image credit: Nadia Norskott/styling Maria Hov Vestre/Koi Colour Studio)
The striking entryway features walls and ceiling in Farrow & Ball’s rich Crimson Red. ‘This bold color, continues into the stairwell and creates a warm and welcoming atmosphere while setting the tone for the home’s vibrant personality,’ explains Dagny. ‘The decision to extend this deep, earthy shade into architectural details provides a strong visual connection between rooms, reinforcing the home’s curated and immersive color journey.’
2. Midcentury modern style in Sweden
(Image credit: James Stokes / Studio Lawahl)
In sharp contrast, this Swedish home showcases the modern, minimalist and midcentury sides of Scandinavia’s style scene. The five-bedroom home was built between 1968-70 on the island of Lidingö just outside Stockholm. A recent redesign created its sleek, pared back interiors, allowing the beautiful lines of its bespoke furnishings to do all the talking.
This is the family home of Joanna Lavén, interior designer and co-founder with her partner David Wahlgren, of Studio Lawahl. One of its most striking features is the sunken living room with its central conversation pit surrounded by new floor-to-ceiling windows. ‘There used to be a pool here,’ says Joanna, ‘and while we would have loved to preserve the pool and design a beautiful social space around it, the conversion allowed us to create something even more unique.’
Note the calm palette of icy blues and winter whites often associated with Scandinavian interiors, that’s taken up a few degrees with the warmer shades of wood flooring and furniture.
(Image credit: James Stokes / Studio Lawahl)
The house was built into a hill so this chic and sociable space is up on the second story and features an on-trend teak-clad kitchen island. The couple opened up the dividing wall between the kitchen and dining room and the result is a more contemporary family space, although the sleek lines of the kitchen, and midcentury modern dining furniture, including chairs by Joe Colombo, give it all a sophisticated feel.
(Image credit: James Stokes / Studio Lawahl)
The second living room is bathed in generous natural light, with a balanced combination of light surfaces, wood elements, and green textiles that . The original open fireplace, constructed with limestone bricks, remains a striking feature. ‘Other elements, like the radiators, were less aesthetically pleasing, so we designed teak covers for them, which are now found throughout the house,’ Joanna explains.
The furniture is a mix of midcentury design showstoppers along with some auction buys, and bespoke pieces.
(Image credit: James Stokes / Studio Lawahl)
In the primary bedroom, Scandinavian bedroom ideas include soft blue and green tones create a serene atmosphere, complemented by a custom-built, wall-to-wall headboard designed by Studio Lawahl. A vintage ceiling lamp by Carlo Scarpa for Venini casts a warm glow. The room also showcases vases by Christophe Delcourt for Collection Particulière and vintage Stilux wall lamps, all contributing to a cohesive and timeless main bedroom design.
3. Historic island home in Sweden
(Image credit: Anne Nyblaeus / A Design Features)
On the island of Värmdö in the Stockholm archipelago, a simple boathouse has been transformed into a romantic coastal holiday home, painted in Sweden’s traditional Falu red.
‘It’s very hard to find the way to our home by boat,’ says Knut, whose great-great-grandfather bought the boathouse in the 1900s.
‘During Sweden’s war with Russia in the 1700s, everything along the Swedish coastline was burned, but this estate was saved because of its hidden location,’ he told interiors expert Sophie Baylis.
Knut and his wife Catherina spent 12 months extending and renovating the boathouse to create an idyllic summer retreat for themselves and their three children, with plenty of room for friends and family.
(Image credit: Anne Nyblaeus / A Design Features)
Elegant Gustavian-style chairs are the backbone of the dining room ideas, providing a luxurious touch in the open-plan space where heavily patterned textiles provide a characterful counterpoint to the white wood. A tablecloth featuring a Swedish stalwart blue floral print is layered on top of a fabric found at a market in Saint-Tropez, and zebra print seat covers are another Scandinavian favorite to bring a contemporary touch to heritage interiors.
The whole point of this space, however, is to gather people together and allow the stunning view of the lake to steal the spotlight.
(Image credit: Anne Nyblaeus / A Design Features)
There are no wall cabinets in the kitchen, just a couple of well-appointed open shelves painted the same warm white color as the slatted walls and Quarella marble-topped base units so that the kitchen fades into the background. Minimizing clutter and ensuring that the displays are of items that are both useful and aesthetically pleasing are key rules of organizing open shelves.
(Image credit: Anne Nyblaeus/A Design Features)
The main bedroom continues the island home’s blue décor theme, with a cascade of pretty contrasting blue floral prints around a a simple cast-iron bed frame. Too many patterns can be difficult to work with, but here they’re unified by variations of the same blue in a popular bedroom color combination. Find the wallpaper and fabrics at Ralph Lauren Home.
4. Top floor apartment in Finland
(Image credit: Riitta Sourander / Interiors by ESS)
Interior architect Elina Siltanen-Sjöberg of Interiors by Ess, who updated this Helsinki home, chose a color palette that would flow throughout the whole apartment. ‘I wanted it all to have a definite Scandinavian feel, but at the same time cozy and international,’ says Elina, whose book Hidden Gems, Home like a dream, available at Finnish Design Shop showcases eight of her favorite design projects in Finland.
‘This room is peaceful with layers and tones of grey, a little like winter evenings in Finland. The rattan chest serves well as a coffee table and brings warmth too. To pull the scheme together we added pattern with cushions in Oscar De La Renta for Lee Jofa fabric and Ian Mankin stripes.’
(Image credit: Riitta Sourander / Interiors by ESS)
A small table created a compact breakfast nook and there are strong contrasts between the vintage table and those classic Scandinavian heroes, Carl Hansen CH24 wishbone chairs. ‘The previously white walls and white column needed pattern and color, so we used Farrow & Ball’s Tessella wallpaper together with warm gray paint for the column (Tikkurila Paints, Finland),’ says Elina.
‘The Scandinavian look has typically quite strong contrasts, either in colors, shapes and forms,’ she adds. ‘The architecture can be quite stark and austere, and at the same time you see playful color combinations. The seasons and cold climate shape a lot of our visual world. The quality of light – summer light compared to winter light, summer colors compared to winter colors, shadows and light, and this can be seen in all forms of Nordic art, design, and architecture.’
(Image credit: Riitta Sourander / Interiors by ESS)
This long, challenging-shaped bedroom started with layout and colors, says Elina. ‘Natural light was limited and quite harsh and the ceiling was very low. We wanted to make the room feel soft and inviting and we used typical Finnish/ Scandinavian colors but in a different way, adding more pattern, to have focal points.’
The bed was almost centrally placed, and mirrors reflect light and draw attention to the center of the room. Favored Finnish shades of sand, beige and brown with an accent of red bring the space to life. A bed skirt in a zig-zag patterned Blithfield & Co fabric echoes the Farrow & Ball wallcovering.
(Image credit: Riitta Sourander / Interiors by ESS)
‘This children’s bedroom started with ideas of colors that make you feel happy,’ says Elina. ‘Rosslyn 1908 wallpaper from Farrow & Ball was our choice. It is playful and happy and creates a timeless background so you can change just the soft furnishings as the children grow.
‘We chose cushions with different patterns to bring more colors and something visually interesting against the wallpaper, and to match the colors of some artwork done by the girls who live in this room.’
Bunks are an ideal choice for this bedroom, leaving room to play. And this bunk bed from the Finnish brand Avaroom is typically Scandinavian in looks. The playful pink bedside table was bespoke from Elina for this project.
5. 18th-century Swedish villa near Stockholm
(Image credit: Kristofer Johnsson/Studio Lawahl)
This gracious 18th-century home in Stocksund, just outside the Swedish capital of Stockholm, was recently given a luxurious design refresh. The look features a stylish blend of midcentury modern influences with some contemporary high-end finishes, elegant antiques and Scandinavian classics. It’s a fusion with a nod to its setting but credit goes to Joanna Lavén of Studio Lawahl, who came up with the concept.
Joanna says her entryway ideas are designed to ‘blend drama with a welcoming atmosphere, grounded by bespoke stone flooring, while a gracefully curved, raised ceiling draws the eye upward to an elongated brass and glass chandelier that anchors the space.’
A bespoke teak bench and console table feature concealed storage, creating a sense of understated luxury, but with a typical Scandinavian balance of form and function. On the console are a ceramic vase by Melanie Baker Hörnstein and a wooden tray by Per Brandstedt – both Swedish-based artists.
(Image credit: Kristofer Johnsson/Studio Lawahl)
The kitchen features bespoke dark brass cabinetry, paired with classic paneling that conceals appliances, storage, a walk-in pantry, and uneven walls. ‘It was a puzzle to maximize the potential of the space, but we’re thrilled with the outcome,’ says designer Joanna.
The worktops and two-tier island are made of Cielo marble, with a Vola faucet completing the luxurious details. Vintage Carlo Nason wall lights and pendant lights crafted from repurposed cartridges create ambient lighting. Pigreco chairs by Tobia Scarpa, reissued by Tacchini, provide a further style highlight.
(Image credit: Kristofer Johnsson/Studio Lawahl)
For the dining room, Studio Lawahl designed a bespoke teak and glass cabinet for glassware. It’s a functional piece, but in true Scandinavian style it incorporates great materials and design details.
Rich pink tones inject a lively energy into the room, complementing the green hues in the adjacent kitchen and office. A vintage ceiling light adds ambient warmth. The dining chairs are 1960s Italian vintage pieces, and a rug from Knut Mattor adds texture.
(Image credit: Kristofer Johnsson/Studio Lawahl)
The home office is visible from both the dining room and kitchen. ‘We designed this space to harmonize the traditional millwork with bespoke pieces that introduce a midcentury warmth to the room,’ says Joanna. ‘Our custom bookcase and organic-shaped desk, crafted from wood and marble, form the backbone of the space, with bespoke paneling providing a classic backdrop for modern furnishings and vintage lighting.’
The matching vintage ceiling light and table lamp were designed by Oscar Torlasco for Lumi, chosen by Joanna to give the room a ‘nostalgic yet contemporary feel’.
‘Arne Jacobsen’s iconic Series chair from 1955 adds a touch of timeless elegance, while a bespoke rug from Knut Mattor and curtain fabric from Rubelli complete the room’s refined atmosphere,’ she adds.
As we’ve seen, there’s a multitude of different Scandinavian styles at play throughout the Nordic region.
It can work well to mix and match, combining sleek, minimal interiors with midcentury modern pieces, or setting folksy textiles, furniture and wallcoverings alongside elegant international pieces. Whichever elements of Scandinavian style you choose to incorporate into your home, keep in mind one of its key guiding principles: the balance of form and function. Choose beautiful things for your home, but make them practical too.
We’re also huge fans of Japandi decor here at Homes & Gardens, which is a wonderful fusion of Japanese and Scandinavian decor.
