Scandinavian style living room interior design

The interior in the Scandinavian style is an abundance of light colors, a cozy atmosphere of harmony and concise order. The harsh Scandinavian climate deprives the inhabitants of these countries of a sufficient number of sunny days, so enterprising Finns, Swedes and Norwegians have solved the problem by decorating their houses in white colors that generously give warmth and light.

Scandinavian interior is quite simple in execution, but it can not be called primitive, it is rather practical.

As is clear from the name itself, the style came to us from the countries of Scandinavia in the north of Europe - Finland, Norway, but the Swedes had a hand in creating this trend.White color in such an interior dominates to bring an abundance of light to the northern houses.

At the root of the Scandinavian style was King Gustav III of Sweden, ruling the country for about two decades at the end of the 18th century. Before him, the inhabitants of these cold edges adopted the fashionable trends of classicism and rococo, practiced in the interior design of Great Britain, Italy, France, bringing in their unique northern flavor.

In place of the Rococo and Classicism in Europe came Empire. The Swedes did not miss the opportunity to apply this style to their distinctive design vision; therefore, the palace-style empire interior in this country was once homely. King Gustav III was famous for his love of exquisite beauty in everything, because he had the reputation of a fashion innovator. "Gustavian style", invented by the crowned figure, did not lose its relevance until the beginning of the XX century. That he is considered the progenitor of the modern Scandinavian direction of interior design. One of the trends of those years - carved furniture on curved legs today is recognized as a classic interior style.

In the modern world of the interior styles industry, the Scandinavian trend is expressed in two forms:

1. Traditional style, taking the main ideas from the European fashion three hundred years ago. Such an interior is the best way to reflect the wealth of the owners of the house, their love for luxurious rigor without the ornateness of forms.
2. Modern style, to laconicism and functionality, but not devoid of grace and refinement. In such a house there is no place for bulky furniture, the pomposity of gilded frames, the pretentiousness of architectural forms. This interior is cozy, spacious and replete with light, both natural and artificial.

The most famous Scandinavian designers were Alvar Aalto and Arne Jacobsen. Architects by training, both designers were in love with their northern homeland, generously giving it their creativity. The furniture from Aalto in the middle of the last century could be seen even in Soviet pensions, and Jacobsen generously donated his native Copenhagen with his works, so much so that today this city can rightly be called a true work of art.

It should be noted that not all countries of the Scandinavian Peninsula equally invested in creating their own interior style.The Norwegians didn’t differ much, the Finns were famous for their glassware and plywood furniture, the Swedes had a full-scale interior design industry, but the Danes took the leading positions in this direction, oddly, attributed to the Scandinavian peoples.

The Scandinavian style is becoming increasingly popular today, it deserved nationwide love far beyond the countries of origin due to its laconic functionality, everyday comfort and natural beauty using natural materials. The refined air elements, elegant designs, geometric, but not strict, have become characteristic features of this style. forms.

In this style, some northern severity and asceticism with a minimum of decor is successfully combined with a light color palette and elegance of natural wood. The style is original and orderly, but this is precisely its appeal. The main focus here is set by light warm colors: milky, light yellow, beige. The main distinctive feature of this style is the use of only natural wood to create furniture.As a rule, these are trees of deciduous trees, spruce and pine are less in demand.

What characterizes the Scandinavian interior:

• dominance of the light scale, mostly white;
• the release of premises from excess furniture;
• the predominance of natural materials;
• abundant interior lighting with all available light sources;
• use of inconspicuous textiles for decoration;
• the presence of a small snow-white fireplace;
• conciseness of details;
• minimum of additional accessories and their simplicity.

All these factors together allow you to create a Scandinavian interior in almost any room without large financial investments in the arrangement.

Kohler of the Scandinavian countries themselves - pallor and soft light reflected from the snow, it blows from the coolness, the same range was adopted by the eponymous interior style. Thanks to this color scheme, the living room becomes visually more spacious and larger. Do not be afraid that the interior will look cold and inhospitable.

In a living room with a Scandinavian design, too bright accent spots and contrasting combinations are not needed; here they are inappropriate. To dilute the white and its shades are suitable colors such as:

• silver;
• caramel;
• sky blue;
• delicate turquoise;
• wheat;
• yellow.

Creating a living room with Scandinavian motifs, designers prefer to use plain white to paint the ceiling surface or paint the ceiling with white acrylic. Multi-level structures are not used here, but if it seems that the ceiling looks too primitive, you can decorate it with wooden beams.

The Scandinavian interior design is rather unusual approach to the design of the walls - instead of wallpaper, you can use wood panels and slats, painted in white or its warmer shades. This solution is successfully combined with a gray chimney stone used to decorate the facade of the fireplace, as well as with open shelves painted in gray metallic color.

The flooring should be natural, so the parquet most often is laid of light wood of dairy and sand color: birch, bleached oak, maple, hornbeam.If the parquet seems too expensive to you, a laminate board of white or light brown shade will be the best alternative to it.

Windows and doors, by the way, are also painted with white paint. These elements perform only their functional duties in the interior and should not stand out from the general style of the room.

As it was noted earlier, for this style it is unusual to pile up elements of decor, therefore in the living room it is necessary to exclude excess furniture. Each element of the furniture is practical and fulfills its direct role. A sofa, armchairs, a compact wardrobe with open shelves, a table and chairs - this style does not require more. Furniture must be made exclusively from natural wood material. In addition, rattan furniture will become a real decoration of the Scandinavian interior of the living room.

The sofa in the living room interior plays a special role, it can serve as an accent spot in the room, but you don’t need to knock it out of the overall picture of a calm, moderate palette. Upholstery of a sofa can be from suede, natural fabrics or fur. Armchairs are made similarly, you can add a padded ottoman to the soft living area.

Proper lighting - a pledge of a beautiful interior, this rule works in the Scandinavian style. Light should not just be much, it is better if it is in abundance: metal ceiling chandelier with a decor of gold-plated ceiling lamps, small wall sconces, floor lamps near the soft area. An additional decor will be an elegant, but not frilly candelabrum on the mantelpiece.

In general, you do not need to overload the Scandinavian interior with decorative elements. And so that the room does not seem too empty, you can throw blankets on the chairs,put caskets and small sculptures on open racks, use glass vases, as long as they are kept in a natural, dull color palette.

Textile elements, for example, a floor carpet with an ornament from Scandinavian motifs, will help bring some “liveliness” to the interior; the same ornament can be duplicated in the pattern of curtains and rugs, which will create the integrity of the interior composition.

We can say that the Scandinavian interior is monochrome, so it needs unobtrusive accents: small trinkets, bright pillows on the couch, colorful flower pots, rugs with a multi-colored print in the dining area.

Particular attention should be paid to decorating the windows. Here it is better to abandon heavy drape fabrics, use lightweight and airy textiles, and Roman blinds will also do. However, the designers themselves say that, if possible, it is better to refuse to decorate windows with a cloth in the Scandinavian design direction in order to bring in more natural light. The hall in this style for a girl should definitely be with a workplace.

The living room in the Scandinavian style is a comfortable and pleasant interior, which will not make your eyes tired. Its conciseness and moderation, the predominance of the natural beauty of the used natural materials will never lose their relevance and popularity.

For more information about the Scandinavian style in the living room interior, see below.