3 Rustic Scandinavian Country Homes – Borrow Ideas From Norway and Denmark

Inspiring Interiors Blog posted some terrific pictures of a barn styled home with a Scandinavian styled interior. If you are looking for a country styled look, consider how this home is set up.

Start With A Gray Palette

Starting out with gray through out your house can be a really simple way to decorate the rest of your home. To make it interesting, choose several shades of gray which you can work through your home.

For my own home, I decided that lighter colors worked well in larger rooms, while the more saturated shades could punch things up in the closets, the bathrooms, and smaller rooms.

Using gray through out your home allows your home to flow nicer than having one bright bold color in each room of the house. Later if you want to add color, simply attach a chair rail, and paint the upper half of the wall. You can add depth with accessories and wall art.

Work With Muted Shades For Country Styles

The wood walls in this home look very primitive with a gray wash. Some walls are left natural while others are painted. In one of the rooms, dried floral wreaths add a rustic touch to the walls. Here is an example of a captivating look that is inexpensive.

Helichrysum Strawflowers are one of my favorite florals. Pick flowers for drying when they are open, but not fully mature. Hang the stems upside down in a cool-well ventilated spot to dry. Avoid over-watering during the growing season, and these florals will look spectacular dried in a vase or a floral wreath.

Incorporate Red And Rust…….

Red is a classic country color that is commonly seen in the countryside of Sweden. Barns and countryside homes are painted rich reds, making it a very classic color to work with. Painting a chest of drawers or an accent chair in Falu red can really bring out the country side of Scandinavian decorating. Pair together rusty metal urns, and accessories like natural straw, hay, wicker, baskets for that country feel.

The house below was originally an eighteenth century barn which was converted into a guest house. This lovely barn is located in the village of Saint-Hilaire-sur-Helpe, in France, and pairs together both the Swedish and French rustic styles.

Photography by Corinne Schanté-Angel, All images from here.

Early 19th Century Female Portrait –Maison Maison

Swedish Rococo Chest-A. Tyner Antiques

Maison Maison

Home 2, This comes from the blog browni.net, a home which was featured on Gods and Gardar.

Here are a couple things we see that really work in this home:

Use A Saturated Shade On The Walls

A saturated shade of mustard is applied to the walls, and followed up with layering of black based tapestry. Centered is a large scale wooden horse sitting on a antique chest. If you notice, the colors from the tapestry, and the wall color are opposite on the color wheel causing both elements to stand out nicely. The white paint in the horse tends to capture the eye against the bold color of the wall, and print in the tapestry.

Set your Furniture On A Slant

As you can see here, it works. Corner cabinets and cupboards off set the rest of the furniture in the room. Chairs are placed at a diagonal, and not everything is symmetrical. Common shades such as green, mustard and blue are used through out the house to keep the palette, exciting but toned down.

Work With Black and White To Balance Things Out.

Upholstered Swedish chairs in a neutral fabric really add balance to this home. The home is bright, but one can still find peace and serenity due to the furniture colors. Looking closely at the chairs, you can see they picked a linen, with a gray white painted frame. The creamy white allows everything to blend nicely together, without being overdone.

Picture Credits

Swedish Antiques D Larsson Interior
Jesse Breytenbach Tulip Pattern- Found on jessebreytenbach.co.za
Found on ana-rosa.tumblr.com
A Casa di Ro
Danish Decorating Ideas via Indenfor and Udenfor

House 3, Originally shown in Sköna hem, this house has a powdery color and the country style atmosphere. Again we see saturated shades on the wall, balanced by gray white toned furniture. One way to surely give the rustic country feel is to choose something with a chippy finish. The armoire may have seen better days, but that is part of the romance.

Adding a few delicate features such as floral print fabric, or a worn childs doll can add the country charm to your home. Johan KalÃn for Sköna hem

Swedish Folk Art Home Johan KalÃn for Sköna Hem

The same home featured on Home And Delicious Blog, seen in House and Garden 2006

Swedish Folk Art Home Johan KalÃn for Sköna Hem

Home And Delicious Blog, seen in House and Garden 2006

Swedish Folk Art Home Johan KalÃn for Sköna Hem

Home And Delicious Blog, seen in House and Garden 2006

Bergere Chairs Maison Maison

Eidsborg Museum in Telemark, Norway

Blue cupboard Visit skonahem.com

Swedish Furniture Decorating Ideas Gypsy Purple BlogCountry Nordic Styled Home in Drobak,

NorwayCountry Nordic Styled Home in Drobak, Norway

Wabi–sabi – Sköna hem

Slant Front Writing Desk in Blue Paint– Sweden Circa 1820

Swedish writing desk, circa 1820, with four graduated drawers under the slant-front. The interior features a central cupboard with lozenge trim and two banks of three drawers on either side. Great patina on the secondary blue paint.

Gustavian style commode with two over two drawers, Sweden circa 1910, in
secondary blue paint. Canted and fluted corners with applied rosettes and shaped
top. Square tapering legs. Original brass hardware.

Chest of three drawers, Denmark circa 1750, with serpentine drawer fronts,
shaped top, and bracket base. The hardware and painted surface are original

INTERIOR & STILL LIFE – Agent Bauer