5 Kitchen Design Lessons You Can Learn from Scandinavian Interiors
Picture Credit – ladyinspirationsblogg.se
Guest Post – Jason Phillips
Elegance and style along with a sense of simplicity and functionality, those are the words that describe the Scandinavian interior designs. More and more modern homes are seen to adopt this minimalist European design style mainly because of its modern and neutral appeal.
If you’re planning to renovate your kitchen or overall house, then choosing Scandinavian designs could offer you a vast and eclectic taste of design movement, unique, and minimalistic designs in your home.
Picture 1 – godsochgardar.se
Picture 2 – lovelylife.se
Picture 3 – antikochauktion.se
Picture 4 – antikochauktion.se
Maintaining the natural light is very important
Being in the far north, the Scandinavian designs tend to flood the interiors with light. This determined the Scandinavians to enjoy, cherish, and appreciate the important factor of natural daylight in their life. Light is very important for our well-being which is why being illuminated by the environment tend to create more positivity in your life.
To adapt to this design, during the winter season you can get rid of the heavy curtains or throw away the silly ornaments that block the light. If privacy is the main reason for those covers, you might consider using wooden shutters or sheer fabric on windows in your kitchen or any rooms in your house.
Additionally, Scandinavian designs are mostly focused on white, clean, simple, and pure color. This is because the color reflects light and encourages it to bounce around the kitchen spaces and brightens them. You should also add mirrors in your kitchen in order to let the light to stay.
Picture 1 – mydesignchic.com
Picture 2 – lantliv.com
Cosiness and warmth
As you can see in the different Scandinavian designs, coziness and warmth are important. To adapt this, you should add more natural wood into your home, whether on furniture, floor, or wall panels or kitchen backsplash. Wood offers a welcoming feel and adds more coziness to the kitchen.
You could also add candles to produces the Scandinavian feeling of warmth and coziness. As fire is the natural source of light, placing simple stick candles on the tea holders around your kitchen or even in the living room will create a fairytale-like atmosphere.
Picture 1- seventeendoors.blogspot.se
Picture 2 – feasthome.com
Picture 3 – snickeritallkotten.se
Picture 4 – linaostling.se
Lifestyle nature
Scandinavian designs also focus on nature as it is the heart of the design. Living the life with a healthy attitude is being cherished and practiced so to adopt this, you can add greenery and plants into your home to add more environment and natural feel. Plants are known to provide fresh air and it makes us feel better and beat the winter blues.
Rustic wood grain and interior plants and flowers is a great way to make the space more relaxing and vibrant. Remember, incorporating live elements into your kitchen space will make the interior look modern and fresh.
Picture 1 – detvitadarhuset.blogspot.com
Picture 2 – myscandinavianhome.com
Picture 3 – bloglovin.com
Picture 4 – lady-gray-dreams.tumblr.com
White wood floors
As mentioned earlier, the Scandinavian design focuses on white and pure colors from floor to ceiling. So, if you want to adopt this style, renovating your kitchen floor and change it with white wood floors can make the room seem open, clean, and airy. Grey color and wood (pine or birch) are also alternative choices for keeping the interior flooring design simple yet elegant-looking.
Simplistic yet artful Scandinavian kitchen furniture
Aforementioned, Scandinavian design focuses on the minimalist designs in both exteriors and interiors of the home. Modern furniture took advantage of the innovative textiles which can be seen via antiques and current designs. Amazing craftsmanship with the use of high-quality materials will always be seen in the Scandinavian furniture designs. It is well seen and being adapted by the different kitchen designs throughout the world.
Choosing simple yet detailed and artful kitchen cabinets or countertops based on the Scandinavian design is a perfect way to adapt to this European modern design style. Adding antique components or materials with clear smooth lines and organic shapes can defy a simple and minimal design which could also add an aesthetic look to your home.
It is no wonder why more and more modern houses adapt the Scandinavian interior design because of its simplicity, functionality, minimalism, love of nature, and elegance. So, if you’re planning to renovate your kitchen, living room, or any area of your home seek for professional home renovator’s help to do this.
5 Homes Decorated Around The Nordic Style
New Orleans invid Mälaren- Skona Hem
Country House Inspired After New Orleans -One hundred and fifty meters from Lake Mälaren is 1800-century house whose decor is inspired after the famous city of New Orleans. Kristina Spur found the house 11 years ago in deplorable condition. It leaked, had no electricity, water or heat. The building had been abandoned since the 1950s, and the roof was almost completely destroyed as the home had it’s original roof timbers from 1887 when the house was first built. In February 2001, she moved in with her two sons Oscar and Gustav, then 3 and 5 years old. Read more about this transformation at Skona Hem
A Swedish Seaside Home Decorated Around The Nordic Style- This Scandinavian home is surrounded by rocks and sea. The owner, Jacob is an architect followed in his forefathers steps, as his ancestor designed the the library in 1760, at the Royal Palace in Stockholm. His home boasts huge windows, which can be seen from the ocean, and lets in a terrific amount of light, and provides an open concept with the vaulted ceilings. Interior wood paneling on the walls brightens things up. The interior decor mingles the new with the old. One of the oldest pieces in the house is a rococo sofa from 1760, which was completely refurbished. Originally featured at werandacountry.pl
Granholms Estate has been named the the Manor of the year in 2014 in the Great Gods & Farms Gala. Gransholm is also Mary and Jan Åke of Trampes private homes. Granholm’s mansion, built in 1812, has regained its original beauty. With great passion and respect for the history, the family has managed to create a modern functional home while preserving the cultural history behind the home. The mansion also serves as showroom for antiques. See the rest of the pictures in godsochgardar.se
Gotland House- When Asa Hallin and Håkan Jacobsson finally got to buy the house of Hemsedal municipality 20 years ago, it was run down and in poor condition. Håkan is a carpenter by profession, and through the process of renovating the house, they enlisted the help of another carpenter, a mason and a painter. Over a year and a half, they completely restored it back to the style resembling its original condition. Read more at lantliv.com/
Restored Home Built In 1792- There isn’t a lot of information about this last Swedish home on the internet. The home is decorated with classic Swedish distressed furniture. It is unclear how many rooms are in this house, but an obvious kitchen/ dining room has a large center table, with two rectangular side tables pushed together. Off this room, is another bedroom with a twin bed, and rustic wood chair. A children’s room is the highlight of the tour, with a painted blue doll house situated on a table, with a country style Swedish bed with draperies. A stenciled floor make this room memorable. Photography Solvie dos Santos
View the pretty pictures below:
Designer Colette van den Thillart’s European Decorating Style
Picture Credit-Toronto’s Best Dressed
Designer Colette van den Thillart is a very talented designer whose work has been featured in some of the biggest magazines such as Canadian House & Home Magazine and Traditional Home. This Canadian designer works as the creative director of NH Design and certainly doesn’t mind breaking the rules and going her own way.
Colette is currently working on an 18th Century estate in Denmark that we hope to see some time soon. We cannot wait to see what this beautiful home looks like, and whether she will keep with the traditional schemes that are often found in 18th century or if she will incorporate modern elements in to the design.
Achica Living had an interesting interview with Thillart, where she gave her top 10 unexpected design tips. In the Achica Living article she suggests to create multi purpose rooms, than typical living-rooms, kitchens and bedrooms. She suggests in vertical houses with tall walls that libraries could be incorporated into dining rooms.
Here are some excellent examples:
1. Home Beautiful Magazine features a wonderful dining space with an extravagant cabinet that reminds me of some of the elements in the Drottningholm Palace Library. Designer Myra Hoefer’s California home’s unique library and office features a large table perfect hosting dinner parties.
2. This dining room features a round table with brighter green colored slipcovers. The wall cabinets have wired fronts exposing a large collection of books.
3. This Ketchum, Idaho home features a lengthy white painted table with a large collection of antique books featured on built in black bookcases.
4. This dining room features a paired down approach, with books stacked on industrial metal shelves. The look gives this room a clean look, yet the books give this room a lot of detail to look at.
All The Best Blog also interviewed Thilart, and here are some of the questions and answers I found most interesting…..
Q: What books are currently on your bedside table?
A: Savage Beauty – The Life of Edna St. Vincent Millay by Nancy Milford
Citizen of the World – The Life of Pierre Elliott Trudeau by John English
The Book of Symbols– Reflections on Archetypal Images, Taschen
Redeeming Features – Nicky Haslam
French painted blue and gold dining chairs featured in Traditional Home Magazine
Watch this video featuring Colette van den Thillart, who adds European touches to a classic Ontario cottage without losing its rustic feel. Barn boards and crockery lamps work beautifully with Windsor chairs, antiques and pretty designer fabrics
A sitting area within the master bedroom doubles the comfort and elegance. The lilac-and-white bedroom was inspired by Canada’s northern light. The headboard was custom designed by Colette.- Traditional Home Magazine
18th-century engravings, Lilac Draperies – French Sofa
The hallway is a study in neutrals with wall-to-wall seagrass and patterned wallpaper. Colette accessorized the foyer with gilded antlers, a unique art piece with a plaster frame and warm white furnishings, including an 18th-century Russian side chair. From Canadian House & Home
This pedestal table with matching cane back chairs features a hand-rubbed grey finish. Beige linen seats complete the upscale look.
Gustav Foldover Table and Chairs. Table, $1998; armchair, $699. Available at The Art Shoppe.
See more products inspired by Colette van den Thillart’s London home, featured in our January 2011 issue, in our gallery. Plus, watch a tour of Colette’s cottage.
Designer Colette van den Thillart’s daughters, Ava, 9, and Hannah, 11. Each bed is framed by a chintz canopy for a soft and romantic look.