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So you have been eyeing the Nordic style, but with a blank canvas, you don’t know where to start. It’s not always easy to take design inspiration from a photo and bring it to life. Don’t worry we understand the struggle, to ease the process, here are some styling tips for you.
Story of Origin
Before that, let’s dive into the origin of Nordic style, where it came from and how it came about.
As per the name, Nordic design is inspired by the style of the Nordic countries. The Nordics are comprised of Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Iceland. This aesthetic emerged in the early 20th century, and afterwards flourished in the 1950s— post World War II era.
The Nordic trend takes it cue from what is happening in the design scene of Denmark. Reminiscent of Scandinavian style, which is distinct by a focus on clean, simple lines, minimalism and functionality without sacrificing beauty, Nordic fusion is simultaneously traditional, rustic, contemporary and modern. Ironic, isn’t it, but it works!
Nordic Styling Tips
Choose soft, muted colours
Colour is a great starting point when designing a space, it acts as a backdrop and set the ambiance of the room. Since the inspiration comes from dark, foggy forests, muted and moody colours like stormy blues, washed greeny-greys, steel and charcoal is perfect for the aesthetic. To offset the moodier hues, use softer colours such as stone, driftwood, alabaster and millennial pink to achieve that ideal balance.
As for the flooring, wood floors tend to remain uncovered and lighter wooden tones are frequently seen in Nordic homes.
Add warmth through accents
One crucial difference between Nordic style and other minimalist spaces are the comfort level. The key is to be warm and inviting by having cozy, comforting accents.
In the Nordic regions, they call this concept “hygge” [hoo-gah], the word means comfort in Danish. Textiles are a great way to add snugness to the room, together with pillows and soft blankets. Then, top everything off with plush throw rug.
Other than textiles, there are plenty of ways to bring warmth into the room. Consider bringing in greenery and use pops of bright accent colours.
Embrace negative spaces
As we already know, Nordic design is so simplistic, that should come as no surprise that less is always more.
Part of what makes it so aesthetically pleasing is it’s lack of clutter. You won’t find any unnecessary items haunting the rooms; instead, everything has a place of their own.
Though to execute this, your best bet is to remove all items from the space and move it back in piece by piece. Think like a curator, only bring in items that adds specific value to the design, also feel free to leave out the piece that you’re unsure of.
Furniture is one of the identifying factors of the Nordic style. Just think of IKEA, that is the exact aesthetic we’re looking at. No doubt that it has this specific look to it.
We’re talking about furniture that features simple silhouettes, clean lines, and an emphasis on natural materials. Whenever possible, there’s also a focus on choosing well-made, artisanal products, such as our “Davis” Nordic Armchair (https://vintage.com.my/product/davis/), over mass-produced pieces.
With this style of design, the placement is just as important as the products themselves. You’ll want to make “Davis” the focal point of the room, like the centre of living rooms around your cozy seating areas.
Since the style was founded on integrating form and function, focusing on comfort and embracing “less is more”, it’s easy to to see why so many people are obsessed with Nordic design. That said, we know re-creating an aesthetic can be much harder than it seems. By putting our tips to use, we hope to help you construct a look that you love.