Nordic Home

Nordic design has been the popular choice for people looking to exploit the quality of craftsmanship of furniture within the clean and simple surroundings of their home. Whilst the differences between Nordic and Scandinavian designs can be up to your own interpretations, I see the Nordic interior design style as a little more defined. Whilst Scandinavian can use a combination of soft pastel tones, colours and prints, Nordic has a much more defined monochrome feel about it, replacing light feature tints with stronger dominating shades. Below, you can see my suggestions on how to create the Nordic style in your home, focusing on areas such as furniture, materials and prints.

When selecting colours, the idea is to keep it as simple as possible. As with classic Scandinavian design, I would recommend applying a simple white to the walls, creating a blank canvas, allowing the quality of the furniture, textures and fittings to draw attention. A contrasting black is perfect to add depth and highlight key features and spaces in the room such as tables and accessories. I have kept the feature colour very simple, using Landscape, a soft shade of brown from the Graham & Brown paint range. The feature colour, unlike other designs I have mentioned, is used to add warmth and connect the other natural tones rather than standing out and injecting colour. This colour pallet can then be used to help select accessories, fabrics and furniture.

A main characteristic of the Nordic design has to be the beautiful coffee and side tables used. Whilst simple in form, these circular tables look great in multiple finishes such as part lacquered in black or white with natural wood detailing. These tables can be grouped together in different sizes and heights to create beautiful and functional features within a space. I have selected tables from Normann Copenhagen as an example of grouping, Ayush Kasliwal to emphasise simple and striking detail and finally from HAY for the focus on high-quality natural wood.

Lighting is an area of the design where you do not have to keep things simple. With such a huge amount of lighting designs and brands to select from, there is a lighting size, shape and style for every area of the house. I have selected four very different designs to give you a taste of the diverse choice of designs that can fit perfectly into the Nordic style. The ceiling pendant from Bert Frank is a beautiful adjustable design, perfect for dining spaces and bedrooms to highlight a space that can be used in a multitude of different ways. Arterior's Dallas chandelier is my favourite choice to add artistic extravagance, particularly above a dining table whilst Louis Poulsen and Michael Anastassiades are my favourite examples of luxurious and modern table lamp designs.

This style is all about exhibiting the very best of materials and textures. I have selected warm wools, a brilliant choice for rugs and cushions, graphic print fabrics with monochrome detailing, and my top selection for feature cushions. White gloss and matt black create contrast, adding depth to the space, framing features and directing the eye. My final material selection is chrome which acts as a staple for features and finer details in the room like fixtures, lighting and accessories.

Cushions are a fantastic way to add patterns, prints and colours to a space quickly and easily. Patterns can be arranged together to create eye-catching designs or places with block colours to simplify the look. I have selected four cushions that I feel cover each area of the Nordic house from vivid colour to detailed print. The Lane by Post twin tone reversible cushion is most definitely the choice for someone that likes to change looks and styles quickly. Christian Lacroix is one of my favourite designs to lure the eyes in with its detailed design, working with other eccentric patterns or complimented by a block colour. Missoni Home adds visually stimulating patterns whilst Zoeppritz acts as the perfect huggable cushion that levels out the design.

While many areas of the Nordic home must be kept simple, like the walls, flooring and large furniture items, areas such as accessories, lighting and rugs are where you can add patterns and designs to express your personality. Whilst I would recommend limiting colour, keeping with a monochrome feel of black and white, I would recommend experimenting with geometric and intricate patterns. My final area of selection is the rugs, your chance to dress the beautiful and natural wood floor to complement the surrounding accessories. Depending on the level of simplicity you are looking to create will help you decide on the pattern, material and tones used for this Nordic home staple. I have selected rugs from Bloomingville, Minotti, Mckenzie Childs and Dash & Albert, each covering a different level of design, perfect for the Nordic home.