Our favourite Scandinavian furniture designs

Top Scandinavian Furniture Picks

Scandinavian Design has been admired, coveted and emulated the world over since the movement first emerged with some breathtaking designs in the 1950s -  which challenged convention. Based on the principles of pure beauty through light colour palettes, the use of pale woods and minimalist functionality, Scandinavian design enjoys ongoing popularity today due to its clean lines, hues and iconic shapes.

Simple and practical, Scandi style is characterised by quality materials and textiles inspired by the natural environment and an understated yet stylish attention to detail. Its pure, pared-back approach is perfect for creating chic and fresh interiors, whether in a traditional or contemporary environment.

We’ve hand picked some of our favourite Scandinavian furniture pieces as well as lighting and home accessories which epitomise the look.

Neutral colours
Heavily based around colours and materials that reflect the natural environment and weather in Scandinavia, designs are often kept in the calm and muted shades of grey, cream, white, pale blue and other pastel colours. These have become a trademark of Scandinavian due to their unique combination of soft tones and natural materials that allow the natural sunlight to take centre stage.

Minimalist and monochrome features
In keeping with the neutral and clean colour schemes associated with Scandinavian design is the trend of monochromatic and minimalist features across furniture and home accessories. Scandinavian homes are designed to be beautiful yet functional, with open plan and airy spaces featuring simple furniture and decorative accessories proving extremely popular.

Pale woods
The trend of pairing solid wood with neutral pale colours is synonymous with Scandinavian furniture design, as well as the popular use of white wood panelling rather than bright coloured walls or heavy papers. Using wood as a key material has also extended to decorative home accessories that perfectly blend into any living space. This is in sharp contracts to pre-war designs, particularly in furniture, which used heavy, dark woods – perhaps adding to the austerity of the time in comparison to the positivity of the post war period when modernism was truly embraced.

Textiles
Scandinavian textiles are instantly recognisable by their bold and colourful patterns, as opposed to some of the conservative ‘hard’ materials such as wood and leathers used to manufacture furniture. Think Scandi textiles and the names of Marimekko and Spira conjure up imagery of bold and colourful modernist patterns and play on colour to pep up the modern interior. In the furniture industry Danish companies Kvadrat and Gabriel are the most widely specified and used fabrics (not least due to the practicality and wearability they afford) and huge range of colours in their respective spectrums. Collectively these are a one stop shop to create a cohesive look for any furniture style or colour scheme. Embracing bold textiles and colour brands such as Hay and Softline are relative newcomers to the world of Scandinavian design. However they have already proved extremely popular and commercial due to their combination of clean lines and shapes - whilst simultaneously employing wonderful textiles in bold and daring textures and colours.

Iconic shapes and silhouettes
Whether it be Arne Jacobsen’s Egg or Series Seven chairs or Hans Wegner’s Wishbone or Shell chairs, Scandi design is littered with a plethora of iconic silhouettes familiar to us all – whether we are passionate about interior style or not. These have become signatures of both an era as well as the movement that we identify as both mid-century modern as well as Scandi chic. What's more, their timeless appeal shows no sign of abating.

New metallic trend
A new trend which has emerged in Scandinavian design in the last few years is that of uniting warm metallic finishes such as copper, brass and gold with wood or white shades in lighting and decorative and home accessories. This is a departure from the usual muted or pastel colour schemes used in Scandi design;  however it remains in keeping with the overall goal of creating a clean, ostensibly effortless interior whilst maintaining a warmth and cosiness that is synonymous with all things Scandinavian.

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Perfectly balancing the principles of aesthetics, texture, function and simplicity it’s easy to see why Scandi chic has such a loyal following. We hope that we’ve given you a bit of inspiration with our hand-picked choices. Do you have a favourite piece of Scandi-style furniture?