Being a homeowner requires long-term commitment because after buying a property, you have to exert effort to maintain its condition. Your investment will become useless if your home doesn’t look good or function well after years of buying it. You won’t be able to get a high return of investment if your home is poorly-maintained, especially if you’re going to sell it soon.
If you don’t want any of these to happen, roll up your sleeves, and create a Scandinavian look for your home. Scandinavian homes are some of the most popular trends in interior design today because it combines minimalism and functionality. This modern look is also easy to achieve–you will only need to make small changes around your home to achieve a Scandinavian style!
Here’s how you can create a Scandinavian look for your home:
1. Install Wooden Floors
How your floors look can significantly affect the ambiance of your home. Since your flooring stretches to different areas of your home–from your living area, kitchen, to your bedroom–it’s best if you start paying attention to this element if you want to achieve a Scandinavian modern look for your home.
Wooden floors are a must for a Scandinavian home because these create a high-quality look at an affordable price. Depending on your preference, you can choose to sand down and re-oil your hardwood flooring (if you already have these installed) to make the space look new or hire professionals, such as Sustainable 9, to install eco-friendly wooden floors.
2. Paint Your Walls White
Another feature that is common among Scandinavian homes is the use of white walls. This color is a classic choice among homeowners as it exudes a strikingly minimalist vibe. Using the color white in all of your walls can also brighten up the space and allow more natural light in. This can make your entire home look more spacious and airy.
Roll up your sleeves and allocate one weekend for you to solely paint all of your walls in white. This is a simple and cheap home renovation project that will surely make your home feel and look new!
3. Incorporate Neutral Colors
While some people love to have white all over their homes, others are looking for ways to incorporate pops of colors in order to break the monotony. If you’re one of the latter, use neutral colors in different areas of your home. Neutral colors, such as beige and cream, work well with white and can add more drama to the space. The use of different neutral colors can also add personality to your space without going over the top.
In a white-painted living room, you can add dividers, seating furniture, and artworks in neutral colors. For your dining area, you can use hardware (cabinet handles and drawer knobs), tables, and bars that come in neutral colors as well.
4. Mix And Match Natural Elements
Using white and neutral hues in your home can create cohesiveness. However, too much cohesion can make the space look too plain. This is especially true if you’re planning to use these colors throughout your entire home.
Fortunately, you can avoid creating a space that’s too plain by mixing and matching natural elements. After painting your walls white and adding pieces that come in neutral hues, you can now incorporate natural elements, such as rattan, wicker, copper, and brass in different areas of your home. These materials are often used in various pieces of furniture and can work as the focal points of any room in your house.
5. Use Pendant Lights
All types of lights work the same, all providing light to your home. But, the amount of illumination they offer and the mood they create vary from one design to another. For you to have a Scandinavian home, opt to use pendant lights. A pendant light is a type of feature light that hangs low from the ceiling and comes in different sizes, shapes, and designs.
Pendant lights are also smart investments because these are adaptable, versatile, affordable, and create ambiance. With the number of pendant lights to choose from, always remember this general rule when making a decision: the bigger the area you want to illuminate, the bigger pendant light you should use.
6. Practice Simplicity
If you have been living in the same home for decades, it’s common to display countless items in different rooms in your home. You might have been filling up your walls with different artworks and using countless storage boxes in your bathroom. This is your own home, and you’re basically allowed to do anything with it; but, if you’re serious about achieving a Scandinavian design for your home, you should practice simplicity at all times.
Simplicity is very subjective, but you can start implementing this design principle by thinking clean and keeping accessories to a minimum. Go through different areas around your home, and store (or dispose) items that aren’t necessary for the space. You can even keep an entire wall bare!
Being simple in your home interior design will make the space look larger and feel more inviting. This environment can also evoke a positive emotional response because the entire space is clean and organized.
7. Decorate With Plants And Fresh Flowers
Contrary to popular belief, adding plants and fresh flowers inside your home will not require a lot of work from you. Sure, these will require watering, but with the number of plants available today, you can easily pick those that do not require daily watering.
Decorating with plants and fresh flowers is closely tied to a Scandinavian home as florists are often seen in the streets in the Scandinavian region, selling different species of greeneries. If you want to follow this tip, make sure to place the plants and fresh flowers in a location that has access to natural light. This will make your greeneries last longer and look fresher!
Tap Professionals
If you want to create a Scandinavian look for your home in the easiest and fastest way possible, consider hiring contractors who specialize in Scandinavian home renovation projects. Working with pros might entail additional costs from your pocket, but with the results they can provide, every dollar you’ll pay them will be worth it in the end.
