Small Scandinavian kitchen: ideas

Do you love the Nordic style but are you afraid that the size of your kitchen is too small? Don’t worry, here are practical tips and tricks for decorating a small Scandinavian kitchen.

The peculiar characteristics of the Scandinavian style derive from a need typical of the northernmost regions of Europe or the need to make rooms bright while having very few hours of light a day.

The choice to use light colors has purely functional origins, as well as the preference for natural materials and strong minimalism. Due to the almost total darkness of many months of the year, inside the houses it is necessary to create clear and bright environments using some expedient.

In the case of a small kitchen this is particularly useful since light and white are the two most immediate solutions to visually expand a space.

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The Scandinavian-inspired Nordic style is one of the hottest furnishing trends at the moment: the keywords are functionality and essentiality. In the kitchen, the final effect to be pursued must be that of a white and welcoming room, without too many frills or decorations, but equipped with all comforts.

After a brief summary of the main features of the style we are talking about, many ideas to best furnish a small Scandinavian style kitchen.

Table of Contents

Typical traits of the Scandinavian style

In modern apartments it is quite easy to recognize the Scandinavian style. We could summarize them the main features in:

Use of neutral colors, prevalence of white in all its shades; in combination, you can choose between gray and pastel colors;
Use of natural materials both in the furniture and in the upholstery, above all wood, wicker and rattan;
Absence of shiny elements, only matte and rough
Minimal style and decorations reduced to the bone, without eccentric or hyper colored pieces
Research of the Hygge, a philosophy of Scandinavian origin that pursues a sense of comfort and welcoming environments

Going into detail, a perfect Nordic style kitchen features only natural materials, even in the floor. The parquet to be preferred is in its lighter variant. A more practical alternative and that requires less maintenance is the wood-effect porcelain stoneware.

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As for the fridge, hood, stove and so on, the best choice is to prefer them in the same shade of the furniture finish.

The selection of colors neutral is not accidental and recalls the snowy atmospheres of Northern Europe. From optical white to beige, the important thing is to make a sense of candor prevail. In addition, it can range between a cold note brought by Grey or hot with the Sage green.

As we have said, the prerogative of the Nordic style furniture is preserve the brightness of the environment. Here because lighting is a key detail. The ideal is to have direct natural light; in this regard, if you need to preserve your privacy, prefer light curtains in linen or cotton.

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As for artificial lighting, consider placing LED spotlights under the wall units and a pendant lamp on the island (if you have one) or on the table.

How to furnish a small kitchen

As you may have understood, light is a key element in interior design of Scandinavian origin. This detail turns out particularly profitable in the event that the dimensions of a room are contained and it will be necessary to play with optical illusions to expand them.

Even the use of white play in your favor. This color is naturally fresh and bright and, if chosen for walls, furniture and furnishing accessories, it will help to make the environment visually larger. Again, it will serve to create a pleasant clean feeling.

In a typical Scandinavian cuisine a central island is almost never missing. If the square footage of your room does not allow it, a valid alternative will be a wooden bar counter. You can put together stools, thus avoiding having to add a table.

If the family is large and there is a need for a greater support surface, you can always opt for a folding table or with an extension in order to open it only when needed.

Usually another element that never fails is the food trolley. This will also prove very useful in a small kitchen as it is a valuable additional surface.

What if I have an open space?

Typical of the houses of Northern Europe is the open space, a practical and functional expedient that responds to the typical needs of modern living. Should your Scandinavian style kitchen be within a single space, consider taking a linear composition that takes up an entire wall. In this way you will not have to give up anything and you will have respected the canons of minimalism.

If you like wall decorations, drawings or paintings depicting nature will be welcome. Real plants are also a great idea, broadleaf if possible. You can place them on shelves, on wall units with open compartments or in front of the window, if you don’t have curtains.

To top it all off, don’t forget themed textiles and tableware, as long as you don’t go too far with the furnishings. Consider that the color contrasts (duotone) as in the following photo are a good idea.