Monday, December 23, 2002
In a complicated world, people seek out simplicity.
By CHRIS CASSON MADDEN
SCRIPPS HOWARD
One of the developing trends to watch on the decorating scene is Swedish design. In the search for serenity in our homes, the unpretentious charm, spare look and soft color palette of this style fits the bill. I think the look has quite a bit in common with New England architecture and design, especially in the use of wood, colors born from natural pigments and furniture with simple lines.
It goes by many names, including Scandinavian or Gustavian style, named after the 18th-century Swedish king, Gustav III, who returned from a European tour with a love for Neoclassical furniture. The country embraced his ideas and reinterpreted them in native woods like birch, pine, and alder wood.
Let there be light
Perhaps the most important inspiration for the style has been geography itself. Swedish style has everything to do with maximizing light, which is no surprise coming from a country blanketed in dark winter six months out of the year.
Those who lived humbler lives added their influence, too. During Scandinavia's icy winters, farm families created and sold their own folk art, such as rag rugs. They also combined vegetable pigments and mineral spirits for a type of wall wash that created a matte finish that refracted light.
Colors live within the shades of white, pale blue, yellow and gray. White walls create an illusion of openness, while sheer window treatments let light pour into the room. Buttercream-colored floor paint brightens the space. Pale furniture finishes (think a milk paint look); well-placed mirrors, crystal, and gilt also reflect that sought-after light. And pure-white fabrics echo linens that were once a part of every Swedish bridal trousseau.
Heart is at home
But why is this decor so popular right now? We asked Rhonda Eleish, co-owner of Eleish-van Breems Antiques in Woodbury, Conn. She and co-owner Edie van Breems specialize in Swedish antiques and decorating.
"With the world so complicated these days, I think people are thinking very much about home and hearth and focusing on nature and family. This (Swedish) style is soothing, soft, and user-friendly. It's easy to live with, and it's easy on the eye," she says.
"Though it has a country feel, the beauty of Swedish design is that it's translatable to English, French, Italian and even Early American styles."
Start out small
Eleish acknowledges that furnishing a home with Swedish antiques may be difficult in terms of availability and affordability, but many furniture companies are doing lovely reproduction pieces. But she advises that even a small piece like a traditional painted trunk can be the starting point for a room, and Swedish design can hold its own with eclectic, traditional, or contemporary interiors.
Evolving from the days when beds were draped to keep people warm on frosty nights, decorative bed hangings are a common element in Sweden even today.
This romantic look's easy to recreate: extend a drapery rod from the wall and drape sheer fabric or mosquito netting as a corona (or half-canopy) above a bed.
Consider accenting walls with arrangements of patterned plates or tiles in blues or yellows.
A daybed is another traditional piece within this decor, and you can use it as a settee by day and a bed at night, accented by large pillows.
"We've seen over-the-top design for so long," Eleish adds, "that this simplicity is what I think people want now."