Trends

Trend Guide 2016: Edgy Scandinavian

Minimalist white interiors embrace the dark side.

By Julia Dilworth /

Minimalist white interiors embrace the dark side.

You likely already know Scandinavian-style design: a white-on-white colour palette paired with pale maple and matte-finished bleached oak—it’s a clean look that emerged hand in hand with the small-space movement, and it’s going to be sticking around for several more years. But in 2016, Scandi-style flirts with the dark side. In Edgy Scandinavian, black emerges as a counterpoint to that bright white palette and, notes designer Stephanie Brown, “we’ll see it paired with higher-contrast materials of varying textures, such as high-gloss white and matte-black ebonized wood.”

Inspiring Space: Edgy Scandinavian

edgy scandinavian western living trends 2016

In this space by Victoria designer Jenny Martin, black beams, cabinets and accessories draw the eye and inject an element of urban edge and sophistication.

Key Pieces to Get the Edgy Scandinavian Look This Year

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Click through to see our key picks for bringing the Edgy Scandinavian look into your space.

This porcelain Belay dinner plate ($15) is part of a set from British design studio Seascape Curiosities. cb2.com

The silver and black Ombre pillow ($225) is hand-painted by Calgary interior designer Amanda Hamilton. Amanda Hamilton Design

We dig the Wishbone chair in ebony ($295), inspired by Hans J. Wegner. roveconcepts.com

The Bank Mink Velvet 96 sofa ($3,209) comes with either blackened metal or brass legs. designhouse.ca

The Natuzzi Cosmo floor lamp ($1,679) is a light source, but it’s also a stunning sculptural piece, produced from perforated metal in white, coffee or siren red. Sandy’s Furniture, Coquitlam, B.C., sandysfurniture.ca; Revolve Furnishings, Calgary, revolvefurnishings.com; Scandia Furniture, Edmonton, scandiafurniture.com.

Bye-bye, white cutting boards: try the Blackcreek Mercantile and Trading Co.’s white oak Blackline board ($310) instead. providehome.com

The metal Wire basket in black ($85) —designed by Denmark’s Ferm Living—is a stylish spot to store living room detritus. roveconcepts.com

Dark furnishings, like BoConcept’s customizable Fermo sideboard in matte black ($2,859), won’t shy away from attention, but attract it. boconcept.com

The Edgy Scandinavian Paint Palette

scandinavian paint colours

Ebony and Ivory Keep your bright white palettes, but juxtapose them with blackest black. Here: Benjamin Moore’s Black Ink and 2016 Colour of the Year, Simply White.

What the Pros Have to Say

Megan Baker DSC_8484“We’re minimizing excess in homes in a different way than we’ve seen in the past—think bare minimum, high-gloss and cold! Now it’s about creating a streamlined interior architecture so that more unique and personal decor can be featured.” —Megan Baker, The Cross Decor and Design

Julia Dilworth

Julia Dilworth