- 3 min read

Scandinese or Japandi - the fusion between Scandi and Japanese design

Impossibly ethereal surroundings with low furniture, cream hues, natural material and lots of sheer fabrics that soften the daylight. Large paper lantern pendant lights, wooden floors, indoor plants, usually in the form of real bamboo against a wall or small bonsai trees. Simplicity in the form and of course, decluttered interiors. This is the typical Japanese style.

japanese style bedroom with rattan curtains, low bed with white duvet and a tree in the room, wood

japanese style bedroom with window seat for traditional japanese tea ceremony.

japanese style living room with textured ceiling and minimalistic vibes

Photos via deavita.com

Photos: The Contemporist

Roll in the also clean minimalistic lines of the hugely popular Scandinavian style and you end up with Scandinese (which I prefer) or Japandi. The fusion of two styles that are both based on the principle of simplicity and with strong reference to nature is the most anticipated trend for 2017 but we're yet to see much of it.

How does one go about this style? Pinterest does not have many references about it unfortunately! To start with, walls need to have some texture on them. Try real or faux rattan/cane texture wallcoverings, as shown for example in this beautiful home styled by Susanna Vento for Kannustalo at the Housing Fair Finland 2017.

The rattan walls and furniture, the creamy/ light taupe hues and the simple lines in the furniture all have strong references on both Scandi and Japanese design.

bamboo rattan cane tiles and rattan furniture gold atollo lamp

bamboo tiles and beige taupe palette in bedroom

Photos via kannustalo.fi, styling by Susanna Vento

WALL COLOURS

Which colours to use on the wall? Whites and off-whites but stay away from anything too bright and clinical looking. From left to right: Wevet, Wimborne White and Slipper Satin, all Farrow & Ball. Then you need to accentuate with more warm colours, like taupe and brown, normally through natural fibre rugs and light coloured wood. You can also use black - sparingly though - to frame areas. Black can be used as an accent colour.

WALLCOVERINGS

If you liked the home above with the bamboo walls, you can try something similar using bamboo panels (available on plyboo.com) which also serve as soundproofing panels in a room. These would look great in a bedroom (combine with a low IKEA MALM bed for example). You can also try bamboo wallpaper!

For a very luxurious look, you can try wallpaper that is reminiscent of Urushi lacquer work but note that this will be much darker in colour and may seem out of character with the aesthetic shown here. You can find an example, however, here.

bedroom styling japandi scandinese bamboo wallcovering

FURNITURE

Low furniture works better with the Japanese philosophy of people being closer to Earth. I cannot think of a better example of high quality furniture than the Vitra - Eames LCW Chair in Natural Ash. A beautiful low chair is the MG501 Cuba Chair in Soaped Oak which is handcrafted in Denmark by artisans at the Carl Hansen & Søn workshop, and designed by Morten Gøttler.

LIGHTING

Soft lighting with barely there pendants and side lamps is so hard to achieve these days with brass dominating the scene. As much as possible try to replicate the paper lantern lights found in Japanese homes. Think origami structures too. The George Nelson Bubble Crisscross Saucer Pendant Lamp styles (1) are a great match to these specifications.

The New Works Lantern Pendant (2) is an elegant redesign of the iconic form of a traditional paper lantern reimagined in frosted white glass (£166-338). In different yet complementary shapes, the Foscarini Rituals Suspension Lights (£358) (3) offer light with a special chiaroscuro effect.

This one, the &Tradition Formakami pendant, designed by designer of the moment Jaime Hayon, echoes the ancient rice paper lanterns from Asia - reinvented in a modern aesthetic (around £161). You can also try the Vitra Akari floor lamp range.

Impossibly ethereal surroundings with low furniture, cream hues, natural material and lots of sheer fabrics that soften the light that comes in. This is the typical Japanese style. Roll in the also clean lines of the hugely popular Scandinavian style and you end up with Scandinese (which I prefer) or Japandi.