My Treasure Trove of (Mostly) Scandinavian Brands

I’m a minimalist, but I love to window shop and research. My trip to Stockholm and Copenhagen in May of 2019 was one of the most stimulating experiences of my life—being able to see so many of my favorite designs in person was a dream. 99% of the time, I don’t need an item when I see it for the first time, so I save it to Minima’s Pinterest. When a need does arrive, I check my Pinterest board for reminders of those items. For example, we are moving to a new home later this year and I am selecting new lighting throughout. I have a private Pinterest board for the new home, but I was able to reference Minima’s Lighting & Fans board for initial inspiration.

Simple design with Scandinavian brands — From my recent trip to the Design Within Reach flagship showroom in Manhattan

I’ve included a list of my favorite design brands and stores below. You will find many have common threads—simplicity, quality, built to last, purposeful, timeless, original/authentic designs, and sustainability. It’s essentially my Scandinavian treasure trove of brands (with a hint of Japanese/other influences). I have found Scandinavian design to be the best at capturing what I call “warm minimalism”. To read more about my design process and why these brands made the cut, pop over to my other Minima Journal post “How to Create Warm Minimalism in Your Home”. You will find almost all of the items in my own home are from one of the brands or companies listed below.

Save this Minima Journal link and check back often as I will update it with new brands I discover.

&Tradition

“Paying homage to Denmark’s long-standing design heritage, &Tradition bridges old and new by creating furniture, lighting and interior objects with timeless appeal. From reissuing design icons to creating future classics in collaboration with acclaimed international designers, the collection combines craftsmanship with creativity and shapes carefully considered pieces with purpose and meaning. Always respectfully. Always made to last.” | andtradition.com

Blue Dot

“We are designers who work together to make good design happen. Inside our Minneapolis shop, you’ll find us elbow deep in sketches or playing show-and-tell with concepts. Our design process is a total collaboration from pencil and paper, materials and machines, even packaging and assembly. We’ll never make stuff for stuff’s sake. Our original pieces are designed to endure and have a nice long life with you. To make that possible, we pair quality craftsmanship with top-notch materials and fabrics from highly respected brands like Sunbrella and Maharam.” | bludot.com

Design Within Reach

“We believe in creating and sourcing pieces that move with you and are meant to be enjoyed over a lifetime—from home to home, generation to generation. For us, that means exceptionally crafted, built-to-last, and beautifully designed furnishings.” | dwr.com

EQ3

“A Canadian design perspective. We’re proud of where we’re from because everything we do is guided by a uniquely Canadian approach to design. An approach that takes responsibility for not only the design of a product, but the process. An approach that focuses on making furniture that’s timeless, not trendy. An approach that is transparent and collaborative.” | eq3.com

Ferm Living

“From our home in Copenhagen, we work with artisans around the world, fusing our Scandinavian mindset with global skills and traditions. Our collections are defined by soft forms, rich textures, and curious details that let you create composed atmospheres with a touch of the unexpected. From materials and processes to production and delivery, we challenge ourselves to help shape a sustainable future, making it easier for you to make responsible choices.” | fermliving.com

Fine Little Day

“We are a Sweden based lifestyle design company that believes in the expression of play, passionate craftsmanship, hand drawn lines and ideas with a story to tell. We stand for environmentally friendly products with high artistic quality.” | finelittleday.com

Floyd

“Floyd was founded in 2013 [in Detroit] with a single product, The Floyd Leg, as a reaction to disposable furniture. In this spirit, our design principles are centered around solving problems and being more thoughtful about the home.” | floydhome.com

IKEA

“IKEA was founded by Ingvar Kamprad in 1953 and came to life as a mail order catalogue business in the forested town of Älmhult, Sweden. Today, it’s a global home furnishing brand that brings affordability, design and comfort to people all over the world. We may have come a long way since our humble beginnings, but our vision remains the same: to create a better everyday life for the many people.” | ikea.com

MENU Furniture

“In our pursuit to craft furniture, lighting and interior accessories shaped by purposeful details, high-quality materials and human needs, we create strong and lasting relations between designers, manufacturers and customers.” | menudesignshop.com

2019 | Visit to the Carl Hansen & Son flagship store in Copenhagen (Design Within Reach sources these chairs in the United States market)

2022 | Visit to Fine Little Day outside of Gothenburg, Sweden

2019 | My husband inside HAY House in Copenhagen

2019 | Me outside HAY House in Copenhagen

HAY

“From the very beginning, co-founders and Creative Directors Mette and Rolf Hay [based in Copenhagen] committed to working with their generation’s best designers from all over the world to create high-quality products that would be available to a wide audience. Our furniture, lighting, and accessories can be used in a diversity of environments and suit many needs.” | us.hay.com

Kristina Dam Studio

“We call our design approach ‘Sculptural Minimalism’. Designs by Kristina Dam Studio are graphic and architectural with a high level of detail and excellent craftsmanship. Furniture from Kristina Dam Studio is mostly made from natural materials. We believe that mastering the monochromatic palette enables us to create timeless and enduring designs. Distinct and beautiful—simplicity with an attitude.” | kristinadam.dk

Montana Furniture

“The family-owned Montana Furniture has provided generations with personalized storage solutions, since 1982. The Danish high-end furniture company was established by Peter J. Lassen, who also created the modular Montana System. Today, the company is run by Peter’s son Joakim Lassen, who is the fifth generation of his family to work with furniture and the great-grandson of manufacturer Fritz Hansen.” | montanafurniture.com

MUJI

“MUJI was founded in 1980 [in Japan]. Its origin was a thorough rationalization of the manufacturing process with an eye to creating simple, low-cost, good quality products. Specifically, we reexamined products through three lenses: material selection, inspection process and simplification of packaging. For instance, if you omit the bleaching process for pulp, the resulting paper is light beige in color. MUJI used this paper for its packaging and labels. The ensuing products are remarkably pure and fresh in notable contrast to the prevailing over-embellished products in the marketplace.” | muji.us

Muuto

“Muuto is rooted in the Scandinavian design tradition characterized by enduring aesthetics, functionality, craftsmanship and an honest expression. By expanding this heritage with forward-looking materials, techniques and bold creative thinking, our ambition is to deliver new perspectives on Scandinavian design.” | muuto.com

New Works

“New Works was founded by Nikolaj Meier and Knut Bendik Humlevik out of a desire to create a design house where design is created with care and intention, and where there is room for creative experiments—a place for new works. Together with a small, dedicated team, they have set out to curate a collection of special, but accessible, objects for daily life. It is from this point of view that they shape the continuously evolving history of New Works.” | newworks.dk

Nordic Knots

“We believe a great rug is the foundation to a beautiful room. Nordic Knots was founded on the Scandinavian tradition of functional design with a minimalist aesthetic. That’s why we use only high-quality materials that put timeless Scandinavian design in focus, as well as ethical production practices, to create great rugs that last. It sounds simple, but we know it’s not easy to find rugs that look right, feel right, and are made right.” | nordicknots.com

Rejuvenation

“Rejuvenation was founded in 1977 in Portland, Oregon as an architectural salvage, lighting, and hardware restoration shop. Today, we’re the premier provider of customizable lighting, cabinet hardware, furniture, and more—timeless designs for all areas of your home and for every home improvement project.” | rejuvenation.com

Yamazaki Home

“Yamazaki creates home goods, housewares and happy-making objects with small-space sensibility. We believe that even the smaller transformations throughout the home can help us stress less and live more joyfully. Headquartered in Japan, we are universally recognized for bringing intelligent, uniquely-considered design to everyday items.” | theyamazakihome.com

2019 | Visit to a Muuto showroom in Copenhagen

Skagerak

“We are an international design business, established in 1976 and based in Denmark. We have always focused on designing and producing high quality furniture that ages with grace and lasts for generations. We want to inspire our customers to live well and think long-term. We believe in sustainable and straightforward beauty and work with skilled international designers that help us achieve that goal.” | skagerak.dk

Kristen ZieglerMay 26, 2022