Scandinavian Christmas decor

White walls, pale wood, straw and candlelight. Below, the same Scandinavian Christmas style on four sample rooms, each with its walls, windows and layout kept. Drag the slider to compare.

Try it with your own room

Two free previews a day. The pictures are AI images of sample rooms, not real homes.

Dated living room before the restyle: beige walls and carpet, two brown sofas, a dark wood TV stand and a ceiling fan, with a curtained window between two doors — Before and after: Scandinavian Christmas, living room. AI restyle of a sample room.

Scandinavian Christmas living room (AI restyle): white walls and white sofas, a slim spruce with straw stars beside the window, red and white paper hearts, a light wood TV stand and white candles on a wooden tray — Before and after: Scandinavian Christmas, living room. AI restyle of a sample room.

One style, four rooms

Living room: white sofas and a light wood TV stand, a slim spruce beside the window, paper hearts and white candles on a wooden tray.
Bedroom: white and oatmeal linen on a light oak bed, and a slim spruce with straw stars and woven paper hearts.
Kitchen: the cabinets and appliances stay; a small tree, evergreen sprigs, pine cones in a wooden bowl and white hyacinths do the work.
Dining room: a light oak table and chairs, white candles on a wooden tray and evergreen sprigs, with the tree in a free corner.

Plain bedroom before the restyle: white walls, beige carpet, a black metal bed with a gray comforter, two dark wood dressers and a window above a radiator — Before and after: Scandinavian Christmas, bedroom. AI restyle of a sample room.

Scandinavian Christmas bedroom (AI restyle): a slim spruce by the window, red paper hearts on the walls, white bedding with a knit throw, a light wood dresser and white flowers — Before and after: Scandinavian Christmas, bedroom. AI restyle of a sample room.

Outdated kitchen before the restyle: honey oak cabinets, white laminate counters, white appliances, a vinyl tile floor and a long fluorescent ceiling light — Before and after: Scandinavian Christmas, kitchen. AI restyle of a sample room.

Scandinavian Christmas kitchen (AI restyle): light wood cabinets, white walls, string lights, a small tree in the window and a skylight — Before and after: Scandinavian Christmas, kitchen. AI restyle of a sample room.

Dated dining room before the restyle: beige walls and carpet, a dark wood table with six spindle chairs, a brass chandelier, two china cabinets and windows with white blinds — Before and after: Scandinavian Christmas, dining room. AI restyle of a sample room.

Scandinavian Christmas dining room (AI restyle): white chairs around a round table, a branch chandelier, string lights, a tree in the corner and a wood cabinet — Before and after: Scandinavian Christmas, dining room. AI restyle of a sample room.

What makes Christmas decor Scandinavian

The tree: a typical Swedish tree carries baubles, strings of lights and tinsel, and quite often straw figures and small Swedish flags (Visit Sweden).
The straw goat: the Christmas goat is one of the oldest Christmas symbols in Sweden, today mostly a straw decoration, and it often stands near the tree (Visit Sweden, Nordiska museet).
Candles in steps: on the first Sunday of Advent, about four weeks before Christmas, Swedes light the first of four candles in the Advent candlestick, then one more each Sunday until all four are alight (sweden.se).
Window lights: during November, star-shaped paper lights with cut-outs and electric Advent candles appear in Swedish windows (Visit Sweden).
Woven paper hearts: Museum Odense holds the oldest known woven Christmas heart, cut from yellow and green paper for the Ørsted family's tree around 1850 and listed among Hans Christian Andersen's paper cuts.
Hyacinths: describing how Swedes decorate for Christmas, sweden.se says hyacinths fill the home with their powerful scent.

Get the look in the room you have

Keep to white, oatmeal and pale wood, and let red appear only in small things like a heart or a ribbon.
Use warm white lights only; colored bulbs break the look.
Group white pillar candles on a wooden tray, never on the tree, and at least 1 foot from anything that can burn (NFPA).
Greenery costs little: spruce or pine sprigs in a jug, pine cones in a wooden bowl and a pot of white hyacinths.

One practical tip: After Christmas, take down the tree, the hearts and the straw and leave the candles, sheepskin and white textiles out. They work as winter decor until spring.

Sources: Visit Sweden: Christmas in Sweden, Visit Sweden: How to celebrate Christmas in Sweden, sweden.se: Christmas in Sweden, Nordiska museet: Christmas, Museum Odense: woven Christmas heart, HCA/A-1116-Q, NFPA candle safety tips.

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