Cluttercore is a maximal approach to decorating where more is more. It’s not about making a mess or filling a room with piles of stuff but about displaying and arranging your most prized collections. As the BBC put it, “Cluttercore is not about filling rooms with tat; it’s about loving what you already own.” It’s about artfully arranging a museum wall worth of family photos, instead of one tasteful Tiffany framed print. It’s about displaying all your Depression glass or vintage milk glass instead of saving it in the china cupboard for special occasions, just because you love it.

i-D magazine explains Cluttercore as a design aesthetic where “you can tell that the objects have been chosen and displayed with love, their owner keeping them for reasons that may not matter to you, but matter utterly to them.”

This tailored, bespoke approach carefully curates your items in a thoughtful and meaningful way that is very personal to you. Rather than collecting items from the big box store, its shopping your own personal items that express your individuality. Items are carefully curated mementos of a person’s life that provide comfort, rather than popular items that everyone has and that aren’t nostalgic.

People have started to embrace Cluttercore and social media is filled with mentions. The #cluttercore hashtag has racked up more than 73 million views on TikTok at the time of writing, and more than 29,000 posts on Instagram. Why has clutter taken off after years of minimalism and Maria Kondo preaching the gospel of tidying up? According to Jennifer Howard, author of Clutter: An Untidy History, the rise of Cluttercore may have been connected to the pandemic. “We want to feel safe, we want to feel comfortable, we want to feel protected and taken care of – stuff can act like a literal cocoon,” she said.

How Do You Decorate With Cluttercore?

If the word clutter sends you running for the trash and donation bins, you’re not alone. But in this context, clutter isn’t a negative word. It’s just more. This is the kind of clutter that shouldn’t stress you out. Showing off those prized collectibles that took years of thrift store hunting should be a point of pride. And you can keep collecting with joy. The knickknack collection you’ve been building since you were a teen deserves time to shine. The blue and white china that was handed down to you through the family doesn’t deserve to only be brought out on special occasions. Stack and stand those pieces on shelves for display and use, and let the colors help set the tone for your room. Remember that walls aren’t just for pictures, though a collage gallery wall can be a delight. You can hang baskets, plates, instruments, and kitchen items ranging from pans to rolling pins. Cluttercore can be more and still be organized.

Whatever the reason for the rise of curated clutter, it’s a fun excuse to try something new and bring those collectibles out of storage. Embrace this approach to décor and call us to help you through it!