The 'Cluttercore' home decor trend makes sense of a mess and frees you of guilt

"Cluttercore" refers to an aesthetic based around a mess and a large quantity of stuff. Photo: AFP

Tidying up, clearing out or organising? If you're sick of that, you're not the only one.

After having done the spring cleaning during the first wave of lockdowns and folded your socks in the way of Japanese organisational queen Marie Kondo during the second round of stay-at-home orders, well perhaps now you're over this sanitised existence, which some see as going hand-in-hand with restrictions on freedom.

So, online, a resistance movement to these philosophies is being organised, and its proponents are using the hashtag "cluttercore".

The term refers to an aesthetic based around a mess and a large quantity of stuff. Behind this organised mess – these knick-knacks, piles of books and cuddly toys that reassure us in these uncertain times – is also a revolt against years of aspiring to an often out-of-reach perfect ensemble.

Our wardrobes, our homes, our minds... what if our lives could follow a different, less 'structured' order?

Vincent Grégoire, consumer trends and insights director of forecasting agency Nelly Rodi, analysed the phenomenon, telling French magazine Biba for its March 2021 issue that "at the moment, as people do not know what tomorrow will bring, they need emotions and memories to give themselves reassurance.

"We are witnessing the house being given the soft, 'cocoon' treatment to become a place where we can let go, where there is no judgment from others. Cluttercore is the submerged part of the iceberg. Cluttercore is about a different order of things, a willingness to take ownership."

Tips for doing cluttercore in your space

1. Surround yourself with small objects that bring you comfort. Little trinkets brought back from distant trips, cuddly toys that make you smile, candles, small plants and of course, books.

2. Take the opportunity to bring out your treasures from storage or the attic. Anything and everything is welcomed, even grandma's trinkets.

3. To put a bit of order into this disorganised decor approach, focus on a single colour, or a single 'ambience.' Otherwise, the cacophony could drown out and overwhelm the comforting effect. – AFP Relaxnews

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