More people are embracing the reality of unmade beds, scattered clothing, and sentimental trinkets on tabletops. Rather than defining this look as ‘messy’, they’ve renamed it cluttercore: an anti-minimalist aesthetic that’s flooding TikTok. ‘Cluttercore’ was coined by a TikToker named @mDugy, also known as Micah, and the hashtag has more than 900K views on the app.

“I really have always been a fan of Victorian and Edwardian decorating styles, as well as Art Deco and mid-century modern styles, and that’s really where most of the inspiration for my personal brand of cluttercore comes from,” Micah told i-D. “Something about rooms that have pictures and paintings on the walls, books stacked, knick-knacks on the surfaces. It just gives a space a sense of security and cosiness.”

Marie Kondo’s influence on home styling and design arguably made people reach peak minimalism. Now, they’re rebelling. While the average American adult spends $91.14 monthly to keep things in storage and ‘declutter’ their homes, younger generations are embracing their jumbled, honest reality - one that brands have an opportunity to tap into.

Young people are embracing their jumbled, honest reality - one that brands can tap intothecomelycloset (2020)

“Cluttercore can serve as a rejection of modernism and even mainstream interior design, and by extension minimalism,” says Micah. Fellow Cluttercore advocate Amanda also sees the movement as a form of self-expression: “To me, it’s about maximising your space and creating an organised mess where you can let your creativity flow. Having weird knick-knacks and other items I’ve collected is one of my main motivations to even create and make art on a daily basis”.

Ope Oduwole is a junior behavioural analyst at Canvas8. He has a BA from the University of Nottingham and leans on the inquisitive nature of his studies. With an avid interest in all things creative, if he’s not at a concert or poetry reading, he’s buried inside a book with a cup of green tea.