First off, I have never described it as 'clutter'. Knickknacks is what I tend to call it or décor. Clutter, to me, is when not even a single solitary surface is empty. Every surface has something on it. Or worse a pile of old mail crammed onto the end of a surface. Gone is any sense of balance or any pretense of decoration, just a need to show off stuff. "Look at me, I have several pieces of expensive Limoges in my collection." My grandmother's house was full of it. A knickknack here and there providing a beautiful ambiance is fine. But to never even really see that great sheen on the fine wooden tables? Not so much. There is something to be said about sparsity.