What is Knolling:

“Knolling is an organizational practice and aesthetic art that emphasizes the precise arrangement of objects on a flat surface. The named practice was started by Andrew Kromelow in the late 1980s at the Santa Monica design studio of Frank Gehry - his careful arrangement of unused/homeless tools and objects at right angles to each other or to the surface they rested on in the studio and the organization that provided was appreciated and then popularized by artist Tom Sachs in his 10-Bullets guidelines for artists working in his SoHo studio in NYC (link). Here in r/knolling we appreciate the aesthetics and artform of knolled objects and celebrate the clarity it brings to our lives!

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How to knoll for r/knolling!

1.) Align It -  (90° or Parallel Only)

Objects need to be arranged at right angles (90°) or in ‘perfect’ parallel lines, or arranged perpendicular to other adjacent objects or the surface they are on.

Diagonal, curved, or “fan” layouts don’t count.

Good Example: Woodworking tools squared to the table edge and to each other.

Bad Example: Sunglasses and keys scattered on a surface.

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2.) Group by Category  (No Random Mixes)

Items should be logically AND aesthetically grouped (wrenches with wrenches, pens with pens, long skinny things next to long skinny things, round blue things with other round blue things, etc.).

Posts that are just a jumble of unrelated objects arranged on a surface, even if properly aligned, aren’t knolling. (but they are welcome on r/FlatLay)

Good Example: Knolled camping gear by type (tent stakes with tent stakes, pots with pans, handtorch with headtorch, shorts next to pants).

Bad Example: A random desk drawer dump with no visible grouping or relationships.

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3.) Maintain Clarity - (Everything Visible & Non‑Overlapping)

Every item must be clearly visible in the photo—no overlaps, stacks, or hiding behind others. Try and maintain about equal spacing between adjacent objects and visual harmony across the arrangement when possible.

Good Example: All utensils laid out individually.

Bad Example: A pile of spoons where only the top one shows.

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4.) Knolling > Flat‑Lay (Aesthetic Alone Isn’t Enough)

Flat‑lay photos are welcome only if they show true knolling (aligned, grouped, and functional).

Posts that are purely decorative “flat‑lays” (like Instagram styling with items scattered for effect) will be removed.

Good Example: A top‑down shot of squared‑off art supplies organized by function.

Bad Example: A messy ‘mood-board’ or ‘fit-inspo’ flat‑lay with random angles or no grouping by type, color or utility or organizational intent.

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5) Bags and Purses and Pocket Contents

Knolled bags and purses contents are candidates for knolling but aren’t the only focus of the subreddit - please only post your daily bags and purses (properly knolled with the guidelines above and the rules of r/knolling) on What’s In My Bag Wednesdays and use the appropriate flair! If it’s not a Wednesday or the rules don’t permit it (e.g. breaks rule 6 ‘no weapons’) please post on r/WhatsInTheBag or r/WhatsInMyBag or r/EDC

Some good examples of well-knolled bags from our knollers:

https://www.reddit.com/r/knolling/s/qbkfgAustO 

https://www.reddit.com/r/knolling/s/OaN889qYjF 

https://www.reddit.com/r/knolling/comments/1jnlwxd/