Kinkerlitzchen

A sea-worn stone, a shell, a pressed flower - all these souvenirs from our summer holidays are usually still lying around on our shelves when winter comes.

Kinkerlitzchen is a derogatory German term for all the small and useless trinkets that clutter up the house. The word first appeared as Ginkerlitzgen in the 18th century and probably came from the French word quincaille, which refers to the small objects required for sewing and craftwork. The diminutive forms -litz and -chen indicate that the word Kinkerlitzchen refers to small things.

And if someone complains about all the clutter, just tell them it's the small things in life that matter.