From the studio:
The hardest people to shop for are often the ones who have the strongest sense of what they like. This is no less true of people who spend their lives making beautiful homes. Be they interior designers, new homeowners settling in, or hosts with an eye for design, these fabulous people probably already have the glassware, the cutting board, the candle set.
What’s worked, over years of giving sculptural objects to the designers and homeowners in our own lives, is bringing them something they wouldn’t source for themselves. A material they haven’t seen before. An object with a story they can tell when a guest asks about it.
This is our short guide to DAR pieces for housewarmings, host gifts, interior designer thank-yous, and luxury gifts for the person who has everything.
The luxury gift for someone who has everything: XL Gemstone Cube Puzzle ($325)
For the designer, the client, or the host who already has the house, the art, the books, and the candles. An interactive sculpture that transforms into a 7-piece gemstone puzzle, inspired by the classic Cube, hand-carved from a combination of seven Peruvian stones. Serving up dynamic interaction as a centerpiece that their guests won’t be able to resist, no two pieces are alike as each holds a distinct combination of minerals in each stone.
For an interior designer, a new homeowner with discerning taste, or the recipient who seems impossible to shop for, the Cube offers something they almost certainly do not have and will not source for themselves.
RECOMMENDED
XL Gemstone Cube Puzzle
Angelite, Serpentine, Soapstone, Orange Jasper
The elegant housewarming gift: Oval Jewel Box in Serpentine ($139)
Our most-gifted housewarming piece. A hand-carved wooden jewel box crowned with a solid green serpentine stone cube handle, the kind of considered object that earns its place on a nightstand, on the countertop, on the credenza over time.
For a new homeowner, it’s a delightful gift that feels personal and adds a touch of warm sophistication to a space, the contemporary geometric shapes contrasting with the natural materials. We love to gift this to the host who has everything, as its a nice alternative to a candle or a plant - this one will last for decades.
RECOMMENDED
Oval Jewel Box - Serpentine
Serpentine, Wood
The sculptural variant: Cool Cone Jewel Box in Angelite ($149)
A hand-carved wooden jewel box with a solid blue angelite cone handle. The geometric cone silhouette sits well on a styled console or vanity.
For designers wrapping a residential project and looking for a close-out gift, the Cool Cone reads as considered styling without being over-the-top. The playful joy of opening the box and plucking out a mint will never cease to satisfy.
RECOMMENDED
Cool Cone Jewel box - Angelite
Angelite, Wood
The dinner-party gift: Puzzle Coasters ($199)
For the host who entertains, our Puzzle Coasters solve a daily styling problem (what to put under the glass) with an object that has geometric interest of its own. A set of four hand-carved Andean stone coasters are constantly in play, sparking conversation or drawing guests off their phone when seated at the table. Bonus: It also functions as a hot trivet with pieced together.
Hosts tell us the coasters become the piece guests pick up and ask about first, if they aren’t busy solving it for a good time. Available in Creamy Soapstone and Black Onyx.
RECOMMENDED
Handcrafted Soapstone Puzzle Coasters | Stone Trivet Set
Soapstone
The statement for a formal table: Wavy Candelabra ($169 to $189)
Hand-carved from a solid block of Andean stone, the Wavy Candelabra can be flipped to vary the configuration, holding either two or three taper candles depending on how the day is going. Available in Creamy Soapstone, Orange Jasper, and Serpentine Green.
For a host or new homeowner, the Candelabra is the piece that anchors a dinner party or a dining room. The natural material naturally suits any space, quickly becoming a modern heirloom object and gets used nearly every week.
RECOMMENDED
Wavy Gemstone Candelabra - Creamy Soapstone
Soapstone
The small host gift: Organic Catchall ($59)
A sculptural stone dish hand-carved in soapstone, angelite, or red jasper. Irregular in form, luminous in surface, it works as a key tray by the door, a jewelry rest on a nightstand, or an object to catch-all on a console.
Our most-gifted smaller piece because it reads as more considered than its price point. New homeowners tend to find a place for it immediately.
RECOMMENDED
Blue Angelite Gemstone Catchall | Handcrafted Jewelry Dish | DAR Proyectos
Angelite
The under-$50 Host Gift: Decorative Gemstone Laundry Clip ($39)
For a smaller little token, our Laundry Clip is a hand-carved sculptural object in the familiar silhouette of a clothespin, this time unusually carved from solid Andean stone. Available in Serpentine Green, Dumortierite Blue, Rhodonite Pink, Celeste Blue, and Orange Jasper.
A small, playful, kitschy gift that still carries the material weight of a serious object. Hosts and new homeowners alike react to it with surprise and delight. Available also in super-sized for an executive gift, which suspends a piece of art beautifully..
RECOMMENDED
Decorative gemstone Laundry Clip - Dumortierite Blue
Dumortierite Blue
Summary table
| Gift | Price | Best for |
| XL Gemstone Cube Puzzle | $325 | Luxury gift for someone who has everything |
| Puzzle Coasters | $199 | Host gift, dinner party, desk accessory |
| Wavy Candelabra | $169-$199 | Formal table, dining room anchor |
| Cool Cone Jewel Box | $149 |
Project close-out, designer thank-you |
| Oval Jewel Box | $139 | Elegant housewarming, new homeowner |
| Organic Catchall | $59 | Small host gift, under-$75 go-to |
| Decorative Laundry Clip | $59 | Playful host gift, under $50 |
Why these gifts work for designers, homeowners, and hosts
Interior designers spend their working lives selecting objects for other people’s homes. New homeowners have just finished selecting objects for their own. Hosts have already assembled the kit of beautiful things their guests expect.
Most gifts these recipients receive are things they could have sourced themselves. The DAR pieces in this guide share one quality that reliably works: they bring something the recipient hasn’t seen before. The material (Andean gemstone) is unfamiliar even to many designers. The natural variation (no two pieces identical) means no catalog image fully captures what arrives. The workshop story (hand-carved in Peru, master craftsmen we have worked with for over a decade) is a lovely one to be a small part of, which the recipient can carry forward when a client, or a guest asks about the object.