Most of what we make costs less than ₹1,000, and that is not an accident. Hand-painted plates, wool-felt animals, glass tumblers, cushion covers and imitation jewellery are all small, all made in short runs, and all priced for the long Diwali list: the neighbours, the colleagues, the cousins, the people who sent you something last year.
The trick with a gift at this price is that it must not look like it. A mass-made object at ₹500 looks like ₹500. A hand-painted one looks like someone chose it, because the line wanders and the glaze pools and no two are the same. That is the whole argument for this list. Every price below is the price today, and everything is in the Gifts Under ₹1,000 collection.
Under ₹500
The volume tier. Ten of these for the building, the office, the extended family.
- Hand-painted trinket dishes, ₹399. Scattered hearts in red or yellow, the red heart, the monsoon cloud, or the blue dolphin. They end up by the door for keys, by the sink for rings, on the puja shelf for kumkum. Almost impossible to get wrong.
- Leaf ceramic incense holder, ₹399. In yellow. Small, useful every single day of Diwali and every day after.
- Mini bud vases, ₹399. The Sunspot dotted vases in tapered, round and oval, and the Dil Se red heart vase. Three stems of genda and they are done.
- Hand-painted mugs, ₹499. The blue hearts, the Nimbu Grove lemon, the ribbed mugs in cobalt and tortoiseshell. A mug is the gift people use most and think about least, which is exactly what you want.
- Wool-felt animals, ₹499. The embroidered elephants in rust, red and black and coral, the giraffe, the sheep, the bird plant stakes in coral, turquoise and multicolour. Soft, unbreakable, and the right gift for any house with a child in it.
- Felt owl and butterfly hangings, ₹499. Turquoise, pale pink, purple, or the butterfly in blue and magenta. Hang from a hook, no drilling.
- Cotton cushion covers, ₹399 to 499. Gingham in ochre and rose pink, bold stripe in black and white, bold floral crimson, deckchair stripe coral and the pale blue dragonfly at ₹399; candy stripe pink, dune check sand, dotted charcoal and Neel Bagh indigo at ₹499. Covers store flat, so you are not imposing a bulky object on a small flat.
₹500 to 800
The gift for someone you actually know. One thing, chosen for them.
- Leher stripe hand-painted plates, ₹599. Indigo, mint green, scarlet red, marigold yellow, coral, sky blue. A single plate in someone's colour is a better gift than a set in nobody's colour. The trellis indigo rim plate in cream is the quiet one.
- Oval snacks plates, ₹599. Blue meadow, marigold, sage green, palm print. These carry the mithai on the day and the chivda for the rest of the year.
- Sunflower ring-handle mug, ₹599. The mug for the person who has a specific mug.
- Stackable glass mugs, ₹599 to 699. Cobalt blue and forest green at ₹599, the straight-sided ones in smoke grey and apple green at ₹699, and the curved hand-blown mugs in the same two colours. For the chai drinker who has moved on from ceramic.
- Ribbed glass highballs, ₹699. Three heights of the same clear ribbed glass. Two of these are a small bar. Four are a gift for a host.
- Ceramic jugs, ₹699 to 799. The dual-tone ribbed jug in sea green and stone at ₹699, the Nimbu Grove lemon jug at ₹799. Nobody buys a jug for themselves and everybody uses one daily once they have it.
- Nesting triangle serving dish, ₹699. Confetti dot. The one piece on this list that will be on the table at every party.
- Crosshatch square serving dish, ₹599. The plainer, squarer cousin, for the person who prefers a quieter table.
- Polka dot donut vases, ₹699. Red, or red and ochre. A vase with a hole through the middle, which is exactly as pleasing as it sounds.
- Felt bell hangings, ₹699. Owls in pink, magenta and yellow with small bells, butterflies in pink and purple, the rainbow cloud for a nursery. They chime when a door opens.
- Felt dog and zebra, ₹699. The floppy-eared dog and the striped zebra, slightly larger than the ₹499 animals.
- Imitation jewellery, ₹599 to 799. Beaded statement earrings at ₹599 in flamingo pink, watermelon, rainbow, clover, scallop red and flower in cream, teal or pink and green, all made by hand from glass beads. Anti-tarnish studs at ₹599 to 699: the petal, the mini flower, the ribbon bow. Anti-tarnish hoops at ₹799: the oval drop and the puffed heart. Anti-tarnish pendant necklaces at ₹799: the enamel fin in blue, red and teal, the evil eye flower, the evil eye station in blue, and the layered double chain. The double-band cuff bracelet at ₹699, the twisted rope cuff bracelet at ₹799 and the adjustable oval wrap ring at ₹599. All of it is gold-toned plating over a brass base, and we say so on every page.
₹800 to 999
The top of the tier, where a single piece starts to feel like the main gift.
- Floral pattern dinner plates, ₹899. Sage green, marigold, rose. The larger, more detailed plate.
- Gulabi heart cup and saucer, ₹899. Pink, hearts, a saucer. For a mother, an aunt, anyone whose tea is an event.
- Sage rose floral cup and mug, ₹799 to 899. The mug at ₹799 and the cup at ₹899, hand-painted in the same print.
- Tall Second Cup mugs, ₹899. Brown, olive, blush pink. Taller, plainer, for the person who drinks their coffee slowly.
- Sun Orb glass incense stick stands, ₹899. Pink or yellow. They catch the lamplight at dusk and do the job of a diya without the flame. The most Diwali object in the studio.
- Bell jar reed diffuser bottles, ₹899. Smoke grey or green. The same idea for scent.
- Leher striped vases, ₹899. Cobalt, coral, marigold yellow. A proper vase for a proper bunch of marigolds.
- Gulbahar floral donut vase, ₹899. The hand-painted version of the ₹699 donut vase.
- Oval cut-out bottle vase, ₹899. Red and pink blooms.
- Ceramic coaster pairs, ₹799. Blue meadow or sage green. A pair, so it is a gift and not a set someone feels obliged to complete.
- Two-tone coupe cocktail glass, ₹899. Ash and amber. One is a gift for someone who makes one good drink well.
- Black-stem wine glass, green, ₹899. The same idea for someone who drinks one good glass slowly.
- Embossed lacework bowl, ₹899. Cream. The bowl for the dry fruit that arrives from everyone else.
- Genda marigold cup and plate set, ₹999. Hand-painted marigolds on both pieces, and the last rupee under the line.
- Blue floral storage jar, ₹999. Cream and brown, for the kitchen that has run out of barnis.
Two things that add up to one gift
A gift under ₹1,000 does not have to be one object. Some of the best ones are two small things that belong together.
- A mug and a coaster pair. ₹499 plus ₹799. Morning, sorted.
- A trinket dish and an incense holder. ₹399 plus ₹399. A puja shelf in two pieces.
- Two highballs. ₹699 each. Enough for a nightcap for two, and it says host.
- A bud vase and the marigolds. ₹399 plus a trip to the flower seller. Hand it over with the flowers already in it. An object already doing its job is a better gift than one waiting to be found a place.
- A felt elephant and a felt bird stake. ₹499 plus ₹499. A child's shelf and a planter, both done.
Who each tier suits
| Tier | Give it to | Reach for |
|---|---|---|
| Under ₹500 | Neighbours, the building, the extended family, colleagues | Trinket dishes, mugs, felt animals, cushion covers |
| ₹500 to 800 | Friends, cousins, the people who hosted you last year | A plate in their colour, a jug, highballs, beaded earrings |
| ₹800 to 999 | Parents, in-laws, the one person on the list you want to get right | Cup and saucer, an incense stand, a striped vase, a coaster pair |
Why it does not look like the price
Three reasons, and they are the same three that make handmade worth buying in the first place.
The line wanders. A stripe painted by hand is not perfectly straight, and the eye reads that as attention rather than error. A printed stripe is straight and reads as nothing.
The glaze pools. Where a hand-glazed piece is thicker the colour is deeper, and the piece has a landscape to it. It is the reason a ₹599 plate looks like it belongs on a table with much more expensive things.
Nobody else has that one. Two people receiving the same design receive genuinely different pieces. Ten mugs for an office are ten mugs, not one mug ten times. The fuller argument, including when a factory-made object is actually the better buy, is in handcrafted versus mass-made.
What to say when you hand it over
A line about care doubles the value of the gift, because it tells the person the object is worth looking after. For the ceramics: hand wash, and do not take it from the fridge to a hot oven. For the felt: brush, do not wash. For the imitation jewellery: keep it dry, put it on after perfume, and store it in its pouch. The full guidance for ceramics is in how to care for handmade ceramics.
If you are still deciding, the full Diwali gift guide sorts the whole studio by person rather than by price, and the guide to gifts under ₹2,500 covers the next tier up.
Common questions
What is the best Diwali gift under ₹500?
A hand-painted mug at ₹499 or a wool-felt animal at ₹499. Both are used daily, both are unbreakable in practice, and both look chosen rather than bought.
What is a good Diwali gift for colleagues under ₹1,000?
Trinket dishes, mugs or coasters. They pack flat or small, they are useful at a desk, and because each is hand-painted no two colleagues receive the same object.
Is ₹1,000 enough for a Diwali gift for parents?
Yes, if it is the right thing. A cup and saucer at ₹899, an incense stand at ₹899 or a striped vase at ₹899 all land as a proper gift, particularly with a line about how to care for it.
Do prices change before Diwali?
No. The prices on this page are the prices in the shop. What changes is availability, because each piece is made in a small run.
Is shipping free on a ₹399 order?
Yes. Shipping is free on every order with no minimum.
Is the imitation jewellery real gold?
No. It is imitation jewellery, gold-toned plating over a brass base. The anti-tarnish range is plated to hold its colour longer. We say this on every product page.
Are hand-painted ceramics safe for food?
Yes. They are glazed and fired for use at the table. Hand wash them and keep them away from sudden changes in temperature.
Can I mix two cheaper pieces into one gift?
That is often the best gift on this list. A mug and a coaster pair, a trinket dish and an incense holder, two highballs. Objects that belong together read as more thought, not less.
