Carved entirely by hand
Chisel & gouge
Relief Carving
Our karigars carve jali lattice, mandalas and relief motifs the way their grandfathers did — chisel, gouge and patience. Every cut catches light a little differently, so no two pieces are alike.
Our Story · Est. Saharanpur, India
Born in the Workshops
of Saharanpur.
Four hundred years of woodcraft, carried in a single pair of hands.
The beginning
It started with a workshop the size of a courtyard, a chisel worn smooth by three generations, and a belief that a home should be filled with things made by hand.
Designer Library was founded in Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh — a city that has shaped wood for over four hundred years. Long before we had a name, our family worked alongside the karigars whose lathes and gouges have made this region India's capital of woodcraft.
We began with a simple frustration: the most beautiful handmade pieces never travelled beyond the local bazaars, while homes across India filled up with mass-produced furniture that felt like no one. So we set out to carry the workshop to the world — honestly, and without flattening the soul of the craft.
Today every vase, bowl, and board we sell is still carved, sanded, and finished by the same artisan families, in the same lanes where the craft was born. When you bring home a Designer Library piece, you bring home a little of Saharanpur.
15+
Years crafting
400
Year-old craft city
12
Artisan families
2,000+
Homes furnished
The journey
From a courtyard to your home
2009
The first workshop
We open a single courtyard workshop in Saharanpur, working shoulder-to-shoulder with three artisan families.
2015
Word travels
Our first hundred homes are furnished — entirely through word of mouth across Uttar Pradesh.
2020
Online launch
We bring the workshop to the whole of India, shipping handcrafted pieces directly from the makers.
2024
Twelve families
Our artisan community grows to twelve families, with fair wages and shared ownership of every collection.
2026
A new chapter
A reimagined Designer Library — the same hands, a wider table, and a promise to keep the craft alive.
2009
The first workshop
We open a single courtyard workshop in Saharanpur, working shoulder-to-shoulder with three artisan families.
2015
Word travels
Our first hundred homes are furnished — entirely through word of mouth across Uttar Pradesh.
2020
Online launch
We bring the workshop to the whole of India, shipping handcrafted pieces directly from the makers.
2024
Twelve families
Our artisan community grows to twelve families, with fair wages and shared ownership of every collection.
2026
A new chapter
A reimagined Designer Library — the same hands, a wider table, and a promise to keep the craft alive.
The hands behind the work
Three signature crafts
Designer Library is twelve families, not a factory. Three techniques — carving, turning and inlay — go into everything that leaves the workshop.
Shaped in a single pass
Read by the grain
Lathe & Turning
Every vase and pillar is turned from a single block of seasoned mango wood. A master turner can read the grain by touch and coax a clean, perfect curve in one steady pass at the lathe.
Hundreds of chips per box
Set piece by piece
Bone & Brass Inlay
Our heirloom boxes and trays are clad in inlay set entirely by hand — each chip of bone or sliver of brass cut, placed and polished one at a time until the pattern reads as a single surface.
What we stand for
Made the right way.
Sustainable
We work with responsibly sourced and reclaimed mango, sheesham, and teak — much of it from trees at the end of their fruit-bearing life. Low-waste workshops and plastic-free packaging are the standard, not the exception.
Handcrafted
No moulds, no mass production. Every piece is carved, turned, and finished by hand, which is why each one carries its own grain, weight, and character. Slow craft is the point — not a limitation.
Fair Trade
Our artisans are paid fairly and on time, work in safe conditions, and share in the success of every collection. When the craft thrives, so do the families who keep it alive.
Bring it home
A little of Saharanpur,
for your home.
Every piece is made to order by the artisans you just met. Explore the collection and find the one that's meant for your space.
