Ashlar is a London house for the cigar ritual.
We commission and curate objects of rare material and uncommon making – from sculptural obsidian pieces to refined tools shaped by specialist ateliers.
Every piece is chosen by the same standard: it must be made properly, finished precisely, and worthy of the ritual it serves.
There is an older idea of luxury: not the object made costly to announce itself, but the object made correctly because its owner knows the difference.
The Standard
Every Ashlar piece begins with one question: is this the finest of its kind in the world? If the answer is no, it does not carry our name – however well it sells elsewhere.
The Restraint
We do not mistake ornament for quality. A piece finished in gold and one left perfectly plain are judged by the same rules: proportion, material, finish, and the way it serves its use.
The Selection
Most objects do not pass. Nothing here is sourced anonymously or made by the thousand; every piece has a maker, a place, and a lineage you could check. We would rather offer one object we believe in than a catalogue we merely sell.
“I founded Ashlar House because many of the objects I wanted did not exist – or could only be found through years of looking, waiting and knowing whom to ask.
Today, I work directly with specialist ateliers to discover, develop and commission pieces of exceptional material, proportion and finish. Every object is personally considered, and I remain involved from the first enquiry to final delivery.”
Hayk Yeghikyan Founder, Ashlar House
Read the feature →"Exceptional craftsmanship, striking materiality, and a sense of permanence that feels increasingly rare in today's world."
The house works in three material families – Araratian volcanic obsidian, Japanese surgical-grade blade steel, and French leather. Each was chosen for what it is, not for what it signals.
Obsidian remains the founding and flagship material of the house. The addition of blade steel and leather is not a diversification from that – it is the same standard, applied to materials that meet the same threshold.
Volcanic obsidian from Arteni Mountain, in the Armenian highlands – the founding material of the house. A natural glass, formed in the instant molten lava meets cold air and is denied the time to crystallise. No two pieces emerge identical. No synthetic equivalent exists.
Jet Black
Dense, absolute, deeply saturated. The most elemental variety.
Brown Burl
Warm mineral patterning in amber and chestnut. Each piece naturally unique.
Silver Sheen
Soft silver-grey movement across the surface. Near-metallic in direct light.
Translucent
Dark at rest, remarkably clear when held to light. A rare variety.
Semi-Translucent
Dark in mass, luminous at the edges and through finer sections.
Japanese surgical-grade blade steel – the material behind our cutters and scissors. Chosen by the same logic as the stone: not for what it implies, but for a quality with no reasonable substitute.
French leather, used in our cigar cases and bags – tanned and finished to the standard the house requires. A material with its own provenance, and its own right to stand beside the rest.
Ashlar is not built around mass production, but around selected ateliers: workshops chosen for their command of material, proportion and finish.
Armenian Obsidian
The obsidian pieces in our collections are designed and crafted exclusively by Vanakat – a specialist obsidian atelier based in Armenia. Ashlar House holds the exclusive right to commission and present Vanakat’s work in the United Kingdom.
Japanese Blades
We work with Japan's finest blade manufacturers, drawing on a tradition that reaches back to the age of the samurai, when master workshops forged swords for the world's most accomplished swordsmen. Today, we commission our cutters and scissors from these same traditions of craftsmanship. The lineage is centuries deep; the edge is without equal.
European Leather
We source only the finest full-grain Spanish leather and entrust each piece to a highly specialised European atelier whose craftsmanship is sought by some of the continent's most respected names. The result is evident in every detail, from the precision of the construction to the quality of the finish.
Every piece is guaranteed by Ashlar House.
Each object may pass through specialist hands, but it leaves under our name. Before delivery, it is inspected by hand, approved by us, and supported by a person at the other end of your enquiry.
See what we have found – or tell us what you are looking for.