“If our first response to the receipt of gifts is gratitude, then our second is reciprocity: to give a gift in return.” This is what Robin Wall Kimmerer writes in her latest book, The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World. A berry, Kimmerer finds, is one such earthly gift. So is For You, an enchanting creation by Catellani & Smith.

This single lamp with a flexible blue “cord” stem is inspired by a delicate tulip-like flower.

For You rests on a small brass base and comes equipped with a built-in push-dimmer. Engraving appears to be an option (see below). The LED board emits a warm, daffodil-colored light.

The stem is covered in blue fabric and can be adjusted to a maximum height of 34 centimeters, meaning the flower can “grow” just as it would in a real garden. The shade is made of rice paper. For You is crafted completely by hand.

“Gratitude and reciprocity are the currency of a gift economy,” Kimmerer writes, “and they have the remarkable property of multiplying with every exchange, their energy concentrating as they pass from hand to hand, a truly renewable resource.”

To me, this sweet lamp looks like an illustration, as if it were plucked out of the pages of a children’s book. It’s a thoughtful and unexpected gift one character bestows upon another. You know how it goes. The character who receives For You will probably pay it forward. As they say, one gift begets another.  

Explore more flower power with Ella Plastic Bottle Chandelier.