Bold claim: British high jewellery equals, or even rivals, the best from Paris—and this is how it happens. While Parisian maisons are often cited as the traditional epicenter of high jewellery, England’s top ateliers are thriving, producing extraordinary one-off pieces from locally based workshops. The secret sauce? Family-run businesses that keep production close to home, blending heritage with modern precision. Brands like Pragnell, Graff, and David Morris exemplify this well.
According to Charlie Pragnell, managing director of his family-owned firm, the Pragnell craft lineage spans more than 170 years. The business traces its origins to the early 19th century and has continually handcrafting jewellery across generations in independently owned British workshops. Pragnell employs a seasoned team of more than a dozen artisans who mentor younger apprentices, passing down skills through formal training programs. Traditional techniques—casting gold, gemstone setting, and polishing—sit alongside contemporary tools such as computer-aided design (CAD) and laser engraving.
Pragnell Masterpiece necklaces showcase the brand’s commitment to the highest-quality stones and design flair. In addition to vintage pieces dating from the Georgian era to the 1980s and the broader Pragnell fine jewellery line—which includes charms, engagement rings, and chains—the Masterpiece collection offers singular, one-off jewels comparable to a French maison’s high jewellery. All are conceived and crafted in the UK within Pragnell’s workshops. One recent highlight is an exceptionally large Fancy coloured diamond bracelet, surpassing 40 carats, with pricing available on request.
From initial stone sourcing to final polish, the process can take years. Pragnell notes that sourcing the diamonds alone spanned five years, followed by a year dedicated to planning the bracelet’s stone orientation and sequence so that each gemstone complements the next and achieves a balanced overall design. Achieving symmetry in an inherently asymmetric piece was a priority. Each diamond setting was engineered with multiple joints to ensure the bracelet remains fluid and moves gracefully on the wrist.
A fancy coloured diamond bracelet in platinum and 18k rose gold from Pragnell Masterpiece illustrates the level of refinement on offer.
Regarding manufacturing locations, disclosure is not common in the fine jewellery industry, and many pieces aren’t produced in Paris–despite the perception of Paris as the iconic origin. Pragnell has chosen transparency, revealing that 80 percent of its jewellery is made in its British workshops, with two workshop spaces visible in its Stratford-upon-Avon and Leicester stores.
“Everything could technically be outsourced,” Pragnell explains, “but staying closely connected with the team and being physically present with the pieces is essential to the creative process. We are among a few British jewellers openly disclosing the country of manufacture for every piece we create.”
For example, much of Pragnell’s gold chain is manufactured in Italy, a country renowned for chain-making excellence. The notable exception is the Handmade English Chain, crafted by a single skilled artisan who has spent decades refining its forged and hand-finished construction. Prices for this piece start at £12,025 for a bracelet.
Graff, too, emphasizes lineage and collaboration. Its workshop in Albemarle Street, Mayfair, serves as the global HQ since 2003, housing more than 50 craftspeople—many with four decades of experience. Each year, several hundred high jewellery pieces emerge from the studio, including a standout necklace featuring a 55-carat oval blue sapphire at its center, with price on application. Sam Sherry, the workshop’s general manager, describes the creation process as the result of a remarkable collaboration among designers, artisans, diamond mounters and setters, CAD technicians, goldsmiths, and polishers. The shop blends old and new techniques, using sculptural methods to seat the sapphire comfortably and 3D scans to plan stone placement for bespoke settings.
David Morris, led by Jeremy Morris since 2006, operates just a few streets away on Old Bond Street in Mayfair. The CEO and creative director maintains close contact with a team of about a dozen craftsmen, frequently moving between his office and the workshop above the flagship boutique and headquarters. The brand has recently integrated work-experience programs to bring in fresh talent versed in both traditional methods and modern advancements.
A striking blue-and-pink diamond ring illustrates the synthesis of past and present. Its six-month creation combined CAD for the frame with handcrafted central collets to achieve precise height and spacing, accommodating natural variations in the stones. Across these British houses, success hinges on the fusion of diverse skills—CAD-driven design paired with hands-on metalwork, stone setting, and polishing. As Morris notes, the collaborative energy of the team is what unlocks the very best jewellery in the world.
