In the heart of bustling fashion capital Milan, time stands still in Italian jeweller Buccellati's workshop where father and son work side by side carving, engraving and polishing gems.
There are no state-of-the-art machines around, just the workers using traditional handcrafting techniques, some dating from the Renaissance period.
An artisan cuts out gold leaf shapes using a simple handsaw, while another pierces patterns into fine gold sheets by hand. One slip of the saw, and the work must be started again.
"At a time when men are going to the moon, you can still make jewelry with techniques that date back from the Renaissance," 79-year-old designer and company head Gianmaria Buccellati said. "A jewel is not just metal and stone, it is also about all the work that has been put in it."
Many Italian jewellers bet on innovative technologies to beat fierce competition from India, China and Turkey. But Buccellati, which traces its roots back to 1758 when an ancestor set up his atelier, prides itself on traditional techniques to make jewels with gold lace, embellished with detail.
Brooches of fruit or flowers boast precious stones while a cascade of diamonds adorns other pieces. With such detail, a signature Tulle ring can take four to six months to make, while a bracelet or a necklace up to two or three years.
Buccellati jewelry and silverware are considered a must-have in Milanese high society and have been snapped up by models, royal families and the Vatican.
The company tied in second place for most prestigious jewelry brand after Harry Winston in a recent survey by the Luxury Institute in the United States.
"There is culture, research behind each jewel. ... People who in a certain way have everything want to get somewhere not everybody is ... in terms of state of mind," said Maria Christina Buccellati, in charge of public relations. "We don't follow the trends or the markets. This is our production, this is our style."
A sector analyst, who did not want to be named, said at a recent Milan jewelry fair the family-controlled company, which has its own internal school, should refresh its designs and offer something more modern to wow young and sophisticated consumers.
Still leaders in design, Italian jewellers have lost ground to India, China and Turkey, which have lower labour costs and have worked to improve quality.
The sector, which has 5.4 per cent of the global market, has also seen sales fall on recession fears and soaring gold prices. In 2007, Italy saw volumes of jewelry sold abroad fall 2.5 per cent, but sales value rose because of the gold price.
Sector analysts say manufacturers of mass-market jewelry get hit hardest as their clients are price-conscious.
But high-end jewellers at the recent upmarket fair in Milan said making unique, expensive jewelry that customers would not be able to resist was a key to robust sales in turbulent times.
A Buccellati Eternelle ring costs 9,000-15,000 euros ($13,830-$23,040), but silverware is cheaper. The firm's most expensive item -- a gold and diamond necklace at its London store -- costs 1.6 million pounds ($3.22 million).
The company, which makes about 4,000 to 6,000 jewelry items a year, of which 90 per cent are unique, saw sales rise last year, Maria Christina said, declining to give specific figures. Sales in the United States rose 20 per cent.
"We don't base the value of the jewels on the raw material. For us, it's the workmanship," she said, adding Buccellati did not raise prices last year.
"There is not much gold in the pieces, it's more the value of the workmanship, the culture, the research. ... Of course, if we have some stones that cost more, it will increase a little bit but not substantially."
