Pomellato

Pino Rabolini founded Pomellato in Milan in 1967, coming from a family of goldsmiths, and the house sits a little apart from the white-solitaire crowd on this list. The signature is the Nudo ring, which lifts the gem out of any surrounding bezel and shows it on its own, using a patented 57-facet cut, with the stones meant to be stacked and mixed. Iconica is the other well-known ring line.

The house describes a Milan atelier of more than 100 artisans, with stones cut and polished by hand and pieces shaped by lost-wax casting for the rounded forms it is known for. The Zurich boutique is at Weinplatz 10, just off the Bahnhofstrasse, and it is the address here for a coloured-gem ring or a stackable band rather than a plain white solitaire.