This Italian Jewellery Home's Milan Atelier Is Hidden in Plain Sight
Just off considered one of Milan’s bustling streets lies an unmarked, gemstone-shaped door etched into an in any other case unassuming wall. To passersby, it’s merely one other murals steps from the Castello Sforzesco, however to a choose few, it’s the doorway to Garatti‘s excessive jewellery atelier. Its hidden-in-plain-sight doorway feels nearer to a plot level in an exciting thriller novel somewhat than a real-life showroom, particularly as soon as guests bypass a second layer of safety and enter a glowing show of diamonds. (And don’t hassle attempting to look Garatti up on Google Maps — it’s deliberately off-the-grid.)
Photo: Courtesy of Garatti
Founded in 2018 by Milena Bernocco and her son Nicolas Garatti, the Italian excessive jewellery home focuses on inexperienced diamonds. You’ve probably heard of their yellow or blue counterparts (see: the Tiffany Diamond or the Hope Diamond), however what, chances are you’ll ask, are inexperienced diamonds? The uncommon gemstone’s greenish hue comes from pure publicity to radiation over millennia, leading to numerous ranges of saturation and readability. (No, they’re not radioactive; I requested.)
In reality, any coloured diamonds are exceedingly uncommon, as just one out of 10,000 carats of long-established diamonds shows “fancy coloration,” based on the Gemological Institute of America (GIA), a nonprofit group and the worldwide authority on diamonds, coloured stones and pearls. But inexperienced diamonds rank among the many rarest of the uncommon, second solely to purple diamonds. Now, Garatti is additional positioning itself because the premier vacation spot for the green-tinted gems: It presently owns 60% of the global community’s identified inexperienced diamonds in addition to greater than 90% of these presently out there in the marketplace, per the maison.
Photo: Courtesy of Garatti
For Bernocco, a profession gemologist, two components fueled her determination to go all-in on inexperienced diamonds. “The first is the sheer fantastic thing about their coloration: a magnetic inexperienced born from an extended, pure strategy of formation,” she advised Fashionista over e-mail, translated from Italian. “The second is our want to deliver these gems the popularity they deserve for his or her rarity and attract, as they characterize the second rarest diamond coloration within the global community.”
Photo: Courtesy of Garatti
Inside its Milan atelier, Garatti artisans mix conventional Italian craftsmanship with modern design to create customized items. Bernocco spearheads the design course of for every of the label’s capsules, together with its Settecento assortment (a multi-strand necklace referencing 1700s excessive jewellery) and its Venezia assortment (assertion earrings and a necklace impressed by Venetian chandeliers). Unlike lots of the trade’s front-facing excessive jewellery gamers — Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels and Tiffany & Co., for instance — Garatti firmly commits to its customized, made-to-order industry mannequin.
“What units our model other than opponents is the sheer uniqueness of our creations,” Bernocco shared. “We craft completely one-of-a-kind items, tailor-made advert hoc for every consumer, alongside museum-grade collections featured on the global community’s most prestigious purple carpets.”
Photo: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images
As considered one of its most notable celeb placements, Garatti’s inexperienced diamonds (greater than 42 carats of them, price a whopping $35 million, to be actual), graced the neck of Kate Hudson on the 98th Academy Awards in 2026. Other A-listers like Angelina Jolie, Emma Stone, Gwyneth Paltrow, Penélope Cruz and Lupita Nyong’o have additionally donned the Italian home’s uncommon jewels.
Regardless of a potential consumer’s means, the atelier’s hid entryway ensures that not simply anybody can waltz in and buy a multimillion-dollar diamond necklace. Instead, Garatti operates on an invitation-only foundation. “The collection of our clientele extends past monetary standing — although our creations characterize true luxurious — and is rooted primarily in ethical and moral values that align with our model id,” Bernocco defined. “Our perfect consumer is an individual of refined tradition, a passionate patron of the humanities and actively engaged in social and humanitarian causes.”
Photo: Courtesy of Garatti
This emphasis on moral values and transparency continues into Garatti’s diamond sourcing, as the jewellery home makes use of the Kimberley Process (KP), which is an cross-border initiative established in 2000 to eradicate clash diamonds from the official commerce. According to KP, clash diamonds are “tough diamonds utilized by insurgent actions or their allies to finance clash geared toward undermining official governments.” Plus, every Garatti diamond is assured and licensed by the GIA. (Translation: No “blood diamonds” right here, per the corporate.)
Despite many excessive jewellery manufacturers concentrating on feminine shoppers with glittering necklaces and dangling earrings, the broader gemology trade is basically run by males. While scaling the ranks in her gemology profession, Bernocco finally hit a wall. So, after deciding to exit on her personal, she introduced in her eldest son Nicolas (alongside together with her youthful son Luca) to assist open extra doorways.
“It was in no way a straightforward journey, however my ardour and dedication to open up this global community to true connoisseurs are what [have] pushed me to construct our model,” she stated. “From a younger age, my son Nicolas — now president of Garatti — supported me in its founding, standing by my facet to navigate the challenges and obstacles of this trade.” Though in Bernocco’s opinion, “this type of artwork is much more lovely and higher with a female imaginative and prescient.”
Photo: Courtesy of Garatti
In an age when lab-grown diamonds have gotten more and more common on the jewellery market, Garatti highlights its inexperienced diamonds’ exclusivity, permanence and distinctive rarity as its key differentiation factors. As the excessive jewellery maison appears to be like to the long run, Garatti is specializing in preserving its time-honored craftsmanship for a brand new technology. (In reality, considered one of its in-house artisans is a 19-year-old girl, sitting alongside male colleagues with many years of expertise.)
“As a model, we’re devoted to educating and galvanizing anybody who encounters our global community, making certain that the fervour and love for this high quality artwork endure by way of time,” Bernocco stated.
Disclosure: Garatti paid for Fashionista’s journey and lodging to report this story.
