To celebrate the refurbishment of its place Vendôme workshops, Van Cleef & Arpels launched a web-based 360° virtual tour of its workshops, a great way to get an idea of the various techniques involved in producing high jewelry.

You’ll get to meet the house’s ‘golden hands’ (‘Mains d’Or’), the nickname given to the artisans who breathe life into the jewelry.

All the different workshops are shown, detailing the entire process that goes into the jewels’ creation, from the first stages of design to the polishing and setting phases.

The refurbishment also led Van Cleef & Arpels to hire French filmmaker Loïc Prigent to direct nine shorts about the artisans who work for the jewelry house.

Titled “Les Mains d’Or Van Cleef & Arpels – Les Maîtres Joailliers de nos ateliers,” the series of short films (about three minutes each) also shed light on the trade.

Head to the Van Cleef & Arpels website to launch the virtual tour and watch the series of short films.