The Goldsmiths’ Craft & Design Council Awards are nicknamed ‘The Jewellery Oscars’ for good reason. Each year, handpicked panels of industry judges – each a well-known specialist in their own field – are put together to scrutinise and test the design and craftsmanship of any jewel or piece of silverware entered. 

Few pass muster, the standards are so high. The best will win prizes on the night – and they do have to be the best, with judges regularly preferring to give no award out than reward what they consider a sub-par entry. 

Taking over from British jewellery designer Theo Fennell, The Jewellery Cut co-founder Rachael Taylor will be the host of this year’s Goldsmiths’ Craft & Design Council Awards. The Awards, which counts Cartier, The Goldsmiths’ Company, Graff and HRH The Princess Michael of Kent among its lead patrons and supporters, will take place at an invite-only event at Goldsmiths’ Hall in London later this month.

“I was incredibly honoured to be asked to host such an important evening for the British jewellery community,” says Taylor, who was also a judge at this year’s Awards. “I have had the pleasure of seeing behind the scenes of the judging process and I was blown away with the meticulous attention to detail and lively, informed debates among the judges. To win a Goldsmiths’ Craft & Design Council Award is an incredible achievement for any jeweller or silversmith, as it is not an easy feat. With keen eyes, years of experience behind them and loupes always at the ready, not even the tiniest imperfection goes unnoticed by the judges. This really is a battle of the titans of the jewellery world and our winners will embody the best of British craftsmanship and design.”   

To celebrate this special partnership, The Jewellery Cut and The Goldsmiths’ Craft & Design Council will co-host a breakfast event in the week of the awards, Discover: The Goldsmiths’ Craft & Design Awards. At the event, on the morning of February 26th, 2020 – for which there are just 20 spaces – guests will be taken on a journey of discovery. 

The event will be hosted by Taylor and The Goldsmiths’ Craft & Design Council trustees Kathryn Bishop and Anne-Marie Reeves. They will be joined by two of the winners from this year’s Goldsmiths’ Craft & Design Council Awards, who will reveal the stories behind their winning pieces and share the experience of creating bold and boundary-pushing designs. Guests will then be given special access to an exhibition of some of the winning designs from the Awards. 

“With over 500 entries each year, our Awards represent the crème de la crème of British design and craftsmanship talent, alongside many unsung heroes working behind the scenes at leading Bond Street jewellers,” says Bishop, who is the vice-chair of the Goldsmiths’ Craft & Design Council. “This is a rare chance to see our winners’ work in one place, in the stunning surrounds of Goldsmiths’ Hall.”

Discover: The Goldsmiths’ Craft & Design Awards will take place at 9.30am on February 26th, 2020 at Goldsmiths’ Hall in London. Tickets cost £15, and include coffee and breakfast pastries, a private tour of the Goldsmiths’ Craft & Design Awards exhibition at Goldsmiths’ Hall, and a copy of the 2020 Awards winners’ book. There are just 20 tickets available. Book yours here now. 

Winners from The Goldsmiths’ Craft & Design Council Awards 2019…