STYLE Edit: Richard Mille shows innovation in women’s watches beyond aesthetics, from the glittering RM-07-01 Intergalactic collection with Carbon TPT casing to the complex RM 19-02 Tourbillon Fleur

Mar 28 , 2023

RM 74-02 in-house automatic tourbillon. Photos: Richard Mille

Richard Mille sets itself apart from other watch brands, as it designs women’s watches that are every bit as technologically advanced and mechanically complex as their male counterparts

The RM 74-01 is made with grey cermet, combining a metallic zirconium matrix with high-performance ceramic inserts, while the RM 74-02 features the highly resilient gold carbon TPT

Richard Mille’s esteem for women is writ large in the sophistication of the watches it creates for them. A beacon of innovation, the company has always marked itself out from the crowd of Swiss luxury watchmakers by designing women’s watches that exhibit every bit as much mechanical complexity and technological savoir faire as their men’s counterparts.

Take, for example, the RM 07-01 Intergalactic collection. Yes, the four models in the collection, known as Dark Night, Starry Night, Bright Night and Misty Night, are slathered with diamonds across their dials and cases, depicting the way in which stars rush away from the centre of the universe.

But they are also marvels of materials science. Their cases are made from hi-tech Carbon TPT, a material often deployed by Richard Mille for its beautiful, wavy patterns and incredible resilience. With a surface so hard, diamond-bit milling tools are used to create the settings for the stones.

Similarly, the RM 19-02 Tourbillon Fleur, a limited edition of just 30 pieces, first catches the eye for the stunning depiction of a magnolia flower that appears in the bottom left of its dial, surrounding a flying tourbillon.

Again, that flower is not just beautiful, but powered by groundbreaking technology, its five petals delicately unfurling themselves both automatically and on demand, with the tourbillon even moving upwards slightly at the same time, like a stamen straining to be pollinated. This mechanical marvel is made possible by a complex system of levers and pinions, all powered by a second winding barrel.

The RM 74-01 and RM 74-02 In-House Automatic Tourbillons, meanwhile, are powered by different versions of a head-turning skeletonised calibre, offset by cases in a pair of equally technologically advanced materials.