Unveiling the new RM 07-01 Ladies in Carbon TPT, Richard Mille’s latest women’s watch encapsulates elegance and a sporty style resulting from 13 months of fruitful development. The watchmaking world’s analogy for excess disposable income takes Carbon TPT, a material we’ve become familiar with as a case-making material and extends it to eh bracelet for the first time, eschewing the typical rubber strap which usually dresses Richard Mille timepieces and imbues this newest women’s model with a more sophisticated aesthetic. 

With the new Richard Mille RM 07-01 ladies’ watch, Cécile Guenat, daughter of Richard Mille cofounder Dominique Guenat, is making her mark felt in the brand’s female watch division since SIHH 2019’s appetising (literally) serving of “Candy” themed Richard Mille women’s watches.

New Richard Mille RM 07-01 Ladies’ In Carbon TPT with its first TPT bracelet

Since its introduction in 2014, carbon TPT (Thin Ply Technology) has been a feather-in-cap for a brand famed for advanced materials. TPT is a method of making ultra-thin unidirectional strand sheets of carbon fibers which allows for more accurate and controllable application. Here in the new Richard Mille RM 07-01 Ladies in Carbon TPT, a remarkably masculine material adopts a  more refined look thanks to mellower proportions and gentler curves.

Richard Mille first signed a long-term collaboration with North Thin Ply Technology to produce materials on their behalf in 2013 and the 20 year old watchmaking firm, one of the youngest and arguably the most avant garde, was the first to incorporate ultra-strong NTPT carbon, often used in the sails of racing yachts, in their collection. NTPT develops and provides its lightweight thin ply materials exclusively to Richard Mille.

Here, the maison approached bracelet creation with the same detailed eye used in movement and case making. Each link of the Richard Mille RM 07-01 Ladies in Carbon TPT bears an architecture of plates of carbon composite framed by grade 5 titanium and then sandwiched together with the brand’s (really expensive – rumoured to cost as much as small diamonds) iconic screws. The 29-gram bracelet is formed with dozens of these links, utilising 44 screws in total.

The signature striations similar in appearance to wood textures is the result of the carbon fibre layers, aligned at 45 degree angles of the previous layer, set in resin and then heat sealed – giving the material its recognisable pattern and hardiness.

With the latest RM 07-01 Ladies in Carbon TPT,  Richard Mille produces yet another high performing luxury timepiece thanks to Thin Ply carbon and quartz materials. The new Richard Mille ladies’ watch dressed entirely in Carbon TPT and titanium from the bezel to the folding clasp, combines the architectural complexity of a 200-part metal bracelet with the elegance of the technical material – though the calibre CRMA2 is not the brand’s most complex movement, it is still highly innovative thanks to adjustable rotor geometry. 

Variable inertia of the carbon TPT Richard Mille RM 07-01 ladies’ watch’s oscillating weight can be set according to the owner’s activity level. The setting is modified by adjusting the two weights which can be moved into the correct position and fixed in place by spline screws. Inertia of the movement is increased when the two weights are closer to each other and the barrel then rewinds more quickly. If the weights are positioned to the extremities of the rotor, the inertia is decreased, resulting in the barrel winding more slowly.

That said, on the basis of case and bracelet construction alone, this ladies’ model earns every dollar of its price-tag with its highly complex case and bracelet construction. Richard Mille previously offered the ladies RM 07-01 watch in other bracelet materials including gold.

The Richard Mille RM 07-01 Ladies in Carbon TPT will be available from April.

Latest RM 07-01 Ladies in Carbon TPT Price & Specs

Movement Automatic manufacture calibre CRMA2 with a 50 hour power reserve
Case 31.40mm Carbon TPT case with 50 metres water resistance
Strap Carbon bracelet
Price US$201,000