Lewis Hamilton is having quite the moment. Fresh from appearing alongside Kim Kardashian at the opening-night gala for Los Angeles’ new Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, the Formula 1 driver arrived wearing a Richard Mille that is about as understated as you’d expect from a watch costing around £600,000.
It was the Richard Mille RM 17-01 Tourbillon in rose gold, finished with the brand’s “snow setting” of diamonds. Rather than arranging the stones in a uniform grid, Richard Mille’s jewellers individually set diamonds of different sizes across the tonneau-shaped case, creating the irregular, glittering effect that gives the watch its snowy name. Each piece is consequently unique.
RICHARD MILLE And this is not simply a diamond-encrusted flex. Beneath all that sparkle sits the manually wound RM17-01 tourbillon calibre, with hours, minutes, a power-reserve indicator and a function indicator. The movement is built around a skeletonised grade 5 titanium baseplate and bridges, measures just 4.65mm thick and runs at 21,600 vibrations per hour. Its power reserve is around 70 hours.
Stefanie Keenan The tourbillon itself sits at six o’clock, while the power-reserve indicator appears at two o’clo...