Hermes Kelly 25 Bougainvillea Red Pink With Gold Hardware
View Similar Items
Hermes Kelly 25 Bougainvillea Red Pink With Gold Hardware
About the Item
Kelly Bag
In 1837, Thierry Hermès (1801–78) founded his eponymous luxury goods company in Paris as a saddle manufacturer, serving the era’s carriage trade. In 1880, under the stewardship of Thierry's son Émile-Charles, fine riding gear was added to its offerings to complement the saddles. The company expanded their workshops to design handbags nearly half a century later. The Kelly bag, originally introduced as the Sac à dépêches (“the dispatch bag”) in 1935, was created by Robert Dumas, son-in-law to Thierry's grandson Émile-Maurice Hermès.
Designed for independent women who wanted a piece that was both luxurious and efficient, the Kelly bag has a trapezoid shape, two triangular gussets, a sculpted flap and handle. To this day, the understated bag comprises 36 individual leather pieces, 16 studs and a signature padlock and leather key cover, with three layers of leather at the base to ensure the bag can stand upright. Each Kelly bag takes between 18 and 25 hours to produce, and its 680 hand stitches owe solely to one Hermès artisan.
The Kelly bag earned its name during preproduction on Alfred Hitchcock’s 1955 film, To Catch a Thief. Costume designer Edith Head sourced products from Hermès to outfit actress Grace Kelly, who fell in love with the Sac à Dépêches and continued to carry it long after the movie wrapped. Months after marrying Prince Rainier III of Monaco in 1956, she was spotted carrying a brown pigskin Sac to shield her pregnancy from the paparazzi. And while the oft-repeated claim that Kelly and her bag appeared on a Life magazine cover isn’t true, photography of the actress and her cherished accessory began to appear everywhere at the time, and the bag’s profile suddenly skyrocketed.
In 1977 Hermès officially changed the item’s name to the Kelly bag. Less than a decade later, Hermès introduced another handbag to its line, also named after a style symbol, the Birkin bag. The Paris-based British actress Jane Birkin sat next to Hermès CEO Jean-Louis Dumas — Robert's son — on an Air France flight. He noticed her overflowing handbag, and she told him she longed for “a handbag that is bigger than the Kelly but smaller than Serge’s suitcase,” in reference to her then-romantic partner, the French musician Serge Gainsbourg. The Birkin bag was created in 1984, joining the Kelly in Hermès’ permanent collection.
Hermès
For Hermès, what began as a maker of leather equestrian goods for European noblemen would eventually grow into one of the most storied fashion labels in the world. In 1837, German-born French entrepreneur Thierry Hermès opened a saddle and harness purveyor in Paris. Gradually, the house extended into accessories and luggage for its riders, and today, in paying homage to its origins, the family-run luxury brand resurfaces horse motifs in everything from clothing and modernist jewelry to pillows and handbags.
The first top-handled bag ever produced by Hermès was the Haut à courroies, which made its debut in 1892. A tall bag secured with a folded leather flap (fastened with bridle-inspired straps), it was designed to transport riding boots and a harness.
As the world made the switch from horse to automobile, the bag adapted, becoming a multifunctional travel satchel instead of a designated saddlebag. Today, 120 years later, the HAC remains in Hermès’s line — and its distinctive flap and clasping straps have laid the groundwork for some of the house’s other iconic bags.
In the 1930s, Robert Dumas (son-in-law to Émile-Maurice Hermès, Thierry’s grandson) designed a smaller, trapezoidal take on the flap bag with a handle and two side straps. Later, actress Grace Kelly, then engaged to Prince Rainier of Monaco, is said to have used one of these bags to conceal her pregnancy during the 1950s. Because she was photographed constantly, the coverage catapulted her handbag to international popularity.
In 1977, Hermès officially renamed the model for her, and the Kelly bag was born. Each Kelly bag takes between 18 and 25 hours to produce, and its 680 hand stitches owe solely to one Hermès artisan.
Robert Dumas was also responsible for another one of the brand’s most iconic offerings: the launch of its first silk scarf on the occasion of Hermès’s 100th anniversary in 1937. Based on a woodblock designed by Dumas and printed on Chinese silk, the accessory was an immediate hit.
Today, vintage Hermès scarves, typically adorned in rich colors and elaborate patterns, serve many functions, just as they did back then. Well-heeled women wear it on their heads, around their necks and, in a genius piece of cross-promotion, tied to the straps of their Hermès bags. Kelly even once used one as a sling for her broken arm.
In 1981, Robert Dumas’s son Jean-Louis Dumas, then Hermès chairman, found himself sitting next to French actress and musician Jane Birkin on a plane, where she was complaining about finding a suitable carryall for the necessary accoutrements of motherhood. After the two travelers were properly introduced, Birkin helped design Jean-Louis’s most famous contribution to the Hermès canon: the Birkin bag, a roomy, square catchall with the HAC’s trademark leather flap top and the addition of a lock and key.
Owing to the brand’s legendary commitment to deft, handcrafted construction, the Birkin is an investment that is coveted by collectors everywhere.
While the Kelly and Birkin may be standouts, gracing the arms of everyone from royal heiresses to hip-hop stars in the past few decades, the handbags are but a small part of Hermès’s fashion offerings.
Since the 1920s, the brand has produced some of the most desirable leather goods in the world. There’s the Constance bag, a favorite of Jacqueline Kennedy, the recently relaunched 1970s-era Evelyne and, on the vintage market, a slew of designs dating back to the 1920s.
Good design never goes out of style. Find a variety of vintage Hermès handbags, day dresses, shoes and more on 1stDibs.
- Hermes Birkin 25 Poppy Orange Togo Leather Gold HardwareBy HermèsLocated in Miami, FLStunning Rare Hermes Birkin 25 Poppy Orange Togo Leather Gold Hardware. Pristine Condition with Plastic on Hardware, perfect corners and structure. 2016 X Stamp. Shop With Confiden...Category
2010s French Top Handle Bags
- Hermes Birkin 35 Rose Jaipur Pink Red Gold Interior Candy Gold HardwareBy HermèsLocated in Miami, FLAbsolutely Stunning Rare Hermes Birkin 35 Candy Verso Rose Jaipur and Gold Interior Epsom Leather Gold Hardware. Plastic on hardware. Excellent Pre Owned Condition. Please keep in ...Category
2010s French Top Handle Bags
- Hermes Birkin 30 Blue Electric Epsom Leather Gold HardwareBy HermèsLocated in Miami, FLRare AS NEW 2018 Hermes Birkin 30 Blue Electric Epsom Leather Gold Hardware . C Stamp 2018. From a collectors closet. The bag has been handled and displayed but never worn outside. ...Category
2010s French Top Handle Bags
- Hermes Birkin 25 Gris Neve Gray Togo Leather Handbag Gold Hardware NEW 2023By HermèsLocated in Miami, FLAbsolutely Stunning and One The Most Coveted and Difficult to get Hermes Combos! New 2023 Hermes Birkin 25 Gris Neve Togo Leather complimented by...Category
2010s French Top Handle Bags
- Hermes Birkin 25 Mushroom White Gray Togo Leather Palladium Hardware 2023By HermèsLocated in Miami, FLAbsolutely Stunning and One The Most Coveted and Difficult to get Hermes Combos! New 2023 Hermes Birkin 25 Mushroom Togo Leather complimented by Pal...Category
2010s French Top Handle Bags
- Hermes Birkin 30 Framboise Pink Red Palladium Hardware New 2021By HermèsLocated in Miami, FLRare Stunning As New Hermes Birkin 30 Framboise Palladium Hardware. 2021 Z Stamp. As New! Shop with Confidence from Lux Addicts. Authenticity Guaranteed!Category
2010s French Top Handle Bags
- Hermes Birkin 25 Capucine Orange Red Gold Hardware Z Stamp, 2021By HermèsLocated in New York, NYHermes Birkin 25 Capucine Orange Red Gold Hardware Z Stamp, 2021 Just purchased from Hermes store; bag bears new 2021 interior Z Stamp. Bran...Category
21st Century and Contemporary French Top Handle Bags
- Hermes Birkin 25 Rouge Exotic Lizard Bag Palladium HardwareBy HermèsLocated in Miami, FLMightychic offers an Hermes Birkin 25 bag Rouge Exotic in rare coveted Lizard. A gorgeous strawberry red that is neutral and perfect for year roun...Category
21st Century and Contemporary French Top Handle Bags
- Hermes Birkin 30 Bag Rouge Casaque Epsom Palladium HardwareBy HermèsLocated in Miami, FLMightychic offers an Hermes Birkin 30 bag featured in lipstick red Rouge Casaque. This beautiful red has a fabulous depth of color. Fresh with Pal...Category
21st Century and Contemporary French Top Handle Bags
- Hermes Birkin 30 Rose Jaipur Bag Epsom Leather Gold HardwareBy HermèsLocated in Miami, FLMightychic offers an Hermes Birkin 30 bag in soft pretty pink Rose Jaipur. This rare to find beautiful coral pink colour is a blend of orange, pink and red and evokes the sunset. Epsom leather reveals the world of Hermes...Category
21st Century and Contemporary French Top Handle Bags
- Hermes Birkin Sellier 25 Bag Framboise Veau Madame Palladium Hardware Limited EdBy HermèsLocated in Miami, FLMightychic offers an Hermes Birkin Sellier 25 bag featured in vibrant Framboise. Hermes Framboise is a rich, saturated raspberry pink which is gorgeous for year round wear. This limited edition bag is now retired and is sure to become a collectors treasure. Fresh with Palladium hardware. Stunning Veau Madame...Category
21st Century and Contemporary French Top Handle Bags
- Hermes Birkin 30 Capucine Bag Gold Hardware Togo LeatherBy HermèsLocated in Miami, FLMightychic offers an Hermes Birkin 30 bag featured in spicy Capucine. Togo leather with rich gold hardware accentuates the beautiful colour of this Birkin bag. This beauty will take ...Category
21st Century and Contemporary French Top Handle Bags
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
This Iconic Hermès Bag Is Made from an Unexpected Material: Wood
From a house that specializes in covetable objects, this version of the Kelly is the rarest of finds.
A Short History of the World’s Most Iconic Designs
Of the million-plus items on 1stdibs, some seem to have transcended time, looking as fresh today as when they were first produced. The pieces highlighted on our new Iconic Designs page stand out for longevity, functionality and quality of design and manufacture — just the tonic for the present unsettled moment.