The Quelle Idole bag is by far the most whimsical design Hermes has created. Initially produced in 2000 as a child’s bag, the Quelle Idole or ‘Kelly Doll’ was originally retailed in the children’s department for around $2,500. At the time, this was not a price many were lining up to spend on a handbag for their toddler. The initial run, which was produced through 2004 included eight colorways: Orange H, Rouge H, Black, Noisette, Blue Sapphir, Vert Olive, Vert Cru, and Rouge Vif (no examples of Vert Cru or Vert Olive Kelly Dolls have ever sold at auction). Examples of these could be found readily at the time for not much more than the retail price. In 2005 the design was removed from regular production, begining the style’s rise as a highly sought-after collectible. From 2008 to 2010 the Kelly Doll was reintroduced with limited runs in new colorways to mark the openings of Hermes retail locations. In 2015 Hermes debuted a set of five exquisite Quelle Idole bags at the Leather Forever exhibition in Singapore. These unique pieces, which featured embroidery, beading, exotic skins and other unique elements, were later auctioned off for charity. The hype that followed these bags resonated with Hermes collectors for years, and in 2017 the first HSS Kelly Dolls began to emerge from Hermes’ workshops. VIP clients could now (maybe) be offered the opportunity to special order a unique Quelle Idole, in any color combination imaginable, and even in exotic skins! Since then myriad examples have come on to the secondary market in seemingly un-ending combinations. The exotic examples have almost all been Matte Alligator, with only one Ombre Lizard example sighted in a private collection. The production of these bags has been kept extremely limited, and it is unknown if ever we will see examples in shiny alligator, ostrich, lizard, or perhaps even suede.
These adorable bags have been a mainstay of the auction market for over a decade. Vintage examples produced prior to the current era of HSS Kelly Dolls have been trending upward steadily, with nearly 40 examples sold to date. So far in 2021 the average price for these bags has been almost $33,500, and year over year the average value at auction rises by about $2,500 annually. While the record for a leather Quelle Idole is held by an Orange H example produced for the opening of a Taipei Hermes boutique, which sold for a whopping and wildly unexpected $96,700 in a June 2015 Christie’s auction, the new HSS Swift Kelly Dolls have proven overall more valuable than their vintage sisters. The six examples sold at auction as of this writing have averaged nearly $51,500, with none bringing less than $38,700. The Matte Alligator HSS Kelly Dolls, which have been around for nearly five years now, only cross the block about once annually, and realize on average just under $95,000.
While the values of vintage Kelly Dolls seem likely to continue their steady upward climb, the initial results for HSS examples may adjust downward before beginning a more steady rise. Other examples of newly-released special editions have been met with high first auction prices, only to then trend down before joining the larger group of collectible bags. Since the Quelle Idole has been re-released in new variations, a better comparison might be with the mini-Kelly II, which has itself continually climbed in value since its release, and has seemingly brought along its vintage predecessor in it's ascent.
