A Doll-Sized QVC Show: IN Conversation with Anna Martin
Interview: Leslie Hurtado (@leslie_hurtado_)
Photography: Anna Martin (@dollsaucevintage)
Anna Martin tells IN about the whimsical allure of Dollsauce Vintage, a John Waters-inspired kitsch paradise brimming with 80s treasures. Think upcycled play food accessories and Baby-Sitters Club sweaters adorned with pink ruffles. Seamlessly adapting to the digital age, Anna’s Instagram Live broadcasts have gained traction since the pandemic. With each playful live session, she infuses nostalgic charm into the vintage shopping experience, crafting a journey down memory lane for her ever-growing followers: the dolls.
During the pandemic, fashionistas flocked to online platforms like Depop to discover curated, sustainable pieces as physical vintage shops and thrift stores were closed. That’s when I stumbled upon Dollsauce Vintage, a niche shop bathed in 80s hot pink nostalgia, created by Anna Martin, a Cuban and Korean American vintage seller in Chicago, who happened to live just 15 minutes away from me.
Each product shoot was a cheery nod to TV shows and films of the time, dripping with playful Floridian decadence, where she hails from. I fell in love with a photoshoot of her in a knitted tank top adorned with a patchwork illustration of beach girls and the slogan coined by 80s dream queen Cyndi Lauper: “Girls Just Want to Have Fun.” The styling, complete with jumbo rollers, evoked the campy, photogenic flair of Nadia Lee Cohen — an unmistakable muse for both Anna and myself.
After following her work for a long time, I finally met her. In 2021, we met again at Avondale Coffee Club, with its retro 50s sign and funky midcentury furniture. Since then, I've watched her grow from a Depop seller to a full-time vintage seller with a cult-like social media following.
Our next meet-up at the same coffee shop explores her shop’s inspirations and adaptation to the evolving digital fashion scene. I talk with her about her unique use of Instagram Live broadcasts and how the pandemic has ignited the live shopping trend, making vintage fashion more accessible than ever.
As always, Anna arrives in her most eccentric outfit for our meeting: a turquoise 80s top embellished with an allover gold feet print from Chicago vintage shop Shangri-La Vintage, paired with black visor shades, silver mules and her signature necklace featuring "Dollsauce" in gold cursive letters. “A look going down in Dollsauce history, ” as Anna says.
Leslie Hurtado: The more I've gotten to know you, I realize that there's so much heart in your pieces. Everything looks like a collection. And I've seen you grow tremendously. So, tell me more about starting off as a Depop seller and now branching off and really honing in on selling online.
Anna Martin: I love to thrift, and I love to shop. I had so much stuff, so it was perfect. I didn't have to go anywhere. I could just sell what's in my closet. I liked the idea of keeping fashion circular, so I really loved Depop for that reason, and I was consistent with them for so many years. I've received so many opportunities. But, like with anything, you want to explore, try new things, and branch out. That's when I started utilizing Instagram more, not only for marketing my Depop shop, but then it turned into a website from there.
So, I finally created my own website in 2020. Seeing my friends in the vintage community going live that year really inspired me to take that step because it's different from someone ordering something online. There's no interaction, no connection. And the live sales are definitely much deeper than just customer to seller. It's a community now. We all know each other by name. You can just go in there to hang out, show support and feel like you're a part of something.
LH: What are some of your dolls' experiences shopping during your live sales?
AM: Some mothers really appreciate the fact that I stay up late because their child can sleep and they can shop. They don't have to worry about driving or getting transportation to go to wherever it is that they're trying to achieve these fashion goals. They can just tap right into my Instagram or, even if I'm not live, people can DM me, and I can send them pictures. It is like a personal shopping experience. Like, say, “Anna, I'm looking for this size.” I will message you and bombard your DM with so many things for you to choose from. So I just feel like it's really convenient. It's a different way to shop because all these pieces you can't find anywhere.
LH: What makes a curated shop more special for a live compared to shops that have a mix of era and trendy pieces?
AM: I want to curate and attract a like-minded doll. So, I always try to choose items that not only I like and that are funky and colorful, but also I try to think about what somebody else might like who has different styles from me. But I always try to keep it in that same nostalgic 80s-90s era. I don't want to be known as a shop that just sells a little bit of everything or just random stuff. So, it's definitely important to keep the shop curated so that the buyer knows what they're getting into, what they're going to find.
LH: Before a live sale, what is a standout piece for you? Or what are some pieces that you find worthy of being in that sale for that week or for the shop?
AM: Seasons don't even matter. I'm selling knitted sweaters in the summer as long as I can. It has to be colorful and funky. I really love prints with jewel tones. If it's a standout piece, it's making a debut on the live. A lot of times these pieces are only seen once and they're gone. Once they're gone, it's very exclusive to that moment.
LH: What are some pieces dolls can spot in your live setup?
AM: So, Mrs. Potato Head has finally moved in. She's not going anywhere. She is a staple of the vanity. My Robert Caruso hair curlers are still in the box, but the box itself is just a dream, so I keep it on my vanity. Without that box, I feel like it would change up the whole scene. Also, I don't remember the artist, but it's this ceramic head of a woman. It's very Art Deco, very Patrick Nagel-inspired. I need to get a Nagel piece for my space. I love Nagel, but yeah, she's definitely a staple.
LH: Collaboration is key to your live shop’s success. Tell me about working with other collaborators during a live.
AM: I think it's important to collaborate with other sellers so that you can help each other grow because their followers might not know about you and vice versa. I feel like a lot of these shops deserve to be known, and it helps expand the vintage community. Collaborating brings something fresh to the table because two minds are always better than one, right?
I definitely see nothing but positivity and pros in collaborating on a live. It helps with gaining more recognition. I've had many friends who have agreed to collaborate with me or invited me to collaborate with them, and I'm honored that they're sharing their audience with me. Now, some of my customers are loyal customers to them.
LH: Where do your shop inspirations come from?
AM: So, I am drawn to the old 80s and 90s Miami lifestyle. I just love bright colors, tropical prints and old movies. A lot of the stuff I pull for my shop is inspired by the Florida lifestyle, especially that vintage coastal Florida vibe. When you're out there, you get a different feel for fashion. There are people out there with their own unique style, but many are inspired by things like the beaches, the culture and the Sunshine State in general.
But I do have a lot of inspirations outside of Florida and Chicago. When I first started the shop, Nadia Lee Cohen really inspired my photography and just the way I kind of want to present this vintage to the world. I try to make it a little offbeat but fashionable. Something about her vibe, something so uncanny about Nadia Lee's work, that I tried to infuse it into my own work.
Allan and Suzi are definitely another inspiration. They're this couple who started off in the 80s and then really took off in the 90s. They had their own public broadcasting show called At Home with Allan and Suzi, and it's pretty much just like a way cooler, edgier, kitschy version of a QVC channel. But it's this couple, Allan and Suzi, and they're just kind of commentating throughout the whole show, and they have their models out. I just love the vibes.
LH: What is your process like in finding a piece that's worth upcycling?
AM: I see potential in a lot of things. Things could have stains. I could see a stained-up little plush and just know right away I can wash it and bring it back to life. It all depends. Sometimes I have no direction. I kind of just go based on what I find in that moment, and then from there, all of these ideas just come unraveling. There is no specific process that I go through. Just sourcing it, digging endlessly for cool stuff. Say it's a shirt that maybe has a little rip in it. Easy — give it a crop, put some ruffle trim on it. Transform it into something else.
I also love to turn plush stuffed animals into purses. Let's say I have a two-piece business suit set, but the skirt is just a little too long. I like to modernize it, hike up the skirt, make it into a mini skirt, you know, give it a modern touch, and make something that would be eye-catching to my dolls. The shorter, the better.
LH: What is your favorite reworked item in your shop?
AM: It’s an old TV bag purse with the crank dial and everything, and that idea came to life just by buying a plain gray purse with a see-through front. And the first thing I saw that I thought of was a TV. Another one of my favorites would have to be this purple knitted sweatshirt that I had where I added a pink ruffle on the collar and on the sleeve. And I took an old teddy bear, chopped off his head and stitched it onto the front. I even made his head have a zip pocket in it, and that was the first rework from my website.
LH:: If you hosted a movie night with the dolls, what films would be featured?
AM: Jawbreaker. I love the cattiness from that movie because my life is not at all like that. So I love to look at it. It's like a novella. Troop Beverly Hills. Oh my gosh, I love that movie! Believe it or not, Mi Vida Loca. I really love the fashion there. It's the nostalgia for me. I also love Quentin Tarantino and Scarface, of course.
LH: Who are some of your favorite designers?
AM: I really love Moschino. They have such playful stuff. Everything is just so bizarre and very doll-like. I also love Betsey Johnson!
LH: When I think of Naples, Florida, where you are from, I don't know why I think of that one scene from Edward Scissorhands, where all the houses are in like bright cakey colors, just like your shop. What were your fondest memories growing up in Naples?
AM: My very first time at a thrift store was at the Goodwill in Naples, and I longboarded all the way from my house to there, which was about three miles. I kind of got in trouble because I was never allowed to stray off. The farthest I could go was to the beach. So the beach is an incredible core memory for me. I just walked around the mall because that was the only thing to do in Naples.
LH: Speaking of memories, I want you to think of one piece that you wore as a child that would make you scream, "This is Dollsauce!”
AM: I'll never forget this Kindergarten yearbook picture of me in some Pocahontas high-tops, like Converse sneakers that were from Payless. Pocahontas was my Disney princess. She was like my everything. I was wearing this white t-shirt. It was this 90s white t-shirt with a celestial design, like a moon and sun, with these little gold embellishments and gold embroidery.
Okay, I feel like my taste hasn't changed much since that kindergarten picture.
LH: What are some oddities dolls can spot in your live setup?
AM: So, Mrs. Potato Head has finally moved in. She's not going anywhere. She is a staple of the vanity. My Robert Caruso hair curlers are still in the box, but the box itself is just a dream. Without that box, I feel like it would change up the whole scene. Also, I don't remember the artist, but it's this ceramic head of a woman. It's very Art Deco, very Patrick Nagel-inspired. I need to get a Nagel piece for my space. I love Nagel, but yeah, she's definitely a staple.
LH: What are the most interesting conversations you've seen in your lives?
AM: I've sold a lot of fruit printed things. So they'll be like, “Oh, I'm going to the farmer's market in this.” Or, “I'm going to go pick strawberries in that strawberry skirt.” I feel like they're so on theme with what they're doing as an activity. I remember I brought out a Dalmatian vest and it immediately sparked up an old memory from someone who bought it and was then attacked by a Dalmatian! These pieces invoke a lot of nostalgia. And I hope in a good way because nostalgia can be happy, and it can be sad.
LH: We're currently seeing different ways of people engaging with fashion online. So, I am curious to know where you see the fashion digital space heading in the future.
AM: I know that this is a very retro thing, a public broadcasting show. Do people still watch cable anymore? I don't know. I feel like it would be so cool to have something on cable, to sell to the whole nation. That would be a dream.
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