Weekly Feature: Interview with Amy Doan of Shrinkle/Sugarpill Cosmetics

This week, I am featuring Amy Doan, owner of Shrinkle and Sugarpill Cosmetics. I recently stumbled across Amy through a serendipitous series of events. I saw a beautiful little flier for her makeup line at a boutique clothing store in Piedmont and took it home to put on my desk.

I then asked for permission to feature her in a publication I write for. Her answers were so awesome (and she gave me enough info) that I am able to share some of her answers here, too.

This was one of the funnest interviews I’ve done. She has a super inspiring story that when reading it made me feel like rainbows and ponies were taking over the world. She is very successful in her business endeavors (for example, Sugarpill was the official makeup brand for the SanRio Hello Kitty 35 anniversary celebration, and is currently the official cosmetics brand for 6%DOKIDOKI, a clothing and accessory brand in Harajuku, Japan) yet remains humble and cool, which is so refreshing. Thank you Amy! (Photo credit goes to Amy Doan)

From aspiring journalist to clothing designer and makeup line: tell me how you evolved into running your two businesses for a living! I bet you never thought you would be the one being interviewed.

My sisters and I didn’t have very many toys when we were little. Being poor forced us to get creative! The highlight of each day would be when my dad came home from work with a stack of fresh paper and pencils. We’d entertain ourselves for hours by drawing an endless series of “Pretty Ladies.” (For real. All of my drawings were titled “Pretty Lady”.) My Pretty Ladies always wore the most ridiculous princess gowns with more bows than I could fit on the page, so the doodles would extend across the table and sometimes even the wall. And my ladies always, always wore bright blue eyeshadow and had mile-long eyelashes. That was a must.

I doodled and daydreamed my way through school. I knew I wanted to be a fashion designer or something beauty-related, but like most Asian kids, I was told that I could only be a doctor or a lawyer. This was very depressing news for me. To get the creativity out of my system, I began to secretly make my own clothes out of anything I could get my hands on — usually thrift store lingerie, trash bags, aluminum foil, Saran wrap, duct tape, and shower curtains. Despite struggling academically, I loved high school because it was the one place I could wear my fashion creations and bad makeup in public without running into mom and dad and having a lot of explaining to do. Although, I did get sent home from school many, many times for dressing too slutty.

Then college snuck up on me, and I didn’t know what I was going to do with my life. I’d always failed at math and science but excelled in English and creative writing, so journalism seemed like the obvious choice.

College was fun but expensive. I thought I might make a few bucks selling my old clothes since I didn’t like to wear anything more than once. I took pictures and posted all my high school outfits on eBay. I honestly didn’t expect much and would have been happy earning enough to buy myself a few beers. I was shocked when my inbox filled with inquiries about my nonexistent “clothing line.” I saw the potential for some serious beer money and began to sew like my life depended on it. Seeing my designs on other people made me so happy, I started to go on massive sewing binges where I’d lose track of what day it was and completely forget to eat, sleep, and go to my classes.

My transition to cosmetics was a very natural one. I’ve always loved super dramatic makeup and was never afraid to experiment with new looks. Whenever I styled myself or models for photoshoots, I piled on as much colorful makeup as possible to fit with the party theme of the clothes. At the time, I was using theater and clown makeup for my shoots because it was the brightest stuff I could find. Every time I posted new photos, everyone wanted to know what makeup I was using. I realized that theater and clown makeup wasn’t easily accessible to most people, so I decided to sell it alongside my clothing. It was a hit and everyone loved it, but I still thought it could be better. I wanted to have control over the quality of the makeup, the formula, color selection, and packaging. I realized the only way I could do this was by starting my own makeup brand. Sugarpill launched four years later, in February 2010.

How does inspiration come to you in your fashion design? 

I’m inspired by anything silly, sparkly, and artificial. I’m not a fan of the “natural” look and prefer to look as fake and overdone as possible. I love bad dance costumes, obnoxiously bright colors, sequins, mismatched patterns, anything circus-related, Dolly Parton, Shirley Temple movies, and kiddie pageant dresses (think Toddlers & Tiaras).

Is your work space like a creative explosion or neatly compartmentalized? 

Our workspace is currently in a state of total chaos, but my goal is to change that within the next few months. We moved into a spacious new warehouse last February but have been growing so quickly that we haven’t had a chance to fully unpack and compartmentalize. It’s a pretty sweet space though. My office is painted hot pink, and that’s all that matters! 

You have an awesome sense of humor, despite creating stunning high-end work. You seem like you are having a lot of fun in the process and don’t take yourself too seriously. How has this helped you succeed to the point you are at now? 

 Wow, thank you for the compliment!

I think that if you truly love and are passionate about what you do, success will come naturally. If I had taken “the safe route” and become a doctor or a lawyer, I’m sure I would have been the worst doctor/lawyer ever because that’s not where my heart is. I know what I love to do, and I ran with it. I don’t mind being a workaholic because my job is my hobby.

Tell me a story about your cats. Are they jealous of your attention to sewing? 

YES! I feel terrible. I worked from home for 10 years before we moved the business into our new warehouse. They used to all take turns sitting on my lap while I worked. Now that I’m at the warehouse for 12 hours a day, they’re having trouble adjusting to not having me around. I wake up at least 3-4 times every night, suffocating from the weight of all four cats sleeping on top of me.