Vintage Seller Spotlight: Angela Chase Vintage

Hiya! Time for another round edition of Vintage Seller Spotlight, this time with the lovely Marina from Angela Chase Vintage! I stumbled upon Marina's shop a little while ago and fell in love with its aesthetic vision. Her store is full of great pieces that all remind me of something that would be worn by a babelicious 90s babe. Read on to learn more about Marina and what inspires her with her shop!

What's your name and where are you from?
My name is Marina Mills Kitchen. I’m actually a graphic designer (www.marinamillskitchen.com) currently living in New Haven, Connecticut because I’m earning my MFA in graphic design at Yale. I’m originally from Southern California, but moved to New York when I was 18.

What made you want to start selling vintage on Etsy? How did you first get interested in vintage clothing?
My older sister had always been a fan of vintage clothing, but from a young age, I dismissed secondhand clothing in favor of new, trendy items from mall stores like Contempo Casuals. That finally changed in my last year of high school, when my sister gave me a few of her vintage concert t-shirts from the 70s. I liked that the shirts were one-of-a-kind, with interesting, slightly off-kilter graphics on them, and I realized that it was boring to dress the same as everyone else. Ever since then, I’ve been hooked on thrift stores.

For years I have found ways to monetize, or subsidize, my favorite hobby, frequently buying vintage items in city outskirts and reselling them to stores in metropolitan areas. I recently opened my Etsy Store, Angela Chase Vintage, and I only wish I had opened it years ago. I like that there are so many girls out there who appreciate my taste enough to buy clothing from me. That’s pretty flattering. Plus, now I have an excuse to go thrifting even more often because its part of “my job.”

What is your favorite decade clothes wise?
My favorite decade or era is definitely the early 90s. I like to find clothing that resembles something my favorite female characters (from the TV shows I watched growing up) would wear, like chunky shoes, leopard prints, floral patterns, and colored denim.

Who is your ultimate vintage icon?
I named my store after Angela Chase from My So-Called Life. Angela and her friend Rayanne continue to be a huge inspiration for me. I also love Kelly Kapowski from Saved By the Bell, Kelly Bundy from Married with Children, and Ferris Bueller’s girlfriend, Sloane. I also can’t forget 90s Winona Ryder.

Favorite band, tv show, movie?
For the past year I’ve been listening to a lot of Arthur Russell. Favorite TV show would be My So-Called Life, and my favorite movie has been Romeo and Juliet (1996) for way too long now.

What advice do you have for those interested in starting an Etsy shop?
I only buy things (to sell) that I love, and I think this is a great way to establish an identity for your store and set yourself apart from the other vintage stores out there. I frequently come across items from the 50s in thrift stores that I know I could easily sell, but since I wouldn’t wear that kind of thing myself, I leave those items behind. Maybe some people out there will dislike that the majority of my store’s items are from the same decade, but that also means that I will eventually attract girls with similar taste to mine, who like the 90s as much as I do

Check out some of my favorite items from Angela Chase Vintage!