You probably know her as Catherine. To the 18 million people who subscribed to the ACE Family on YouTube, she was the steady, serene presence next to the high-energy Austin McBroom. But the woman born Dolores Catherine Paiz has spent the last two years systematically dismantling that polished image. It hasn't been pretty. Actually, for a while there, it was downright chaotic.
Honestly, the "Dolores" name itself is a clue. She was named after her grandmother, but she spent most of her public life hiding it behind the more modern-sounding Catherine. Dropping the memoir Dolores: My Journey Home in mid-2025 was basically her way of saying the old version of her—the one living in a $10 million mansion that eventually went into foreclosure—is dead.
The Montreal Roots and the China "Detour"
Dolores Catherine Paiz didn't just spawn in a Los Angeles mansion. She was born in Montreal, Canada, to Panamanian parents on August 24, 1990. She's a polyglot, fluent in English, Spanish, and French. People forget she was a gritty worker long before the "vlog life" took over.
At 16, she moved to the U.S. and started modeling for brands like Victoria’s Secret. But here is the weird part: she randomly moved to China after high school. She took on odd jobs and even tried her hand at acting. She wasn't some pampered influencer; she was a girl from Tampa (via Montreal) trying to figure out how to pay rent.
What Broke the ACE Family?
Everyone saw the 2024 divorce announcement coming, yet it still felt like an earthquake in the influencer world. By the time they officially split, the "perfect family" narrative was already rotting. Between the lawsuits over her skincare brand, 1212 Gateway, and Austin's erratic social media behavior, the walls were closing in.
In a raw 2025 interview on the Call Her Daddy podcast, Dolores Catherine Paiz finally stopped playing the protective wife. She confirmed that Austin hadn't just cheated once or twice. She claimed she knew of at least three specific women, but the rumors she’d heard suggested the number was closer to twenty.
"You never cheat on the person you love," she told Alex Cooper. It was a simple line that felt like a final door slamming shut on a decade of her life.
The Survival Period
- The Foreclosure: Their massive Los Angeles estate was lost in 2021.
- The Lawsuits: Dolores faced a massive legal battle with TBL Cosmetics over an alleged "coup" of her own brand.
- The "RV Era": Austin parked an RV outside her house to film content after the split, which many fans (and Dolores herself) found bizarre and performative.
Finding Igor and the "Home Within"
If you’ve checked her Instagram lately, the vibe has shifted. It’s less "look at our mansion" and more "peace in the backyard." In late 2024, she went public with Igor Ten. They didn't wait around; they got married in September 2025 and recently announced they are expecting a baby together.
Some fans are skeptical. They think she moved too fast. But if you read her book, she explains that she’d been lonely inside her marriage for nearly five years. She wasn't looking for a new husband; she was looking for herself and happened to find a guy who wasn't interested in the YouTube circus.
Why Dolores Catherine Paiz Still Matters
She’s a case study in "de-influencing." She went from being the face of a brand that represented ultimate material wealth to a woman writing memoirs about "alchemizing pain."
She’s also been surprisingly honest about the work she’s had done. Unlike a lot of influencers who claim their look is just "drinking water," she’s been open about her surgeries. That transparency is why her core fanbase stuck with her even after the ACE Family channel went dark in 2023.
Actionable Takeaways from the Dolores Rebrand
If you're following her journey or trying to navigate a similar life pivot, here’s the reality of what her story teaches:
- Own the Narrative Early: Dolores waited years to speak her truth. When she finally did through her book and Call Her Daddy, the public sentiment shifted in her favor because she stopped hiding behind "family-friendly" filters.
- Separate Business from Identity: Her legal troubles with 1212 Gateway happened because her personal brand was too tangled with corporate entities she didn't fully control. If you’re building a brand, keep the "public face" and the "legal owner" roles clearly defined.
- Privacy is the New Luxury: Notice how she barely posts Igor compared to how she used to post Austin? She’s protecting her peace. Sometimes the best way to save a relationship is to keep it off the timeline.
- Acknowledge the Past without Dwelling: She lives five minutes away from Austin for the sake of their three kids—Elle, Alaïa, and Steel. Co-parenting requires a thick skin and the ability to separate the "ex-husband" from the "father of my children."
The era of the ACE Family is over. Whether you think she’s a "brave heart" or just a savvy opportunist, Dolores Catherine Paiz has successfully transitioned from a character in someone else's vlog to the author of her own story.