Life, Values & Legacy: Our Chat with Paula Vester of Stone Mountain

Paula Vester shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.

Hi Paula, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to share your story, experiences and insights with our readers. Let’s jump right in with an interesting one: What makes you lose track of time—and find yourself again?
If I have a family obligation at anytime during a given day, I should never begin a dyepot. When I pull out my natural dyes, my yarns and fabrics, and fill up my first pot, I am pretty done with everything else for a large chunk of my day. I can get lost in my possibilities and my next variable and my “what if’s”. I get so excited for the next sample to go into the pot, and to spread out the samples as they come out of the pot.

Not only will I search out the next pot, but sometimes, it leads me to searching out information in my books and online to find out the when, how, where, what, and why of the dyes, the colors, and the people who discovered and used them. I can get caught up for days looking to the next dyepot and the next color.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I am Paula J Vester of World in A Spin. My company is really just me, with my family as my tech support and cheering section; I am a fiber artist who attempts to support my textiles explorations by lecturing, demonstrating, and sometimes teaching. I have been working in some of the methods of textiles since I was eight, but mostly working in handspinning, weaving, and dyeing for the last 45 years. I specialize in discovering historically correct methods, tools, and materials, and developing ways to encourage modern hobbyists and artists to continue the craft.

At this time, although I still handspin and use mostly my own handspun yarns of cotton, wool, silk, and linen, I have been exploring the world of natural dyes. I have also been working with kudzu fiber – a fiber that the Japanese and other Asian cultures used throughout history – trying to find ways to extract and use the fibers efficiently. So I have been working to try and focus on the dyeing and the kudzu, although I do find myself pulled in other directions in order to still earn a small income.

Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. What did you believe about yourself as a child that you no longer believe?
For a very long time, I could not see myself as an “artist”. As a child, in art class, we were taught that drawing, painting, sculpting were arts, and the things I was taught – sewing, crochet, knit, embroidery were not art. As I grew up, the division between art and craft seemed to grow, and it was not until, as an adult, I found other textile creators that the term “artist” was used to describe what we all do.

Sometimes I still find myself doubting myself, but I look back at my body of work and try to accept that skill and technical knowledge of a craft doesn’t necessarily take away the fact that what I do is “art”.

If you could say one kind thing to your younger self, what would it be?
There are just a few things I would like my younger self to know, and maybe there will be a young person out there may be feeling the same way.

First of all, speak up for yourself. Tell people about the things you have to offer. My fear was always the fear of appearing arrogant, if you are passionate about something, tell people and share it. Tell people what you do know, and also what you do not know. And then go find out the answers to what you do not know.

Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. What do you believe is true but cannot prove?
Although I cannot prove this, I will continue to believe and spread the word that if people find some textile pastime to work on as a hobby that they will find themselves in a better place in their lives.

I believe that people who find a way to slow down, sit quietly, and work with their hands in some fashion find themselves being happier, calmer, and in some ways healthier. Yes, there are other variables that can help with life that way too, and that is why I don’t know that we can ever find the “proof” of it.

Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. What is the story you hope people tell about you when you’re gone?
Most of us do not have stories told of us when we are gone, and generally, I am ok with that. But I would like to become someone that people in my family talk about after I am gone. I think most of us would like to be thought of as “kind”, or “smart”, or “honorable”.

But I would also like to have tales told of my spinning wheels, dyepots, my indigo patch, my kudzu processing and the textiles that children wrapped up in and wore from my knitting needles, crochet hooks, and looms. Maybe a story or two about me sitting at the Renaissance Festival spinning and telling fairy tales and pulling amazing colors from my dyepots. Maybe stories of the school children who learned about spinning and weaving throughout history because I carried my spinning wheel and looms to classrooms, museums, and historic sites around Georgia.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://worldinaspin.com
• Instagram: World in a Spin
• Facebook: Paula Vester
• Youtube: worldinaspin

Image Credits
Rae Vester, Paula Vester, or Lee Vester