We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Paige Anderson a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Paige, thanks for joining us today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

As a kid, I oscillated pretty heavily between wanting to be a scientist and being an artist. In the 90s and 2000s, there was a heavy emphasis on “girls in STEM” and moving women away from things that are more traditionally feminine. I understand the sentiment, but, ultimately, I’m glad that the culture-at-large has shifted comfortably into a version of feminism that is more along the lines of “women should do whatever makes them happy”, and whether that’s making way for women in science, or if that’s normalizing women’s historically-regarded-as-hobbies-and-not-art as actual fine art, that is what we need to be doing and supported. I did, in the back of my mind, want to pursue textiles for work, and become a working artist, but I really ate up the narrative that the only valid path was college and a 9-5.

So anyways, I went for the career in science. I’m passionate about environmental issues and plants and trees and how everything interconnects. The only place I’m happier than in my sewing room is in the woods, next to a creek, listening to all the sounds and noting every detail. I went all the way through undergrad, earning a degree in environmental education + policy with a minor in geography, and then went to grad school for landscape ecology. But, I spent so much time avoiding projects and homework by sewing, embroidering, dyeing fabric. I think when I was JUST about done with grad school, and I had a newborn baby, and I was pushing off my thesis research to work with my hands MAKING things… at that point I knew that the actual only rational choice for my life was to be an artist.

Paige, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Hey! I’m Paige, and I creatively identify as a textile artist specializing in quilting, with some overlapping work in embroidery and dyes. I also run a small needlework supply company, known for the bestselling hand quilting notion Ponderosa Thread Gloss, which has been carried in over 70 stores in three countries now.

The goal with Ponderosa Thread Gloss is to make stitching easier. So often, having a needle-and-thread practice as a hobby, whether that’s handsewing or bookbinding or beading or quilting or embroidery or whatever, you’re doing it your free time. You’re probably trying to relax. You’re probably trying to take your mind off something else, unwind from the grind, ease anxiety, on and on amen. You probably don’t want any extra stress added– getting knots or friction while stitching is just such a buzzkill. So thread gloss coats the thread and adds some aromatherapy to make your free time experience even better. I really love being able to provide that, and connect with folks over the power of easier stitching and the power of just-right scents.

The work I always find myself most proud of are the “useless” objects. The things made that are so essentially against the utilitarian nature of quilts to be loved and used and worn-out… like quilted wall hangings whose only purpose is to hang there and look pretty, and maybe, if I’m lucky, the colors and textures will make you stop and look and really think about things for a moment. Unlike many mediums, like painting or photography or sculpture, I think it’s hard for textile work to exist and be valid without having inherent functionality. It’s harder for quilts to just exist, ya know? So I’m always proud when I make a piece and it’s lifespan as an object doesn’t have to just be about being useful. I think that’s an important statement to make, and an important goal, for a woman specializing in a traditionally women-only medium. We (women) can exist for no other purpose than for being ourselves, and we do not have to spend our time in the service of others to be valid– and our work does not have to fit into that very gendered expectation, either.

Other than sewing all the time, I really enjoy cooking, reading at breweries, taking walks and judging people’s landscaping and paint choices on houses I could never afford anyway, and doodling. I’m a single mother, and my daughter is my world. I’m also currently in tattoo school, checking out + learning how to do a creative-outlet skilled profession I’ve always dreamed of doing.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of being a creative is that I can create these objects out of what’s going on inside my brain and in the world around me, and somehow, these objects resonate with other people. Making art is a very personal experience, filled with bouts of imposter syndrome, self doubt, worrying about perception, wondering if it’ll make sense to anyone else or if it’s all just a huge waste of time. It’s all worth it the second someone says hey, I can relate to this; or hey, this gave me comfort; or hey, this makes sense to me on a cellular level (ok maybe the last one never happens but, you know what I mean. If you’ve ever been in a gallery and you just stop dead still in front of a piece of work unable to speak or translate WHAT makes you feel SOMETHING, you know what I mean). It’s that moment that you know the message you are trying to portray, as an artist, actually comes across to the viewer. It’s very special and very rewarding.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

There’s so much that can be done to prevent the whole starving-artist-thriving-corporation idea that is so prolific in our society. And you can start with your friends, give them your energy and support in the way you do for celebrities (and I am so lucky lucky LUCKY to have this kind of social circle but I know it’s not common)– if you know someone and you admire the contributions they make to the world, talk about them in rooms that they aren’t in. Invite them to meet people that can make a difference in their careers. Share their posts in stories, send to other people with a little note of “I really like this artist, what are some of their pieces that you like?” anything to have that conversation, drive that engagement, have a little bit of a butterfly effect in their lives. Can you imagine if, every day, you shared one artist with one person you know, and had a conversation about it, the way that would enrich your friendships and the lives of the artists you know? I think we all need to be having more conversations about art rather than consuming and moving on, and just looking at art through social media (although that’s a start). Let’s bring back going to galleries for dates, let’s bring back buying original art for our homes (when and if it’s accessible), let’s bring back talking about the way color and texture can make us feel and how art reflects the world around us.

Contact Info:

• Website: ponderosacreative.etsy.com
• Instagram: @ponderosacreative
• Other: threads and tiktok are @ponderosacreative accounts are private, request a follow!

Image Credits
photos are from various photographers: Shelby Payne, Sara Welch, Sydney Pearce.