Meet Sharrel Paul of Mud & Yarn in Brookline

Today we’d like to introduce you to Sharrel Paul.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
My grandmother taught me how to crochet when I was a kid, but I never did much with it until 2012 when I went through numerous surgeries after I was diagnosed with metastatic melanoma. I was forced to let my body heal and so I picked up my hook and yarn while I was on the couch and started making scarves for family and friends. I had to keep my hands busy or I would have gone crazy! Once I started a clinical trial at Beth Israel, I started searching for some kind of art therapy to distract me from all the cancer crap… and that’s when I found clay! Taking a class at MudFlat in Somerville with Liz Rodriguez was exactly what I needed. It was frustrating at first because somehow you think it will be easy, but Liz taught me a LOT about “letting go”. Eventually, my skills started to improve and so I rented out space at Feet of Clay Pottery in Brookline so that I could grow and play as a potter. That’s when I took the leap and started a little Instagram feed to document what I created and people actually wanted to buy my work! At first I didn’t think it would amount to much, but I used my photography skills, knowledge of social media and looked at what others were doing for marketing and Mud&Yarn really started to gain momentum. I love having two mediums to create from! I love everything cozy, so a crocheted sweater and a cup of tea from a handmade mug is the ultimate. Luckily, there are lots of people who like that vibe, so it has really helped me to successfully sell my work.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Does a smooth road actually exist? Haha! The cliché struggle is real, but everything really DID happen for a reason. Being diagnosed with a fast growing cancer at 30 and being told you have a 22% chance of surviving 5 years was devastating (to say the least!), but the only reason I stumbled messily into clay was because of that. I would spend hours in the studio, when I was feeling well enough, just to distract my mind from all the medical talk and create something beautiful. Some days the pots were not always beautiful… correction, LOTS of the days haha. But if I could create a pot that would make someone smile and they could use for years to come, or crochet a cozy scarf for someone to wear during the cold Boston winters, it gave me a new-found purpose and fueled me to create even more. Not only have that, but the people I have met along the way helped heal me, too! Other potters at the studio gave me feedback on my work to help me improve, listened if I needed to vent, and so many became close friends. So much so, that myself and 5 other women have just opened our own pottery studio in Brookline Village as a way to expand our production and grow as artists. Starting a business has many, many bumps in the road, but every bump is worth it in the end, right?

Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Mud&Yarn – what should we know?
Mud&Yarn is literally just that… I take clay (mud) and create functional pottery, jewelry and dishware and also crochet (yarn) cozy accessories and apparel. I like to keep my styles simplistic and minimal for the most part, but sometimes you’ll catch a mug with a sassy phrase or see me crochet a scarf with a crazy colorful yarn. My biggest seller and most popular item are my mugs. They are my favorite thing to make, by far! I’m an avid tea drinker and since I collect mugs from other artists and sip my tea from them every morning, creating my own mugs to pass on to people puts a big smile on my face. From throwing the form on the wheel, trimming the foot and then adding a handle, a mug has so many elements of the skill that it really shows the personality of the potter by the time it’s completed. The fact that no two mugs are exactly the same is even more intriguing to me. I like to let a lot of my personality show in my work, and I definitely share a lot of the not-so-glamorous process shots on my social media accounts. A big thing that attracts me to artists is their candidness and honesty, so I like to do the same so that people can really get a sense of who they are buying from and it gives the piece so much more personality and meaning.

Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
Hmmmm… I think my ability to be easy going has been quite important actually. I tend to roll with change very easily and can embrace it when it comes. When I was younger I can remember being somewhat of a perfectionist, but as an adult I’ve let a lot of that go and saw my life improve as soon as I did! Letting the work I create take on an organic feel and not forcing every pot or project to be perfect in turn lets their personalities shine through (and keeps me mostly stress-free haha). Not everything I create turns out to be a big seller, but I take it as a learning experience and keep moving on.

Pricing:

• Mugs range from $30-40
• Scarves $35-55
• Jewelry $25-40

Contact Info:

• Address: Village Clay
  25 Andem Place
  Brookline, MA
• Website: https://www.etsy.com/shop/MudandYarn
• Instagram: @mudandyarn
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mudandyarn/

Image Credit:
Some images by Matt Wood Photography and GPowers Film.

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