Pump It Up

I am a big believer in extending the life of useful things. Around the Quiltunes household you’ll find reused objects in every room because that is how we roll. Sour cream containers, toilet paper tubes and food scraps live at least one more life before moving on to their final resting place. As examples, toilet paper rolls are awesome for rolling up quilt binding or when stuffed with dryer lint, make excellent fire starters for woodstoves. Food scraps are utilized in natural dyeing (carrot tops, avocado pits, onion skins, etc.) and the edible stuff (veggie peels and animal bones) are saved in a freezer bag until they become yummy homemade stock. So given my proclivity towards thrift and reduced waste, it is no surprise that I keep ALL of my fabric scraps.

In Great Britain, fabric scraps are called crumbs. Just as aubergine sounds more enticing than eggplant, calling leftover fabric bits crumbs sounds festive. And you all know that I love all things food. This quilt is all crumbs left behind from my block of the month Beatles quilt. Each month I saved the crumbs in little baggies and the remnants were enough to make the brightly colored blocks of this quilt top. A whole person sized quilt out of what could have been tossed in the bin! Each new block was crafted independently and with the strategy to use what was cut from the original block. It was a wonderful endeavor making the crumbs fit together into these playful new blocks. In fact, I believe that I am at my creative best when I have limited pieces to work with. I used every last crumb and offcut — just look at the 1/8″ pieces (final sized) I managed to squeeze into the blocks! This is a true zero waste quilt.

It is important in life to have a song /songs/album/albums/playlists that you can turn to when you need a mood change. If you don’t have one (or more) of these tunes, please consider abandoning this blog post right now and finding yours straightaway. I have an arsenal of music at the ready for when I need to liven up, calm down, or just escape. Listening to music is my therapy, it is my comfort food. Although I believe in the superpowers of comfort food, too. The only thing I genuinely miss about commuting is listening to music to start and end my day. I used to pick out my tunes for the day the way most people choose their clothes, or pack their lunch. I am very impacted by what I listen to. Such is the power of music.

In my worldview, favorite isn’t singular, but a whole tier; it is a category with different echelons. One of my most beloved musical genres is New Orleans funk, composed of geniuses like The Meters, Dr. John, Allen Touissant the Neville Brothers, Jon Cleary and so many more. And Jon Cleary is one of our all-time, favorite of the favorites musicians, too. I love his funky rhythms and his deep appreciation for the unique sounds of New Orleans, by way of Britain. He has a witty sense of humor. His songwriting is clever and thoughtful. Jon on the piano is pure magic, continuing the traditions of Allen Toussaint, Dr. John, Art Neville, James Booker and Professor Longhair etc., while being a standout on his own. Jon sounds like New Orleans to me. In our house, a Cleary cd is a permanent resident in the 5 disc changer. Every weekday morning I am greeted by a Cleary ringtone melody as my alarm, er, multiple times because I am a snoozer. Oh, how jarring it must be to wake up to one of those standard issue phone alarms. This is how I differentiate that Jon sits among the most favorite of the favorites.

Pump it Up the quilt was made for an extra super special person, a friend with the very fitting nicknames “Queen of Everything” and “Sarah Sunshine”. I wanted this quilt to exude the bright, playful, thoughtful and positive qualities she possesses. Therefore the tunes for this quilt are the same — upbeat, positive, conscientious and fun. This quilt design came from my intuition and was bolstered along by the groovy tunes of the artists that continually brighten up life. The tunes in the quilt were (pun unintended) instrumental; I strongly feel that this would be such a different design had I been inundated with other sounds during its creation. Because the musical inspirations in this quilt are so important, it also comes with a playlist of the artists that took these crumbs to the next level. Jon Cleary lit the initial spark and I also want to thank the Neville brothers for guiding me to the final block layout. Another shoutout goes to Joe Cunningham and the Friday sew along group for helping me decide on the simple hand quilted design. This quilt brought me so much joy, I smiled and danced the whole way through the project.

Does anyone else get a bit misty eyed when their projects are done? I always do. I form a special relationship with each quilt I make, so when the last stitches are made, I feel all the feels as they say. There is, naturally, a relief that the quilt is complete combined with an excitement, like a graduation, that now it will go live its best comforting, cozy life. Go on quilt, get out there and show the world what you were made for!

Never underestimate the power of the scraps — or the funky music!

The Queen of Everything’s playlist (and albums listened to)

• Pump it Up – Jon Cleary GoGo Juice
• We Are – Jon Batiste We Are
• Out of the City (Into County Life) – Allen Toussaint Love, Life and Faith
• Soul Island – The Meters Cabbage Alley
• We Get Along – Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings Give the People What They Want
• All My Friends – The Revivalists Take Good Care
• Sister Rosa – Neville Brothers Yellow Moon
• So Damn Good – Jon Cleary Live at Chickie Wah Wah
• Just the Same – Dr. John In the Right Place
• Viva La Money – Allen Toussaint The Allen Toussaint Collection
• United Nations Stomp – Dumpstaphunk Where Do We Go From Here
• Mo Hippa – Jon Cleary Mo Hippa Live
• Freedom – Jon Batiste We Are
• Down From the Mountain – Andrew Duhon Emerald Blue
• Up In the Air – The Revivalists City of Sound
• Just Kissed My Baby – The Meters Rejuvenation
• Sometimes I Wonder – Jon Cleary & the Absolute Monster Gentlemen Jon Cleary & the Absolute Monster Gentlemen
• What Comes Around (Goes Around) – Dr. John Mo’Scocious Anthology
• Southern Nights – Allen Toussaint Southern Nights