Project Quilting 12.6 - Ab Intra

The last Project Quilting Challenge for 2021 is Ab Intra.  Yeah, I agree - WHAAA??

The PQ post for this challenge says that it means "from within", as opposed to Ab Extra, which means "from without".  Trisha Frankland, who is the creative mind who comes up with the topics, said 

"For our sixth and final challenge of the season, I want to make sure we go out with a bang and not a whimper. So I’m going waaaay out there in mystical woo-woo territory for this week’s for inspiration, with my favorite kind of challenge: the inspirational, aspirational wordplay kind."

That was enough to warn me that I would probably have trouble coming up with something for this challenge, LOL! 

Further on in the post, she gave some more concrete ideas - 

"Show us what it’s like inside to live in your unique body. What boundaries do you stay within? Who are you inside your social bubble (family, career, society)? How about a wearable art piece – any clothes you’d like to make where you’ll end up literally inside the finished project? Or, show us the internal spark that fires your creativity! What’s in your sketchbook or rolling around in your head?"

I have to admit that I was still stumped.  I considered making something to wear, but what?  I used to make clothes for myself and for my kids, but it has been a long time.  I do have a partially started quilted sweatshirt jacket, but since it is started, it wouldn't qualify. 

I thought about being very literal and making something that was inside a human body - like a heart!  But since one of the challenges last year involved hearts, I decided against that idea. 

Over the next few days, I kept going back to the website and reading the description, but nothing came to me.  I waited a few days and started checking the entries as they were posted. When in doubt, check out what other people are doing, right?  ;->

I realized that people were making things that represented some of their core values, or things that they loved.  I mused over those pictures and started thinking "What is within me? What is essential to me? What are my talents"? That was it!  I had my theme! 

I have loved singing for as long as I can remember. And I have been blessed to have been given a voice that allows me to indulge in that love. 

One day in second grade, our teacher, Sr. Leonarda (I think?) taught the class a quick little song, then asked us each to come up and sing it to her.  I remember that I got the words wrong, but she was OK with that, and told me that I had a nice voice.  That was my audition for the grade school chorus and the start of my musical journey.

Since that fateful day, one of the constants in my life has been singing.  I sang in the grade school, middle school and high school choruses. I've sung in church choirs, community choirs and have even sung for weddings. 

Some of the most important times and most consistent friendships in my life happened because of singing.

I learned to play the guitar while singing around the campfire at Girl Scout Camp.  Learning the guitar led me to church folk choirs and a folk singing group at the university I attended. Some of the best friends I ever made are were from that camp and from the folk singing group. Even though we don't live in the same area any longer, we still keep in touch.  One of the guys in the folk singing group introduced me to his brother, to whom I have been happily married to for the last forty two years!  

By now, you've probably guessed that he theme for my Ab Intra challenge is singing, or music.  

I have been interested in trying a technique called "Mini Mosaic" quilting, which I found on Cheryl Lynch's website, and figured that this would be the perfect time to try it. She has a website where you can purchase kits (http://www.cheryllynchquilts.com/mini-mosaic-quilts.html) and also has a video on You Tube that shows the technique.  

I used a G-clef as the centerpiece of my mosaic, and used my favorite color, pink, for the tiles. The tiles are mostly 3/8 inch square, although I had to trim some of them to fit the design.  The whole thing is about 11 X 14".  It is my new favorite wall hanging!