First summery quilt of the year!

Detail from my current quilt. Can you recognize sailboats?

Summer weather has FINALLY arrived in the Northwest and I've FINALLY been motivated to get out the paints and make some summer-sky-ocean-sunset fabric.

I brushed on the blue, aiming for cloudlike shapes,
then let it dry and overpainted with other colors.

Very pale wash of blue clouds.

Next step was pulling out painted silk organza and chiffon from my stash to see how their transparent colors would interact with the new painted cotton.

When the options started to feel overwhelming, I quickly narrowed down the selection and started layering pieces on top of batting and backing. Then I pinned a layer of Sulky Solvy on top and took it to the machine for some gold sinuous, breezy quilting lines.

I peeled off strips of Sulky after I quilted each section. I could've waited until I was done quilting and then immersed the quilt in water to dissolve the Solvy, but I like peeling it off.

Then came another really enjoyable "slow" part of the process. I set up the lawn chair in the sun -- THE SUN!!! -- and carried out my little pincushion chicken, thread and scissors and hand sewed the facings to the back. I also buried all of the thread tails, something I don't like to do inside but enjoy if I can be outside in the sun.

I started the hand sewing on the Fourth of July and finished it this afternoon. Here's the back with just a few thread tails left to bury:

This is our backyard beside my lawn chair. Not of speck of grass to mow.

Tomorrow I'll post a picture of the finished quilt, although at the moment I'm feeling a little insecure about it. I think I like the backing better than the front. I should've used more contrast on the front, I think. I did go back after it was quilted and paint the upper edges a darker blue. I'll have to sleep on it before I post the end result.

Have a colorful day