Quilts for Summer: Lighten up your bedding
Why Quilts Make the Best Summer Bedding
When the thermostat climbs and the sun sticks around until just before bedtime, it’s time to give your bed a seasonal refresh. Out go the flannel sheets and the heavy duvets that felt like a welcoming cocoon in December, but feel like a foil jacket around a baked potato in June (YOU are the potato). But you know who can stick around? That unsung summer hero, the quilt.
Because quilts are works of art that you can hug, I want to call to your mind summery works of art like those by Lois Dodd, David Hockney, or Hilary Pecis: bold and colorful, casually cool, and joyfully layered.
The Midsummer Quilt, photographed on the boardwalk in Pacific Beach
So why are quilts the best-kept secret for hot weather sleeping (or sleepers that always run hot)? And what should you look for in a summer-friendly quilt? You want it to be lightweight, breathable, and (for an extra dose of cool) seasonally stylish.
Why Quilts Work in Summer
Summer sleep is a balancing act. You want something that keeps the chill off when your body temperature dips at night or when you’re under an AC vent, but not so much that you end up sweating. A thoughtfully made quilt provides that gentle pressure that helps you sleep, without the stifling insulation of heavier blankets or poly-filled duvets and comforters.
Quilts can be made with natural, breathable fabrics, layered but still low-loft and lightweight.
A Good Summer Quilt Starts with Breezy Fabrics
Looking back at my summery artist inspirations, I mentioned David Hockney. I threw him in because he is the most famous name among them (and not coincidentally, the only man of the three). His iconic Portrait of the Artist (Pool with Two Figures) is recognizable as the painting that fetched the highest ever price at auction for a painting by a living artist in 2018. I require sunblock just to imagine his vibrantly turquoise swimming pools in the desert.
Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures), David Hockney, 1972
But perhaps Lois Dodd is the more apt inspiration for summer quilt purposes, for one little reason. Hockney painted on cotton canvas, while many of Lois Dodd’s paintings are on linen. Which brings us to a critical component of summer bedding: breathable, natural fiber fabrics.
The Yellow House, Lincolnville, Lois Dodd, 1979, courtesy of Smithsonian American Art Museum
Quilts are a sandwich made of the top (usually pieced together from blocks of fabrics), the backing, and the batting in the middle. Like all good sandwiches, the ingredients matter.
Quilt Top
For summer quilts, your very best bets are cotton and linen. Linen is a slightly heavier weight than regular quilting cotton, but a looser weave. So for people like me, who like the weight of a cover even on warm nights, it gives you that comforting heft, but it’s still breathable so you won’t overheat.
Several manufacturers now make ‘yarn-dyed’ linens and ‘homespun’ linens, which are made with different processes that affect their texture and the looseness of the weave.
The Spaced Out Strawberries quilt is made with a homespun, yarn-dyed linen background on the top, and a yarn-dyed crossweave cotton on the back.
Batting
Most of my quilts use a bamboo batting for the middle layer. This is a lightweight, breathable, natural fiber (derived from plants) that washes well and has a beautiful drape.
The quilts that I made for my children’s beds both use wool batting. ‘Wool’ might bring to mind a heavy sweater, but as batting, it’s high loft but very light weight and breathable, and has the additional benefit of being antimicrobial. It makes sense, seeing as how it also has to help sheep regulate their temperature and protect against organisms.
You can even go batting-free for a particularly light and breezy summer quilt. This is when just the quilt top and backing are stitched together. This makes a two-layer quilt for people who want more than a sheet, but less than a blanket.
Whatever you do, avoid anything with polyfil or polyester batting, unless you’re looking to turn your bed into a budget sauna.
Backing
Most of the quilts I make are backed with flannel or good ol’ quilting cotton. Flannel is not the ideal choice for a summer quilt, but cotton is very versatile. Even on a linen quilt, I often use cotton for the backing as it’s smoother (because of its tighter weave) and lighter than linen. Cotton sateen is a great option for a warm weather quilt, too, as it is even lighter weight than quilting cotton, and has a smooth, satiny texture and sheen.
This Cosmic Crush quilt was backed in a watercolor cotton-sateen for a lightweight feel and a summer look.
Summer Quilt Designs Keep it Simple
If you’re planning your summer bedding style from scratch, you can thoughtfully consider every design choice. The key to keeping it summer cool is simplicity. The more seams, piecing and dense quilting you add to a quilt, the heavier (and potentially warmer) it becomes.
For the airiest quilts, use larger blocks, simpler blocks, a minimalist layout, or lots of negative space. This will give you fewer seams. Less intricate piecing and fewer seams means less fabric overlap and less overall bulk.
Similarly, lighter quilting helps the quilt stay soft and relaxed, rather than stiff and dense with stitches. Wide-set straight lines or grids would work well, or simple motifs that are spaced farther apart would also keep things light and loose.
The Unicorn Molecule Quilt has oversized blocks, lots of negative space, and minimal, straight-line quilting.
This Beach Baby quilt has a minimalist design, simple straight line quilting, and a serene retro sunset color palette.
Summer Quilts as Seasonal Eye Candy
Making or choosing a summer quilt isn’t just about temperature regulation. It can also be a chance to play with bold prints and contrasts, juicy color palettes, and new textures. You could try bright citrus hues, splashy large print florals, or upcycle some linen Tommy Bahama shirts to make a quilt that feels like a tropical vacation.
The Shimmering Mermaid quilt is a midday dip in the ocean
Our summer inspirational artists understood the assignment: bold modern color that evokes bright sunlight and warmth. Hockney brings us a technicolor heatwave of cool turquoise pools and bright popsicle pinks. Lois Dodd paints the coral red and lemon yellow of a suburban August. And then there’s Hilary Pecis, the youngest of these modern artists, layering coral, ochre, cobalt, and succulent green like a visual fruit salad served on gingham patterned paper plates.
Summer Patio, Hilary Pecis, 2019, image from Flagler College
Together, their palettes remind us that summer is a whole spectrum, and your bed quilt is the perfect way to play with style, adding a fresh summery vibe that still fits in with your preferred interior decor aesthetic.
The Peridot Gemstone quilt is a refreshing squeeze of lime
Wrapping it Up (in a summer weight quilt)
If your bedding is feeling a little overwrought in the warmer months, give it the Lois Dodd treatment and pare it back where it counts (lightweight materials, like linen and bamboo batting), but don’t hold back on bold color like Hockney, or surprising patterns and textures like Pecis.
A summer quilt can be the star of your bed and a secret weapon against tossing and turning. It is there for you during a breezy afternoon nap, and in the bright early morning of the summer solstice.
Your bed should make you smile during every season of the year, so swap out the flannel sheets for percale or linen, store away your bulky layers, and viva la summer quilt!
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