- Hi, I'm Angela Walters
from Quilting is My Therapy. And welcome to the filler's
free-motion challenge quilting along. Throughout this free video
series I'm gonna show you how to quilt some of my favorite
filler quilting designs. I'll teach you design variations and I'll demonstrate how to quilt them on a sewing machine and a long arm. When we are done, you'll
feel more confident about your machine quilting skills and you'll have a sampler quilt of all your new favorite designs as well. And it's not too late
to quilt along with me on the exclusive panel I designed just for this video series. To find out more about this and
the other exclusive products I put together, just check the link in the description box below. In this video we're gonna be talking about circle-shaped fillers
including pebbles, bubbles, ovals, and more. First up we're gonna talk about
the pebbles quilting design. The pebbles design is one
of those classic machine quilting designs that
looks good on any quilt and it adds the perfect amount
of texture without movement. That means it's perfect for highlighting the main elements of your quilt. Use them around blocks to make
them pop or use them around other quilting designs
to really show 'em off. Well, let's get to quilting those pebbles. Quilting pebbles can be
scary to some newer quilters, but it doesn't have to be. Let me break it down and
show you how to quilt it. First, I'm gonna start
by quilting a circle about the size of a penny. Then I'm gonna quilt the
next circle so that it goes the opposite direction. So for instance, if I quilted
the first circle clockwise I'm gonna quilt the second
circle counterclockwise. So this one went clockwise and that one's going counterclockwise. It's that change of direction
that really helps hook those pebbles together
and fill in the area as much as possible. Then I'm gonna add the next pebbles. I'll change directions
just like I've already done but there's one more small
thing to think about, traveling. Traveling is quilting along
that previously quilted line and we're gonna use traveling to maneuver our way around the area. I'm not necessarily
traveling around the pebbles to give it a certain kind of look. Instead, I'm traveling around it to get where I need to go next. Traveling is really
important because if I didn't incorporate traveling
every once in a while I'd end up with circles
that all go in a row. And that's fine but I want it to go in all different directions to give us that beautiful all-over texture. Traveling is also gonna help me maneuver in and around an area. If I get stuck, I can simply travel along a previously quilted line
and get to a new area. But if you find that you're
struggling with pebbles or they don't look quite
how you want them to look here are a few tips to make
it a little bit easier. First of all, quilt them
a little bit bigger. I've noticed in some of my
classes that some quilters tend to quilt them really,
really small right off the bat. And that can be tricky
because it doesn't give your brain time to catch up
to what your hands are doing. Think about quilting them
about the size of a penny. Basically you want a little bit of time to think through the next step. Another tip that you
might find helpful is you may need to quilt a little faster. In general when I'm traveling and teaching I notice that a lot of newer
quilters wanna try quilting their pebbles slowly. And I mean, it kind of
does make sense, right? If I just hold the fabric
tighter and I quilt slower and I stop breathing, surely my pebbles will be round right? Well, not so much. With this design we really
wanna use the momentum to help us get that nice smooth line. So if you find that you have
time to critique the job you're doing while you're
doing that, it's too slow. So if I'm thinking, "Oh
it's not looking round, it's not looking round, ugh, it's not looking round," too slow. Now, I don't want you to go so quickly that you're out of control. So play around with that
and find the speed where you can hit that sweet spot. When it comes to these
pebbles I really wanna focus on a smooth line, not a perfect circle. So as long as the line is
smooth it's gonna look great. Another thing that will
help you with your pebbles is try not to stress about
keeping your traveling lines perfectly on those
previously quilted circles. I mean, that's kind of the funniest joke of the whole lesson. It's hard enough to quilt a circle once without doing it right
over again the second time. When you finish quilting your pebbles and you stand back and you
look at your quilted area what's really gonna stand out is that pop of unquilted area right in
the center of the circle. Another thing to remember is
at any point you can pause, you can stop and think
through your next steps. I don't know what it is about me but when I'm learning a new design I just wanna keep on quilting,
feeling like I can't stop. Stop, take a moment to
think through where you wanna add your next
pebble, consider how you're gonna get there and then do it. It's a lot easier to
change your mind than it is to rip out any quilting
that you don't like. Now, when it comes to pebbles,
one of the things to remember is that we're quilting circles. And when we put a bunch
of circles together we're gonna have unquilted
areas in between them, little gaps, but I'm
gonna try as hard as I can to keep those gaps smaller
than the pebbles themselves. So if I find any gaps
in there that are bigger than the pebble I'll just
use the traveling to get where that is, add some more
pebbles and continue on. When I'm finished I just wanna
make sure that whole area is filled in as much as possible. Now, if you've been practicing
and you're still struggling with the pebbles and you're thinking like, "Oh I just cannot get it," there is an easier option for you. Instead of quilting a bunch
of circles so that they fit together, let's start off
by quilting a meandering line that goes in all different directions. Then at a certain point,
when I'm feeling brave I can try quilting a circle
and then going right back into my meandering line. This is gonna help me get
the practice of quilting those circles, and maneuvering
my way around the area without the additional
pressure of worrying about which direction to go or
incorporating traveling. And then as you're quilting
your meandering line as you feel led, go ahead
and add some more circles filling in that area. And who knows, as you pull
it along, you might feel brave enough to add a figure
eight or even multiple circles. Using that meandering line
to transition the pebbles will allow you to build up
to it and is a lot easier than jumping right into that design that might be a little tricky. Now that we've seen what it
looks like to quilt pebbles on the sewing machine, let's
look and see how it differs when quilting them on a long arm. When I'm quilting pebbles on a long arm the design is still gonna
go together the same way. I'm still quilting my circles, I'm still changing directions,
I'm still using traveling to maneuver my way around an area. When quilting on a long arm,
it can be really difficult to control the momentum of the machine. So you might find that it's
a little out of control for you as you're trying to
quilt those nice round pebbles. You have most control of
your quilting when your hands are right in front of you. Try not to quilt pebbles so
that your arms are really far away from your body or really,
really close to your body. You wanna have 'em in that
sweet spot where you have the most control. But just like quilting
pebbles on a sewing machine, it takes a little bit of
practice to get the hang of it. So keep at it and soon you'll be pebbling like a professional. Now that we've seen how to
quilt those pebble designs, let's talk about where
to use them on your quilt because I believe it's
one thing to know how to quilt the design, it's
a totally different thing to know when and where to
use them on your quilts. First up, this design is
classic, so it can be used on any kind of quilt from ultra
traditional to uber modern. But I will point out that
I love to use this design in tonal or solid fabrics. The fact that it takes a little
bit longer to quilt means that if I'm gonna take the time to do it I kind of wanna see it when I'm finished. So if I'm working on a quilt
with a lot of busier fabrics or I can't see the quilting,
hmm, I'm probably gonna skip over this to a different option. I don't wanna take all the
effort to quilt those pebbles if you're not even
gonna be able to see 'em when I'm finished. Try using them in backgrounds of blocks, especially blocks that you've
pieced well and you wanna show off or even around
other quilting designs or other elements that you
really wanna highlight. You can use them around a quilting design, such as a feather or a motif,
or you can even sprinkle them in with other quilting designs, just to add a little pop
of texture here and there. And doing it this way is a great
way to practice the pebbles without committing to using
them over a whole area. But what I probably love the
most about pebbles is that you can build off that basic
shape and create a lot of different variations which
is gonna give you even more versatility when it comes to your quilts. So let's see some
different ways that you can quilt the pebbles to create a
bunch of different variations. And hey, before we get started,
do not get overwhelmed. I have a free downloadable
PDF with quilting diagrams and tips for all the variations,
including the pebbles, so you can download that,
print it out and have it as a resource for you
when you start quilting. If you need a little bit
more help. a little bit more assistance, I also have an
expanded PDF with even more diagrams and even more tips. You can find the information
about both of those in the description box below. The next circle shape filler design we're gonna learn is bubbles. Changing up the size of
your pebbles is a great way to give your quilting a different texture. And as a bonus, it's quicker to quilt. I'm gonna start by quilting
some bigger circles and some smaller circles
and continue quilting them, changing up the size, filling in the area. Here's a couple things to consider though. I wanna make sure that
there's enough difference in size of my pebbles,
that it looks intentional. I don't wanna quilt them so
similar in size with just a little bit of difference
'cause then it might look like I'm trying to quilt them the same size but not being successful at it. Another thing that will
help you with this variation is to quilt the bigger circles first and them fill in around
with the smaller ones. I mean, it kind of makes
sense when I say it out loud, right, it's really hard to fit
big circles in little areas. But beyond that everything
that we've already learned is the same. We're still going to travel
around the circles to get where we need to add the next one. We're still gonna try to film
the area as much as possible and we're still gonna have
a beautiful texture design when we're finished. And there's really nothing
different about quilting this design on a sewing
machine or a long arm. Now, if you struggle with the traveling you might find that quilting
around those bigger circles can be a little bit more
difficult since you'll have to travel a little bit further. But just take your time,
work through it and know that when you're done
you're gonna have these beautiful bubbles on your quilts. This design is perfect for
novelty quilts, kids' quilts, landscape quilts or
quilts that you just need to get finished because
it quilts a lot faster than your classic pebbles. Now in this variation, I
am switching up the size as I quilt it but you can be a little bit more intentional with that. You can start out with
pebbles that are smaller that gradually get bigger
or you can intersperse them. Really your imagination is the limit. Another way you can take
that classic circle shape and switch up the design
is to overlap them. Up to this point I've been
saying quilt them close together, fill in the area, but we're trying not to run them over each other. Well now, we're gonna forget that. Overlapping pebbles are
a lot of fun to quilt and they can look like
raindrops on the ground. It can look like wine rings. It can look like bubbles too. Start with your circles
a little bit bigger. And then I like to quilt a
few and then overlap one. So I'll quilt a couple
of pebbles regularly just like we've seen. And then when I'm ready
to add another one instead of quilting it, so that it's
right next to the previous one I'm gonna intentionally
overlap that previously quilted circle and then continue on. Now here's a trick with this,
I want it to look intentional. So I'm not gonna overlap
it just a little bit. I'm gonna be very intentional
that the overlapping amount is pretty drastic like
by a quarter inch or so. The trick to making this
variation look great is not to worry about
overlapping every single pebble. And it can look a little
messy and we don't want that effect. I just want it to randomly
overlap and give it a little bit of that different texture. I love to use this again on
kids' quilts, novelty quilts, landscape quilts, or any area
where I wanna draw attention. Now, another variation that
you can create the pebbles is to add some echoing. If you've watched any
of my videos, you know that echoing is your best quilting friend. And now we're gonna use echoing
just to add a little pop of texture to our pebbles. I'm gonna start quilting my
pebbles normally by quilting my bigger circle, and then
adding another one just on the inside, echoing that shape. Now, one thing I do that's
a little different is I keep going the same direction. So if my outer pebble is quilted
clockwise, I'm gonna quilt my littler pebble clockwise inside of it. And that little distance between
those two pebbles is just gonna draw attention,
give it a little bit of a different texture and just give it a slightly different look. And just like the other
variations that we've seen up to this point, make it look intentional. So I don't wanna quilt to
those circles so that they're kind of close, I want that
echo pebble inside of it to be about a quarter
of an inch or more away from the outside. I want it to look
intentional, even if it isn't. Now as you work through the
variations, you're gonna find your own style,
your own way of quilting that you like, but when
I'm quilting this design, I don't echo every single
pebble that I quilt. I will quilt a few pebbles
and then add a echo here and there. Now you can also be more
intentional about the direction of your echo, you can be
more intentional about the placement or you
can just throw them in here and there to give
it a beautiful look. For the last variation
that we're gonna see for the circle design let's talk ovals. That's right, we're gonna
take that round shape and we're gonna flatten
it to make it an oval. Now this is gonna be perfect
for those landscape quilts or quilts again, where you
just wanna add a little bit of a different pop of texture
but it's gonna introduce something that we haven't seen
up to this point, direction. That's right, so instead
of having a circle which is non-directional
I'm gonna have an oval, which has a direction. So I'm gonna have to think
about how do I transfer from horizontal to
vertical and vice versa. I'm gonna quilt my oval
just like I did my circles, quilting my first one and
then quilting the next one so that it changes direction. And by that, I mean clockwise
and counterclockwise. But when I'm ready to quilt my oval in a different orientation,
let's say horizontal as opposed to vertical,
I'm gonna get to the end of one of my ovals and that's
gonna be the perfect area to transition into the next direction. Now it's not the size of these
ovals that will determine the density of your quilting. It's the spacing between the lines. So don't stress out
about making your ovals all the same width or
height, that doesn't matter, but try to keep the spacing
between the long sides consistent 'cause that's
gonna give you that texture. As you quilt you might
notice that you have some weird little areas you
can't fit an oval into. When that happens, no worries, just throw in a couple pebbles. Remember this is just a
variation of our pebbles so they work really well together. So throwing in those
pebbles to fill in those unquilted areas and then moving on will make it so much easier. Now that's just the beginning
of all the variations that you can create just
by switching up little bits of your design. There are so many different
ways that you can use circle fillers on your quilt. And I hope this video
has left you inspired and excited to give them a try. The best way to learn any new design is to actually practice. So if you're quilting along with me on the custom panel
design for this challenge fill the areas highlighted
in yellow with the different circle designs that we've
learned in this video. You can try all of them,
you can just pick a couple or you can create your own variations for an even more custom look. Then join me this Thursday
at 3:00 PM central for my live chat, where I
answer your questions live and give you more design
ideas for this quilt. Until then everyone,
happy, happy quilting.
