Freezer paper is great for all kinds of patterns. I use it to make my own patterns from clothing that I love but are no longer good...or preserving purchased patterns that are getting tattered.
I use clothespins and/or skirt markers instead of pins to hold pieces together for sewing, unless they are very finicky. Much easier.
Have a 3/8" piece of medium density foam (I think it's packing from a computer box) under my sewing machine, that keeps it from "walking" (and as it extends out a few inches on the right, it's just in the right spot to work as a pincushion too).