Hello EllieGirl,
I have found, like you that when I first started quilting, I quilted a VERY large quilt that I had trouble getting through my machine. I have found that rolling your completed portion of the quilt up and anchoring it down with the blue painters tape helps. It will not leave any residue on your quilt. Or what I have done in the past, is go to Home Depot and purchase about 4 U-clamps. Again, tightly roll your quilt and anchor in 4 places. The only trouble with the clamps, is you have to be careful not to mar your table your working on. Hope this helps, it worked for me.
Stephanie