>> Actually, I will pin the quilt top to the other 2 layers, until I get the first row of quilting across the top.
After that, both the batting and quilt top hang free.
>>The reason I do this is to use my batting scraps. I insert one strip of batting across the length and smooth it out.
Then I lay the quilt top on top of the 2 layers - and smooth it into place. After I have quilted the 3 layers for the first row, I remove the pins, but I use a few pins to show me where to stop the quilting ...then lift it up and insert another strip of batting.
June, I love this idea. I generally don't care for floating the quilt top because the overall tension isn't as good and the quilt isn't as smooth as I like. I guess I could try again and use a few more pins. I tend to be resistant to using pins. Got that from my home ec teacher that taught us to "finger baste".