Here's a GREAT idea (I think I first learned about it from this forum) for 'taking the weight off.'
http://pieceocake.typepad.com/piece-...-quilting.html
My sewing room is in the attic with cathedral ceilings. It's too small and cramped for the extra table/s approach and the sloped ceilings prevent me from using the quilt cradle method of suspending quilts. But quilters can be very creative and on her blog Becky Goldsmith suggests an alternative to the quilt cradle that works on any ceiling type. Check it out. Have been doing only baby quilts lately, but I hope DH will install this set up for the next larger-sized project I start.