MiraB ... oh yes, a design wall is a MUST. The bigger the better!! And even some little ones to move around too!!! When I made mine, I wondered if I was going in too far ... and would regret it. Not at all. One of the best quilting investments I've made ever. Since then, I've used the offcuts to make the portable ones too.
HilaryK8 ... as suggested, it's good to jump in and join us on the blocks we are doing for the week, then catch up on the others when you can. When I was doing the FWS, I did a lot of hopscotching and when I didn't feel like I challenge, I went ahead and did some of the easier ones. As Honchey mentioned, when we do this, we just just hold those blocks and post their pics, when their week comes up!