Thanks guys, this is so much fun. My husband was away all last week so I had plenty of time to sew. Sure didn't want to go outside with the weather the way it was and is. I have been using a washable glue stick to hold my pieces down. No pins for the thread to get stuck on. I have some overhead projector film. I trace the design from the book, actually just 1/4 of it. I iron the half marks and diagonal marks on my square then I can line up the clear pattern on the fold marks. I slide my applique piece under the clear film, press with finger and it stays right there. I can always slide my needle under to release the glue if I need to. This has been working for me.