This may be obvious but it's not to me since this is only my second quilt. I am currently pin basting my layers together. The top is nice and smooth because I lightly starched and ironed it for a final time before putting it on the layers to pin it. I was going to SID and then go back and hand quilting some designs in the squares (it's a nine patch). At first I was thinking that I would think about what I wanted to design and hand quilt as I was doing the SID. But it suddenly occurred to me that all the handling of the quilt during the machine quilting will certainly add wrinkles, etc. and so I won't have quite the same smooth surface to draw on my designs for the hand quilting if I wait and do it after SID.

So...when is the time to draw the designs on...
1)Now after it's pin basted and before I SID.... or.....

2) I can still do it later after the SID is done.

Are there pros or cons to which order I choose?

Thanks for helping this newbie along! :lol:

I am no expert but I do the basting then I do sid then I do the marking for the motif quilting.

Same here!!!

Sounds good to me! Thanks for your input!

Ditto!

I spray baste and than mark it. Just the way I like to do it.

Hmmm. I always press it then mark it. Then I stretch and baste. It is just easier for me to mark on a firmer surface than on top of batting.

Now that you mention it...that does make a lot of sense! Others have mentioned doing it later in the process. Guess that means this is one of those things that really is a matter of personal preference. I may just have to try both ways to see what works best for me.