question about marking
 

Do you mark your quilt before you sandwich the top with the batting and bottom or after it is sandwich and pinned? thanks.

I quilt on my home machine & pin baste, so I always mark before layering.

If you try to mark after pinning, you'll have to try to figure out how to account for breaks in your line where the pins are.

I hand quilt on a floor frame, and mark as I go.

I have done both - I don't really have a preference...either way works for me

Depends. Once I marked an entire quilt before quilting (hand quilting). I used a white ceramic lead mechanical pencil. Many of my marks rubbed off from handling before I got to them. So consider your tool you are using for marking.

Now I quilt on a rack and I usually mark before loading but there are many times, if the design isn't to complex, that I will mark as I go. Also if I am using chalk, by the time get to the area it is sometimes too faint to see so I will go over the lines again with chalk before quilting so I can see them.

My sentiments exactly for hand quilting. I've only done very limited, straight line machine quilting and that I have used tape and marked after sandwiching.

I use an air erasable marker so mark as I quilt. I have about 30 minutes time to see most of the marks. I glue baste and quilt on my domestic machine so don't have to worry about pins. I often will stitch in the ditch at some major points to stabilize it more and then draw my patterns for quilting and quilt away.