What size safety pins do you use? And do you like the Quik Klip for closing the pins? Any suggestions on what to put on the floor or table to protect it from scratching? Thanks!

i use 1" pins and like those that are curved
and YES.....the Kwik Klip sure saves fingers and finger nails.

Love the Quik Klip. saves the fingers. I have a small piece (about 4" X 6") of stafety glass that I slide under the quilt and just keep sliding it around as needed. I tried various plastics, but the pins would just stick into them and it actually made it harder.

i use 1 1/2 inch and I sandwich my quilts on an old banquet table with nothing protecting it.

Thanks so much for your replies. I pin-basted a baby quilt yesterday with #1 curved pins. Felt like there has to be some tips out there to make it easier on your fingers. The small piece of glass to protect the underneath surface is a good idea and should be easy to work with. Thanks again!

I use pins instead of safety pins so I don't need a tool for closing. I try to keep the points in the middle layer.

I use 1" curved ones and have chewed up fingers by the end if it's a big quilt. I've gone back to pin basting small ones and thread basting larger ones.

I don't use anything underneath.

These are relatively new to the market:
http://www.pinmoor.com/

But here's a cheaper alternative:
http://www.quiltingboard.com/t-122893-1.htm

Big cost and time savings.
;-)

I use both the 1" and 2" pins and the Quick Klip all the time. I have a small (18X24) mat that I slide around under the quilt when pinning. I also have a spoon with a 'v' shape that I can use for pinning. Sure saves the finger tips and makes it a lot easier to close the pins.

I pin a whole section leaving the pins open. Then when I go to reposition the quilt on my table top (30X60 inch top), I close all the pins at one time. Seems to go faster and save a little time.

Now, I don't need to pin baste because I have the HQ16. I used to pin the backing layer, right-side down, of course (though I learned that the hard way at least twice!), directly through the carpet and its padding with large t-pins. Once that was square, I layered the batting and the top. I used 1-1/2" pins and closed with the quick Klip which made the pinning so much easier. I also used to close the pins all at the same time, a quarter of the quilt at a time.