sorry ladies - this was not an advert -- I don't sell the products, just buy them. wanted to share some knowledge on the two systems. I did not realize you did not share knowledge on this site, sharing where I had bought was no different than mentioning Joann's or some other large store. many people in Canada do not know where these machines can be checked out and I appreciated when I read on this site about the above store months ago. That was the way I was introduced.

I did a little quilting between Christmas & New Years, but contracted strep somehow over the weekend. Woke up at 3am Sun w/it. Went to church (thought at that time it was just a sore throat, never had strep before:( ) & came home & prepared sit-down dinner for 20. Our final Christmas celebrating w/my sister & her brood/spouses. When they left I took a nap & thought the worst was over. No such luck. Dr appt in afternoon confirmed my suspicions. Hopefully all the kisses the DGSs gave me didn't give them strep too. What WAS I thinking? Actually, w/20 in the house, I wasn't thinking much at all! lol Once I get all the decorations put away, I need to find out where I'm at w/all the round robins, swaps & such. I'd love to lock myself in the sewing room for a week & only come out for food & potty breaks! Just think of all I could get done! Wow!! Back to reality, I need to continue the un-decorating process. :( :( I work at it an hour, then need to rest - feel like I've been hit w/a truck! What a way to start a new year!:(

I think it depends too on which of the many varitions of the double wedding ring quilt you are planning on doing. There's one with very round joined circles, theres one with squarish circles, there's one with the long thin curved as a single piece instead of four or five pieces. I also think it depends upon your frustration level. Some folks like a challenge and some find it rather daunting to even think about doing something with curved pieces. There's also fabric to consider. The better the quality I think the easier it is to sew and cut. So if you think you are ready for it I say go for it.

Working on a lower table is a good suggestion. Having the right size rulers helps a lot too. You want one long enough for the job but having one that's not too long is also helpful because you can manipulate it and hold it more easily and it won't be getting in your way. Sometimes it also helps to measure with one and then butt another one up to it for cutting. The Olfa frosted ones slip less than slick shiny ones. I'm sure other companies make grippy ones too. You can make any ruler you already have more slip resistant by putting a tiny piece of very fine sandpaper on the corners of slippy rulers to make them grip the fabric. A bit of double stick tape will also do the trick to reduce slippage. Hold the ruler with firm pressure with a spread hand -- left hand if you're going to cut with your right, right if you're going to cut with your left. But don't feel like you have to apply so much pressure that you're not relaxed and ready to focus on your cutting hand. A sharp blade in your rotary cutter probably makes more difference than anything else. If you're pressing really hard to try to compensate for nicks in the blade, the chances of getting a slip increase greatly. Make sure you have the right size cutter too -- for long straight cuts, use the 60mm cutter. The smaller ones are for curvier and fussier cuts. ALWAYS put the guard in place before you put your cutter down so that you will never pick up one with an exposed blade. There's no reason to cut yourself if you stop and approach the cutter consciously. And those are nasty cuts that I bet you're nervous about if you've had a couple of them! ALWAYS cut away from your body. Olfa says to cut to your hand on the ruler and then move your hand and cut again without lifting the blade. I disagree, personally. I cut with one smooth cut. NOT saying the ruler never slips but it's usually minor and I can square up and make another cut without much waste. Also, use the edge of the ruler -- butt your blade right up to it and let it ride against the side of the ruler. Sometimes I get a shadow or something in my field of vision and I think I've had a slip because I'm not trusting the tools and my own kinetic feelings as I cut. When that happens and I try to make some correction, that's when I screw up. ;> There are also removable neon colored tapes that you can put on your ruler so that you are very clear where your measuring line is and, so, your cutting line. If all that doesn't help, sometimes it works to fold your fabric from center point to selvage, carefully align selvages on a line on your mat and square it up. Then you can make shorter cuts. The thing about that is your folding and your laying the fabric out have to be meticulous so you don't end up with the wave in your extended strips. Hope something there helps. You could save a lot of money for buying more fabric and batting. ;>