Pin Basting

A while back, I heard about a product that allows you to use straight pins for basting your quilts, seems so much easier than using safety pins, especially when it comes to removing them as you are quilting. As is often the case, I wanted to try the product but it isn't available locally. I could buy it online but did not want to invest the money, the added costs of exchange rate and shipping often make products less attractive, especially not knowing for sure if it is a tool you will definitely want to use regularly.
SO, I decided to conduct my own experiment with what I could find easily. In the children's craft aisle at the Dollar store I found a package of foam beads.

the foam is thick enough and dense enough to hold the pins in place.......you simply insert the pin into your quilt sandwich, slip a foam shape on the end (make sure the pin is well inserted but not protruding out the other side)

 For this test, I pin basted

  and then machine basted with wash away thread, removing the foam and pins as I went along

 This actually worked quite well, the layers stayed together, no shifting, and now I can easily maneuver this piece to do the intricate stitching I have planed. (once the stitching is complete I will use a paint brush and water to dissolve the wash away thread)
Would I try this on a full size bed quilt? No, not likely, but it certainly works great for smaller pieces ( the test subject is roughly 30"square) it did save me a bit of time, no sore fingers and by doing it this way I can move the quilt through the machine much more freely......no pins or long thread basting to get caught up on.