can't afford to have my quilt finished at the store, need help doing it at home

[bebedechocolate]

I made a big 70" X 70" quilt for my daughter. (well, quilt top).  I was thinking about having the quilting and binding done at the quilt shop down the street. The issues is that now their prices went up and for a quilt that size, the quilting and binding will cost meover $100.  I am willing to do it myself but I am sooooo worried about messing it up.   I have a Singer Simple sewing machine that I hate but can't afford to replace right now.  Does anyone have suggestions for me?  If there are awesome tutorials out there for quilting and binding at home (without a fancy machine) I would really appreciate links. 

I have plenty of fabric so I could make a test sample quilt if I needed something to get the hang of it before I try it on her big quilt.

[anaximander]

Well, to start, have it priced out separately - you may find that it's cheaper to do the binding yourself and have them quilt the top. A lot of longarmers don't like doing binding, and it has to be done by hand, and takes hours, so that may be the expensive part.

Were I in your shoes, I'd see if I can find a walking foot - it's easier than trying to free motion, and produces a better look. You can stitch in the ditch between the blocks with little practice. The foot helps you feed things evenly, for a better look. There are loads of posts on here, and all over the internet, about using a walking foot to quilt - it's very beginner friendly.

[bananabanana]

You have a lucky daughter.
I would make a practise quilt (lap quilt size perhaps?) and start practising your quilting. You will definitely need a walking foot. But straight lines are quite easy.
One tip I have is don't roll the quilt up to get it in where you need to sew it. That is most unweildy. Instead, just bunch it up and shove it under.

[shout4joy]

I like to use gloves with grip for machine quilting on my dsm (domestic sewing machine). You can get Machingers or buy gardening gloves with grip. Make sure they aren't long on your fingers as that tip can get caught up in your quilting (not a good thing!).

some good sites:

http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/machine-quilting-tips-and-tricks.html
though I prefer to "puddle" or smoosh my quilts under the machine rather than roll them up...rolling them up is a pita

http://www.patsythompsondesigns.com/free-video/
I love this quilter's stuff

http://www.generations-quilt-patterns.com/how-to-machine-quilt.html
this one is pretty good for straight line quilting

JOY

[Eowynt]

One big key to machine quilting is to do a really good job of preparing you quilt sandwich first.  Your backing should be really taut on the table (or whatever surface you use), and baste well.  When hand quilting, I can compensate for a little slack on the back, but machine quilting is less forgiving.  A large dose of patience helps, too!

[shout4joy]

  Your backing should be really taut on the table (or whatever surface you use), and baste well.  When hand quilting, I can compensate for a little slack on the back, but machine quilting is less forgiving. 

this!

I like to starch my backs as that seems to help them, too