pie crust

Be very sure to mix minimally, chill before rolling, roll only as much as you need to, and chill again once you've lined the tart pan before baking. Working a dough too much and not allowing it to chill and relax before baking will result in too much gluten which causes the dough to not only be tough, but shrink as well.

Thanks for all the tips. I'll try again tonight!

What size tart pan are you using? You might need to make more dough if it is bigger than what the recipe calls for. To expand on mrslarkin's comments on scrunching, you could roll your dough bigger than necessary, then fold the excess back in and press so that the walls are doubled up. (I do this all time).
Also what type of fat/shortening are you using? Butter, lard, veg shortening or a combo of those are best; margarine or oil can be tricky (possibly slumpy). Last, to answer your question about re-using beans: you wouldn't want to cook/eat them but you can re-use them as pie weights.

is the dough different from the rolling out dough?

here's the video where Amanda describes that "puff and sink" thing that happens! http://food52.com/blog/1826_how_to_make_a_pressin_crust

great. i will try that. thanks so much for your help. this is such a persnickety process!

Are you re-baking it with the pumpkin filling? If you are, then you don't need to re-bake the crust alone. Just try to get the crust golden when baking it with the filling

i'm filling it with pumpkin. i was scared that i would over baking. should i throw it back before filling it with the pumpkin?

From your photo, the crust doesn't appear to be baked enough. What are you filling it with? If it is going to baked again with the filling it may need a little longer than the normal baking time in order for the crust to be baked. If it is going to be filled but not re-baked, you may want to try putting it back into the oven without the parchment etc to get it more done.

ok. That's a big tart pan. so you'll need to use it a little differently than a pie tin. When using a tart pan, you definitely want to be generous with the sides of the crust, so don't trim off a lot of dough. In fact, some bakers scrunch down the sides instead of trimming it off, to offset that exact problem. I'll try to find some links on that - I've seen it recently.

is it still usable?

this is what my crust looks like...

There are two steps to blind baking. First step is as you did it -- parchment paper with weights. Usually you bake it covered for 15-20 min until the edges beging to turn golden. Then the 2nd step is to remove the parchment and weights and cont baking the crust until the whole thing is golden; usually another 10 min. Chilling the pie crust before beginning this process is also important

it collapses, like it doesnt stick to the tin and it shrinks down the crust and moves away from the wall.

I'm curious, was it one of these videos with Dorie Greenspan, Amanda and Merrill?
http://vimeo.com/15251499
http://vimeo.com/15247067
This article might also be helpful: http://food52.com/blog/3880_conquering_pie_crust
Not sure what you mean by "deflates and falls". Do you mean your top crust, like on an apple pie, deflates? Personally, I prefer a pie without all that negative space between the apples and the top crust, so deflating is a good thing in my book.

what does it mean to blind-bake? this is what i did yesterday: after i formed my dough, i rolled it and placed it on the pie tin immediately. poked holes, then placed a piece of parchment paper before i put the weights on it. then baked at 350*. can you tell me where i went wrong please? i've tried several times but i have never had a successful pie crust...thank you!

In addition to Kristen's suggestions, if you are blind baking it, roll the dough and fit it into your pie pan and then prick the bottom of the crust with a fork and then chill

A couple tips: Make sure the pie crust is well chilled after you've rolled it out, but before you bake it. Leave it in the fridge for 30 minutes or so in the pie pan -- this will help create steam and flaky layers in the oven.

And are you blind-baking the crust? That would be a big help, if not. Make sure the sides are firm and dry before removing the baking weights, so they won't collapse.