Originally Posted by thepolyparrot

If you have an early Touch & Sew, you probably have everything you need for applique right there in that machine except for maybe the cam that makes the blind hem stitch and an applique foot. The earlier T&S's were great machines. :)

My little Brother CS6000 is probably like yours - it has all kinds of decorative stitches and stitches that would be useful for machine applique and I think it came with the applique foot, too.

The Brother *may* handle the invisible nylon thread a little better than the T&S, but maybe not. My T&S's do just fine with any kind of thread I give them, but every machine is a little bit different.

You can find cording, piping, couching & overedge feet for either of your machines.

I just did my first Baltimore Album style block - and I mean "just" - I washed it and pressed it only a couple of hours ago. :) I'm amazed that I really did it - I never dreamed that I could do something this precise, but aside from the rather tedious preparation, it was actually easy.

Mine will be all hand work, but the samples they had up in the store used a variety of methods - starched & turn under, fused and turned under, fused and raw-edge, fused and zig-zagged - and they were all beautiful! :)

Good luck and have a good time with it.

Originally Posted by sueisallaboutquilts

If I were in your position I would go with a Bernina. They are fabulous machines!! :D