Steve,
I am not the applique expert on this site by any means. I am a beginner! I use the same little tiny stitch that I try to hide to the best of my ability on my applique and my pseudo Hawaiian attempt.
There are other stitches to use on applique and other techniques. You can do raw edge appliue, machine applique, etc. The list is endless, I am sure!
I recommed that you hit the search button at the top of the page, type in applique and then read through the applique notes there and then google it and then find a book or two and read and then listen to what Leslee has to tell you.
Eventually you will find a style that you like best OR you'll find that you do not like applique at all. The main reason I am learning to applique is that all the quilts I like best have some. Grr! I prefer machine piecing traditional quilts. It's just that I'm not a patient person. I want it done yesterday, thank you very much! I'm working on realizing that I'm not working for someone else any longer and my time is my own. I need to RELAX! Oh, yeah, I'm doing real good on that!