I haven't hand appliqued in awhile, but FWIW here's my info. The blind hem stitch is the one where most of the stitch is buried in the fold. Ami Simms does it this way. You bring your needle up through the background fabric, then take a stitch along the fold so thread is buried inside the fold, then take the needle down through the background fabric.
Some appliquers just use an overcast stitch, though. I had difficulty with the blind hem, so I used an overcast. I would bring the needle straight up from underneath to catch 2 threads of the fold, then go straight back down. I carried the stitch underneath the fabric.
I was taught needle-turn applique, which doesn't use freezer paper. For this method, you trace your outline lightly in pencil on the good side of the fabric. Rough cut around the outline, and pin the piece where it belongs, using at least 2 pins so it doesn't move. Applique pins help with this, as they are very short and don't get in your way. You fine-cut 1/8th to 1/4th of an inch out from your pencil outline only a couple of inches at a time (not the whole applique piece at one time). Fold under about an inch at a time and hand stitch until you need to cut some more. Clip in to within a couple of threads of your penciled outline only where you have to, on inside curves or corners (such as the indentation of a heart motif).