Hello from Ontario, Canada. There is nothing wrong with stitch in the ditch (STD) quilting. For free motion quilting (FMQ) you will need a darning or FMQ foot for your machine. I like to lower my feed dogs, some people cover theirs and others FMQ with them up.
There are numerous ways for putting on patterns to quilt with: Pounce and chalk, Golden Threads paper, tear away pattern papers, wash away pens (always try on scraps first) Glad Press & Seal (you use a sharpie to mark the plastic, place it on the quilt and quilt through the plastic and then tear it off) or plain tissue paper etc. Everyone has a favourite method, you'll need to experiment. Good luck!