ennoh

I am new to quilting but have just realised that I will have to get another sewing machine. I have a Bernina Nova 900 which is about 30 years old - all metal parts, runs like a dream and is still going strong. Earlier this year I made my first quilt - all hand done though I will have to send it away to get finished off by a professional quilter. Now I'm hooked and can see so much scope for making wall hangings, runners, quilts and so forth.
I found an amazing book by Michele Hill called "William Morris in Appliqué and I want to do some appliqué by machine using blanket stitch - but - shock horror! - my trusty Bernina doesn't do blanket stitch! Where I live, it seems that the big brands are Pfaff, Bernina, Janome and Brother. I don't know enough to work out the features I need - but if I want to do appliqué and get into quilting in a bigger way (short of buying a long arm quilter - which to me, is for the professionals - which I will never be!!) then I would love to hear any suggestions as to what machine would be good for me. What brand is best - or what model? I know that machines are expensive so I could look for a second hand one from someone who is upgrading....
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.