I had a Cricut, but never bought cartridges. I discovered 2 independent programs that would allow you to manipulate designs with just one cartridge, any cartridge. Called Sure Cuts a Lot, no longer supporting Cricut. Make the Cut is another one. There is a learning curve. But if you have time, it's cheaper. I had a problem with the way the Cricut cut. I now have the Silhouette Studio Pro and if they ever come out with fabric inks, I will have a blast.
I prefer to cut applique with scissors as I can use any scrap in whichever way I want and don't have to worry about it fitting a die or staying put on a cutting mat. Scissors take up less room. I don't do enough applique to bother, and the stuff I will do you mostly have to cut yourself. One was a wall hanging of Otters playing in the snow.
The Cricut, using SCAL, and now the Silhouette will cut those odd designs for you. So will the Brother. Accuquilt won't. (not enough demand to make dies - you can't blame them)
There is a tutorial on this site about using Gimp to design quilts. I use Illustrator. One thing about learning to use any program that deals with shapes and bezier curves - you have less trouble with any other design program. I had no problem drawing my own stuff in EQ5, it was more how the software dealt with saving and opening. If you are interested in doing your own stuff, read the tutorial for the insight. Once you see how stuff works, and understand it, the easier it is for you.