I like my quarter inch guide foot, especially the one that has a wide slot for zigzag because my machine allows me to move the needle right or left by increments and get the exact distance I want. Also, if I use a straight stitch foot of any kind I tend to forget and risk breaking my needle. I invested too much money on other edge guiding gadgets that I regret. They help, but not much more than the edge guide foot, and of course they cross the bobbin cover and have to be removed frequently for that. Ugh! I sometimes use the knee lift, but after sewing for more than half a century without one, I can take it or leave it. It's nice if I'm sewing something that will have a lot of pivoting in it. I use the start/stop button sometimes. It kind of makes me nervous, and I feel I have more control with the foot pedal, especially if I have the machine speed set at max.
One recent purchase that was worth every penny was a bi-level foot. I learned about it from Rob Appell in one of his Man Sewing videos. He said it was commonly available, but I had never seen one before, and was surprised my dealer had it. It's a dream come true, letting me sew right along the edge of a binding very precisely. If you get one, be sure it has the bump on the left side because you usually can't put the entire quilt through the machine's throat to sew the binding down to the left of your needle. Ask me how I figured that out! The Baby Lock dealer was nice about exchanging it. Here's a demo:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2UbJ2In35qc
Welcome back to sewing!