got the Cameo Silhouette and it works!!
 

I ended up getting the Cameo Silhouette on sale at Michael's and have finally gotten a chance to use it! I did a fusible backed pumpkin (from their library) and maple leaves (came with the cutter) and all worked excellently. I had a table topper made with a tumbler ruler from Missouri Star Quilt Co in fall colors and put the pumpkin and leaves on a brown blender backing. I then put the quilt on the frame with the backing on top and quilted around the appliqued pumpkin/leaves. Now I have taken it off and flipped it and will quilt a filler around the "applique" design and borders. Once I get it done I'll post a picture.

Really pleased with the Silhouette--know it will never take the place of a rotary cutter/ruler, but for applique and for the "weird" shapes I want for art quilts, it's great. Plus my DD and DIL are asking for some paper and vinyl cut-outs for home décor and scrapbooking. And the directions talk about using it to cut stencils--something I'd never even thought about!

Thank you to all that gave me ideas on choosing a cutter!

I like my Silhouette too! I just wish I had more time to play. I want to try vinyl and still haven't had a chance.

glad to hear that you like it... sounds like a great machine

I am in the process of cutting the Southern Gentleman pattern from Fatcat patterns with my Silhouette Cameo...it is really a time-saving machine!

I'll have to check into this one. I need something to may my cutting easier! Thanks for sharing!

There's software called Embrilliance Essentials by BriTon Leap, Inc that lets you save the tack down step of an applique digitized design as a Silhouette file. You open the design in EE and save the first step as a silhouette file. You take that file and open it up on the silhouette and it will cut out the perfect piece of material for stitching it out. When you buy the program and load it on your PC or Mac there is a free update to do the applique part. It is a program that lets you combine, overlap, convert or split designs. It costs about $150 but is easy to use. If you are embroidering a quilt with a lot a applique designs it will make things go faster for sure. You can have it on more than one computer at a time. There are not many programs that work on the Mac.