Carrie,
Welcome. I have been sewing all of my life. I started with doll clothes when i was 8 or 9. My mother had a Singer featherweight that she let me use after I had sewn by hand for several years. I made my first quilt at 17 from scraps from all of the clothes I had made myself in my Junior and High school years. It ended it's life 15 years later as the thing my husband lays on when he changes the oil in the car.
My first quilt was handquilted with double thread and big knots. No one told me it should be single thread and to bury the knots.
Now I am good enough at it after 40 years of practice to get paid for quilting for other people.
I now own several Berninas but for years i sewed on a little freearm Kenmore I purchased from Sears for $139 when my daughter was born. My daughter is going to be 31 next week.
I only do machine quilting on Linus quilts or other projects for children as they will need to be laundered often. I do wash my handquilted items when necessary and usaully just stick them in the washer and dryer. I like handquilting because I can do it while watching TV or holding a conversation with my husband, family or friends. I find it very relaxing.
Start with a simple pattern so you don't get to frustrated and don't worry about it being perfect. If I worried about perfecton I would have two quilts finished not dozens and dozens. While I appreciate some of the "masterpieces" that are made what counts for me is that mine are done and usable.