i use SMD all the time. hand solder everything (qfp80, 603 resisters/caps, etc)

i have never used the toaster oven to solder (i know many have), but i have used it to remove an expensive qfp64 several times. works great! going from memory, most devices can't go higher than 430 F or so. Professional reflow ovens do a preheat/conditioning and then quickly bring everything up to optimal temperature and cool down. you'll want to read up on reflow stages and try to emulate them best you can if you plan on assembling boards that way. For my purposes (just taking stuff off), i preheat to 400F, stick board in for about 30 seconds, then take off my part before it cools down.

Keep in mind you should NEVER use a toaster oven for food after its been used for reflow. Also make sure to do it in a well ventilated area.

i've tried etching my own boards, i was turned off a bit by it for a few reasons:
1) you're dealing with strong acids and bases
2) trace width is higher than many fab houses
3) you still have to manually drill all your own holes/vias which sucks if you have a complicated board (or small vias)
4) no soldermask, so harder to solder high pincount surface mount

i go to pcbfabexpress to get my boards made, i end up with 5 boards for $80 (including shipping), includes soldermask and silkscreen