I think you should step back a bit, and read for two or three months to let all of the different processes sink in. ( I wish i had done that myself, BIG TIME!) There is so much free, good information on this site, it boggles my mind, on a daily basis. Keep collecting your scrap, so you will be ready when the time comes to jump in if you decide to. If you decide this is not for you, you can always sell what you have accumulated on ebay. Definitely check out lasersteves site... lots of good videos. Start simple, if you have "fingers" to process, read up on that, and start there.
While i have had some success with amalgamite, it is really not economical, and has a steep learning curve to get satisfactory results in my opinion.