To avoid buying things repeatedly, stay away from wood or glass items when you can. Stick to stainless steel (especially your soap pot), silicone, and plastic. Glass can shatter under the heat of mixing lye, so the only glass I use is a measuring cup for my initial lye measure - no moisture ever reaches it that way.
Also, I wouldn't bother with FOs to start. Play with colors (you get can get a lot out of natural spices in your kitchen, mixed with olive oil) and textures and get to know oil properties. Scent is what drives the cost up, at least for me, and I use high quality oils.
P.S. I would suggest no canola. It gets rancid (DOS) sooner than others, and as a beginner I found that very frustrating and upsetting (I would suggest avoiding Grapeseed, Safflower, and Sunflower at the beginning for the same reason.) For cheap, good soap base, you can get a 5lb bucket of lard for around $3-4 at Walmart, and no, it doesn't smell "porky" when you're done!