G'day mate, and welcome to SA. Your story will be familiar to just about everyone on here, I can sure relate to it.
If you can get some SA back issues, Jan 2000 has a 'Getting Started' article, lists hobby knife, paint brushes, sanding sticks and assorted sandpaper, needle files, masking tape, toothpicks, various tweezers (absolute necessity), model cements and glues, and paints of course, both spray cans and brush. It then goes on to list intermediate and advance supplies, as you and your skills progress.
Get into it, mate, buy a kit or 3 and enjoy yourself. Cheers.
Steve