Isn't that the truth, Lorraine. I've never seen so much money fly out of my wallet before.
I'm very, very fortunate in that my husband is a plumber and a gasfitter, and he also does a fair bit of electrical work, AND he knows a lot of people in the trades so anything he couldn't do himself like build the ventilation, he could get it done for cost. I got a LOT of stuff for cheap or free, the technical stuff that is most important but least fun to spend money on.
Even with this benefit, it still cost me thousands to get set up. Fortunately I had the money; my husband had been receiving Christmas bonuses for several years and he always gave me some, but there wasn't anything I ever wanted to really spend my money on until I discovered glass.
I remember seeing a lady on Etsy wanting to do glass as a "quick way to make money". I think she figured she could just get a torch and start cranking out the fifty dollar bead sets. Me and HelensHarvest gave her the heads-up as to equipment requirements, costs, etc and she sounded a little miffed about it all.