WARNING ON MODGE PODGE...
I'm not really sure why modge podge madness seems to be flying around town.
2 of my concerns (and yes, I've used modge podge before so I speak from experience - I mean that in a nice way...it sounds so snotty

):
1. Even when it is dry it can still be sticky. For example, if it's in the sunlight (or ANY kind of heat) and you have modge podge on pages of an album you'll find that the pages stick together.
2. I would check the label to make sure it's acid free.
The slicer thing being referred to is the paper cutter. ;-) I've owned a few in my day and I love my Cutterpede has been my favorite. I had problem with the crappy blade on the Fiskars one and it never cut exactly straight. Again, I'd recommend the Cutterpede. It looks like this:
http://myscrapsandscribbles.com/store/store.php?crn=74&rn=2828&action=show_detail
Yes, this will break the bank! If you're going to Michael's those 40% off coupon ads they run are ESSENTIAL!
I would recommend not going crazy and buying everything you see that excites you at once. For example, I love chipboard letters that come in a lot of colors. However, I have never bought any b/c I can't afford it! And if you just buy plain, uncolored chipboard you can always purchase cheap acrylic paint and paint them any color you want!
If you like a little sparkle you can buy some of the really fine glitter in the stamping section to jazz up your elements!
Here's what the crop-a-dile someone mentioned (mimi I think?) looks like:
http://www.joann.com/joann/catalog.jsp?CATID=cat3113&PRODID=prd61518
I LOVE my Cutter Bee retractable "x-acto" knife. BRILLIANT! It looks like this:
http://www.joann.com/joann/catalog.jsp?CATID=cat2786&PRODID=prd48014
Sandpaper is handy if you want to distress anything yourself. And I also like inking my edges as Colleen mentioned but I have to say I prefer the Versa Dew Drops to the Cat Eye's (only b/c I find that the foam has separated from the base a few times in my experience from the plastic holder on the Cat Eyes).
And those photo mounting squares are ESSENTIAL for adhering photos, paper, anything. And I LOVE my glue dots!
GOOD LUCK!!
Edited: Modge Podge definitely has it's place! If you are embellishing a box or a canvas I will agree that it's great for that kind of application! (love ya Col!)