When I started my new hobby, I scrounged stuff from around the house to get started. Scissors and tape, card, paper and toppers (old cards, cut up to make new ones). I also have a printer but if you don't have one, don't worry.
Now I've collected a fair bit of kit, but I recommend you gather momentum slowly - it's more fun.
Two more pieces of my essentials are my scoreboard and my guillotine.
small scoreboard for portability
This scoreboard isn't the absolute best, but it's portable, easy to fit in a bag if you're going outside to a craft class etc and it has envelope score marks on the back.
The other essential item is my guillotine.
one bugbear I have is that it only has metric measurements and I like inches too
If you're an absolute beginner and you're following my destructions... I mean instructions, please note, I'm by no means an expert but I AM an enthusiastic amateur.
For a simple box, take two pieces of card - same size is best, different colours if you like.
Score all four sides at exactly the same measurement on ONE piece of card.
Fold along the score lines.
Cut one corner. I used the most basic cut, along one crease/fold, turn the box, cut at the same position for all four corners.
Double-sided tape on the corner (assemble the box before you put the tape on to make sure) and I recommend the corners go on the inside of the box, so the tape is hidden.
Ta-DAA!
For the lid, the box is made in the same way, but the measurements have to be a little bigger in order to fit over the box.
Complicated instructions ahead:
Because the measurements on my scoreboard are not small enough, I decided to go in between. I scored half of the box (one short edge and one long edge) at the same as the previous box and the other half at slightly smaller - paradoxically, this makes the lid a little bigger.
The finished article:
Decorate the lid as you wish, if you stick pictures or toppers onto the lid, I recommend you do that before assembling the lid so you don't crush it when sticking them on.
Also, a lid made of contrasting card or specialist paper looks effective too.