Looks like RD pretty well covered it all but the psychiatrist of your choice.
If you need links for where to buy all that great stuff or need more specifics, we should be able to point you in the right direction.
Search ebay for T18 tips or google. Different people like different profiles. General the wider larger tips will work better, they hold more heat and provide more surface contact but for small stuff (smd) you need smaller tips. I have a few different profiles and it depends on what I’m soldering as to which tip I use.
Definitely what RD listed above, also add a good reserve of patience and your ready 
any particular brands of the consumable goods you recommend? i've got the Advil and band aids so far...
Where are you from? Do you have a local Harbor Freight nearby?
yes. got some tweezers and helping hands from there.
Solder Soldering wire
Flux Which solder paste, please?
Silicone wire from ebay or hobby shops. You might want some 24AWG, 20AWG and I like 22 AWG as general purpose wire.
Most all the other stuff RD mentioned can be purchased at Fasttech.
When you head back to HF you might pick this up http://www.harborfreight.com/6-piece-precision-pliers-set-31675.html
Almost ever piece will come in handy at some point in this crazy hobby. Lowes also has a similar set and seem high quality, but the price is quite higher to.
Illumination supply and mountain electronics are two top notch US suppliers for modding stuff. IS has Teflon wire that has a nice, slick, tough cover, and ME has silicon wire that is very flexible but not as tough. Both resist heat well. Check over both sites as they differ in product lines. Bookmark both, along with Fasttech, cnqg, international outdoor supply, and whatever threads you find helpful. There are plenty of others as well.
Hemostats cab be very handy.
I can already tell your not going to save much out of your pay check this week.
You better hang on to your wallet, its about to take a rough ride. :bigsmile:
Yeah, my wallet and CC is still smoking, my wife is going to kill me when she sees all the stuff I have been buying...even on "budget" ;)
You have to try your best to beat her to the mailbox and hope she doesn’t see the charges from her bank account.
Notice I said her bank account, its really mine and she refers to it as ours. 
What’s yours is mine and what’s mine is mine.
I don’t have a bank account, I have a wind tunnel
I still need a reflow station, and to build the Walmart arduino reflow oven
FastTech sell some useful things. Hakko 0.5mm tip. The ‘mechanic’ solder paste is good for reflow. I have been using the 1.5mm solder braid. This Goot flux is good for soldering onto things that don’t really want to be soldered to. Some magnifier glasses like these can help.
ESD tweezers:
http://www.fasttech.com/product/1568808
Do you have a multimeter (ideally one that can measure up to 10A current, and continuity beep/diode test)? They’re pretty useful too for diagnosing any problems. Other than that, some isopropyl alcohol to clean up. A good desolder pump is useful too.
@chloe I didn’t have any luck using the goot flux. Is there something I might have did wrong. I purchased it to solder to aluminum pills which is about impossible anyways.
I haven’t tried soldering to aluminium with it yet (only brass, battery connectors, neodymium magnets; it spits quite a bit so I wear safety glasses). Have you tried it on bare aluminium? I think you need to remove the oxide layer first with a wire/glass fibre brush.
The only thing I can say is that the FT wire is no good at all. When I was first starting out I tried that particular wire along with a few others from FT and they were no good. Get some Kester or MG Chemicals wire and you'll be much happier.
Looks like everyone else has got most of the bases covered!
do you know if that tip will fit an 888D? thanks..
The 900 series tips supposedly will fit, but the new T-18 tips are specified for that model. They are fairly pricey @ $5-$10 each. There are some posts over at EEV that have users saying a 900 will fit on the 888, but it is not “snug” and perhaps could result in a looser fit and thus, a cooler temp. There are also some product catalogs which describe the T-18 as an “updated” 900 series tip. Going totally off brand with generic tips can be really hit or miss.
As cheap as generics are, I would sure try some to find a few that would fit.
I would also consider getting a square of cement rock or other robust inflammable substrate for a firm base for high temp work. I have also seen a high temp silicone baking mat used. Some people also utilize a jig to hold components securely.
My .02 worth? Allis Tissue Forceps for clamping onto small objects, like holding extra 7135 chips to a driver, for soldering, or for holding any small parts, even for soldering while clamping. Ebay search link here.
I use 60/40 rosin core solder. It's because it melts at a fairly low temp and because it flows well. I also use a container of rosin flux and a tiny paint brush, like the ones for paint by number kits. I flux everything I solder. Flux makes the solder flow so easily. If you don't like the flux residue, you can clean it up with alcohol.