Hello Holly, and welcome from New Jersey.
"quilterscache.com" is a neat website with a variety of quilt blocks, with instructions to construct.
As far as building a stash, it will come naturally. When I shop for fabric, I'm like a kid in a candy store, I want one of each. I've been making quilts for 12 years, my advice would be to buy fabric needed for the project your working on. Otherwise, you'll end up with more fabric than you'll ever use in your lifetime.