Welcome to the board. I purchased my mat and rotary cutter at JAF (JoAnn's) when they have the quilting items on sale. I prefer the rotary cutter from Olfa and the mat from Omnigrid (found online at JAF). I have been quilting for almost 30 years and I am very impressed with the expensive Creative Grid rulers. They don't slide when you are cutting.
You may want to think about making a wall hanging out of your fabrics. They don't need washing as much as a bed quilt.