Crafting linocuts requires very few tools so it is quite easy to get started. Essentially you need good, sharp cutting blades to gouge out the lino. If the blades are not sharp then you risk tearing the lino and removing bits that you weren't intending to. This would spoil your linocut and you'd have to start it again on a fresh piece of lino.
The tool that I use has only one handle and several interchangeable blades. It is simple to change the heads and takes up very little storage space too. This can be seen in the picture below.
The blade heads simply push into the top of the handle. To remove each blade, a wooden stick that came with the tool is pushed up the centre of the handle and the blade is pushed out.
The blades come in various shapes for cutting in different ways. I will demonstrate these different uses in detail on a different page (coming soon). You can see how I have used a couple of the blades on the page 'Cutting a linocut image'. The blades can be straight, V-shaped or U-shaped, as shown in the picture below.
When cutting out, you don't want to damage your worksurface or have your lino slipping around so it is best to have something to lean on to work. You can just use a non-slip crafter's cutting mat (self-healing mat), which many crafters already have in their equipment stash! I find though that it is really useful to use a wooden bench hook. The bench hook wedges against the edge of the table because of the wooden baton on the underside. This stops it from moving during use. The lino sits nicely against the wooden batons on the upper surface to prevent your work from slipping around while you cut. This can be seen in the picture below.
The other equipment that you will need to get started is your lino to cut, printing ink and your chosen material to print onto. If you are going to be printing onto fabric then you will want fabric printing inks so that they do not wash off when your fabric is washed.