Our Recommendation:  

What to buy as a beginning Ply-Split Braider

1. Four or more our cotton cords in different colors. 
           Buy Cords

2. A Gripfid or a set of three Gripfids.
           Buy Gripfids

3. Book, Ply-Split Braiding an Introduction.  
           Buy book

Before buying any of these, read our page on "Getting Started in Ply-Split Braiding".  After you give it a try and find how much fun it is, you will ultimately want to come back to buy your own cord maker and more advanced books.  Or you can take an intermediate step of buying more cords for larger projects like mats, necklaces, and baskets. 

And don't forget to look for classes in your area.  Here are the ones we know about:  Classes