D00M99

Hey all! New member to the forums here. Found my way here after my friend instilled hype and a revived love of Lego after we went to watch The Lego Movie. Which was, of course, AWESOME. I'm interested in the world of Minifig customization, and my question to the community is how do you get started? And I don't mean the research and reading bits, I've found lots of helpful tutorials, methods, tips, and tricks from various places, as well a s this forum. What I'm curious about are the minifigs you use. Where do you buy them for cheap? What existing parts and accessories are the most easily modifiable? Do "minifig blanks" exist? And what do you personally use? I'm all up for from-scratch modifications, sculpting, repaints, decals as fun and fair game, so any advice on purchasing figures for modification would be helpful. Thanks!