How do you MOC?

Poly 30286 · 2016-07-06T16:56:25.000Z

How do you MOC? I'm curious where the best place to start is. I know some use digital designers, but I could never get the hang of it. I'm a very hands on type of person, but I don't really know the fastest/cheapest/best way to get a bunch of new bricks to experiment with. Rebrickable likes to point out that you can build a lot from GBHQ, but that's a bit higher than my price point for dabbling. Any ideas?