Hi! And welcome!!
I use the old Creative Memories software, so am no help with tips/tutorials for you. Sorry!! But maybe this will help.
http://www.mousescrappers.com/forums...lay.php?f=9678 There haven't been many posts in that thread for a while, but the tutorials might still be valid.
Here is a list of our site's sponsors; that might help you with a "jumping off point of designers"
http://www.mousescrappers.com/forums/Sponsor.php
And here is a great forum that shows you different kits based on themes (some posted kits may no longer be around since that thread has been around forever and kits are sometimes retired)
http://www.mousescrappers.com/forums...lay.php?f=9608
And lastly, my biggest learning experience when I joined was to dig in the gallery. When I saw something I liked, I looked at the credits and then went and searched for the kit that was used
I hope you find some inspiration and help! If you have any additional questions, let us know!