Making incense seal patterns looks elegant, but there are quite a few tools involved. Recognize all of these pieces and choose them correctly, and your first burner won't easily fall apart.
For making seal patterns, use a censer with a wide mouth and some depth, so it's convenient to spread the incense ash and place the incense seal mold. Beginners shouldn't use too precious a censer; a plain porcelain censer or a simple copper censer is enough for practice, and you won't feel bad if it drops.
The incense seal mold determines the pattern rubbed out, from simple meander patterns to the character Fu and lotus flowers. Beginners should choose a mold with thicker lines, which makes filling powder and lifting the seal easier to handle; once your hand is steady, then try the fine work.
The ash press is used to flatten and compact the incense ash, and the incense spatula is used to fill powder and lift the mold. If the ash surface isn't level, the incense seal easily falls apart; these two don't need to be expensive, but they must be handy, with clean edges.
Tools don't matter for being expensive, but for each piece being handy and clean.
Incense powder is the material itself for making seal patterns. Choosing pure agarwood powder or single-note incense powder with an upright aroma is the most reliable; don't start with complex blended incense formulas. The fineness of the powder also affects the incense produced: too coarse and it won't fill tightly, too fine and it tends to clump; medium-coarse is the most versatile. Beginners should first practice their feel with single-origin powder, and once familiar, then try blending.
If you don't want to buy separately, look for a beginner set: censer plus mold plus ash press plus incense spatula plus incense powder. Before buying, confirm the sizes match each other (the mold must fit into the censer mouth). If you want to feel the actual items, there are several incense vessels at the counter you can handle and compare.
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