Here's what I was talking about to make your own scrims for diffusing direct light.
I used to pick up cheap, thin white fabric for them. I like the kind pictured, because it has the wood blocks where it's tensioned, and that's a convenient place to clamp it to a support. It also gives you something to screw to, if you want to mount a flat support to it and extends back to the light mount, so there aren't so many supports in the way.
And there are all these collapsible discs with scrims and different color reflectors.
Amazon.com: Neewer 110CM 43" 5-in-1 Collapsible Multi-Disc Light Reflector: Camera & Photo
I see a lot of lighting sets being offered with photo florescent lamps. I must say I've never worked with photo florescents, but it strikes me that most of them are underpowered, even if they're truthful about their light output. You want considerable light, in order that you have as much latitude for depth of field as possible, especially when you will lose a lot in reflectors or diffusers, without running into extremely long exposures that can produce odd sensor responses. But I see that even basic Smith-Victor quartz set-ups have gotten ridiculously expensive.
But this is a photo accessory for $22.
While this is less than $10 at a hardware store.
If you can swing the ready-to-go photo lighting set, go for it. I was just too broke way back when I was beginning as a serious photographer, and out of necessity, I made or adapted everything I could.
Oh. And look at this.
Amazon.com: XPRO 36"x36" Studio Photography Light Tent - Dome - Cube - Box: Camera & Photo
I wouldn't buy one. They're too easy to build to suit the size you want. Light wooden frames, Hula Hoops, etc. for frames and thin cloth. You shoot through a hole in the front. Shadowless, and easy to avoid reflections in glazed plates and glassware.
