Welcome to TSD! Not sure if you will be able to save money, since there is such a wide variety of products to try, but you can find plenty of enablers and advice to get better shaves.
Hello from Belgium and welcome on the forum. Never shave in a hurry with a straight. Straight is a way to zen. It teaches you to take the just time to do the just movement. It is the bathroom tai-chi.
I had a major fail the first time I used a shavette. After watching many videos on straight razor shaving, I got a loaner setup from @DaltonGang and then I was hooked. I shave with straights on Saturdays. I have 11 straights and three shavettes that I am rotating through. It is fun. I discovered it is skin prep, a light touch, shallow angle, and skin stretching that makes for a successful straight razor shave.
If the shavette is a slide type with the triangular cross section you can use that angle as a guide for the angle of the shave.If it is swinglock or one of the slide lock that use the rectangular arm ,well you are on your own.They require a better level of concentration and a light touch.Think of them as advanced level shaving .
No, nothing local at this point. I wouldn't even know where to go for anything shave related locally. So I stick to AoS if I happen to get to a store, Gents barbershop in Cranston has some good stuff but it's all big brands (as far as I can tell) and Amazon for everything else. I know there's a barber shop called Chez Moustache on Fox Point in Providence but I don't think they actually sell any shave related stuff per se. But, if there's a local place you know about worth checking out please let me know.
No nothing .I haven't been to any of the barbershop seems odd and probably expensive to buy retail when they are geared to cut If you get to nyc check out Pasteur pharmacy if you haven't