Samlydia

Hi, I'm new to this forum but hoping someone can help me out with some info! Me and my girlfriend travelled Australia a few years ago and have decided we'd like to try and migrate over without sponsorship, but we've started looking at the costs of skilled migration and noticed it is possible to cut a chunk out by not hiring a migration agent and doing it yourself. Does anyone have experience of this? If so how easy is it, and is there anywhere you can recommend for me to do my skills assessment which the Australian Government website says you need (I'm a vehicle painter), and also the English test? Do I have to complete the sills test and English test before lodging my EOI? Would be grateful for any information or help, cheers! Sam