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The common notion about C-41 (color negative) processing is that it's too complicated and difficult to easily do at home. This couldn't be further from the truth: it's easy. If you can process black-and-white, you can do C-41. Here are step-by-step instructions to get you started.
I'm assuming you already know how to process black-and-white. If you don't know how to process film at all, start with black-and-white, not color.
What you need
If you're already processing black-and-white film, you have everything you need except the chemicals. You do not need an automatic processing machine. Those Jobo machines are expensive, and I don't even see them for sale anywhere any more. You also do not need a darkroom, just load your film into the tank in a changing bag as with black-and-white.
The only thing to check is that your thermometer reads high enough for color processing. You need one that will read well above 100°F or 40°C. Some thermometers made for black-and-white processing at room temperature don't read that high. You also don't want one that only reads two-degree increments, and half-degrees would be best (but not strictly necessary).
For chemicals, the easiest way to get started is the Tetenal C-41 Press Kit. All the chemicals you need are included, in powder form, so you can order it online and have it shipped without problem. It's $20, makes one liter of each chemical, and will process 12 rolls.
The kit may arrive branded as Jobo rather than Tetenal. It's the same thing.
Kodak's chemistry for small-tank development is called “Flexicolor SM” and has separate bleach and fixer. Good luck finding it. Apparently B&H can order it for you, but they cannot ship it, so you'd have to go to the store in Manhattan to get it. Flexicolor Final Rinse is easier to get than the others because it can be shipped legally, but avoid the guy on eBay selling a bottle for over $50; it should only cost a couple dollars. B&H will ship it to you on a special order. You can use Flexicolor Final Rinse instead of the stabilizer in the Tetenal kit.
Freestyle Photo is now selling the Rollei/Compard Digibase C-41 kit, in several sizes, which comes in liquid concentrate (better than powder) and has separate bleach and fixer. This may now be the best option, but unfortunately B&H doesn't sell it. Even worse news: the kit costs $23.99, and Freestyle has a $25 minimum for orders.
Finally, Photographer's Formulary has released a C-41 developer, which is Kodak's chemistry repackaged in a convenient size to make one liter. Unfortunately, it's $29 plus shipping for a one-liter kit, and specifies to use the developer one-shot, which means four rolls of 35mm film; this makes it very expensive unless you actually can re-use the developer as expected (I have not tried this chemistry).
You will need three (or four, if using separate bleach and fixer) one-liter bottles to store the mixed chemicals. These are disappearing from B&H, but they still have a small selection. Fancy glass bottles are actually cheaper than plastic. Or, wash out and use plastic soda bottles.
Timing needs to be more exact than with black-and-white, so don't use an egg timer. Shameless plug: if you need a simple timer, and you already have an iPhone or iPod Touch, I wrote one you can buy for a dollar that works just like the timer on your microwave oven.
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