A lost newbie in need of starting guidance

Rather than use two motors on the green wheels I suggest you use one motor and have a rotary encoder on the other wheel. Use the encoder to measure distance - as it will not be driving it will not be at risk of slipping.

And, if you have a rotary encoder you might consider whether a simple DC motor would be sufficient for moving the wire.

Separately from that, I can't see that a stepper motor is needed for the cutting blade - again, a simple DC motor, perhaps driving a screw and nut mechanism would probably be sufficient.

Just my 3cents

...R
Stepper Motor Basics
Simple Stepper Code