Did you buy TB on GOG or Steam? If you have the Steam version achievements don't transfer to Gwent. If you have the GOG version sometimes it takes a couple of hours, or even a couple of days for them to show up.
It doesn't look like they're planning to allow crafting premiums with scrap in the future. On the up side, all that scrap will be super useful when the expansion comes out.
It's hard to tell from your description what's happening.
If you use your leader before you play a card, the game won't let you pass until you play one from your hand. Could that be the issue?
If you're playing casual, my suggestion would be to play ranked. Sometimes there's just not much you can do though. :)
Good luck and here's hoping for a win streak!