Also, if you're low on cash (after getting the Mining and Blacksmithing skills on my lvl 70 pala to 450, I was left with about 95s and shitloads of saronite, some titanium, and about a stack of Titansteel, across him AND my main) then farming is in fact free, as you simply cannot afford to just buy the stuff you'd be making anyway.

I don't even have enough money to buy recipes. I'm having to coax guidies into supplying the recipe for the thing I craft for them, and in return I'll cover all the mats.

I actually had to ask my GM for 12 gold to train the iLvl 200 shield I'd convinced him to let me make for him to help him prepare for Naxx. In that case, I just can't buy stuff. I have to supply my own mats.

In fact, I could almost craft TWO sets of Hellfrozen Bonegrinders, if I had the Primordial Saronites. If I could find someone with enough money to "sponsor" me with some saronites, I could take it out of the cost of their piece, but that doesn't appear to be how things work. It's all very sad, I've been longingly dreaming about sticking up some cutting edge epics and raking several thousand gold more than I've ever had in a single auction, but it's proving to be frustratingly hard. ;(