First play through I found out a trick for getting a pretty damn high Black Smithing.

Just make sure to raise it up to 32-ish before winter, then when winter hits plant an entire field of leeks. Do nothing that season but forge Two Leaks, by using two leaks. You will get such a damn high skill and a lot of money selling them all.

And I don't think you should really throw in the skills of eating, sleeping, and walking when explaining why it's more expansive then Skyrim's, that just starts to make your argument sound silly.