*shrug* see what I did was farm all my stuff ... up to 62.0 I have only spent about 50-60k on alchemy (imagery included) to lvl it that is, lol when i am lazy and need to craft something for myself on the other hand i tend to buy some stuff -.-going to 40 took me about 4 days maybe 5, going from 40-60 took me 3 months, lack of supplies and lack of good synths.
and the difference between alchemy and other crafts is, alchemy relies on only a few items to sell, because god knows the others don't nor won't, more so at low levels. but then again, you should choose a craft that if it's not going to make you money, that you can at least use, hence my choosing alchemy as my main and I am doing woodworking to 60, I can make most of my tools for nin( the important ones =p), make arrows and bolts for rng, can make arrow heads and bolt heads for rng and thf, and can make silents for what ever job I need em for ^^
but if you are really looking for money ... cooking seems to be the only craft that isn't suffering greatly ( more so on the fish area =p )