Budgeting for art and craft work

It is getting harder and harder to make the pennies stretch and when I have to choose between Groceries or art I will always choose the groceries. How can I still do my art in this present economic situation.

Over the next few weeks I am going to present different ways to save money in art work. I have found a few great practical and easy ideas on how to do this. For the Fourth week of our journey I am going to look at ways to save on costs in .........

Tools

• Always buy the best sewing machine you can afford.  This will save you some much money in the long run.  Try looking around for good specials or decent second hand machines.  It amazes me how many people buy a machine and only use it a couple of times.  Take into account the how much it costs to service the machine,  replace needles,  to get new feet and how much parts are.  If the running costs are very high it may pay to buy a higher priced machine to start with.
• The other tool I reccomend you buy top quality is a rotary cutter.  I've tried cheaper ones but they don't last as long and I tend to cut myslef more with them.
• Buy a few high quality paint brushes rather than a bunch of cheap ones.  They will last longer,  give a better finish and be more versatile.
• Have a swap session with other artists and see what tools they don't want any more that you could use
• High pigmant paints are more pricey but go further than lower pigmant paints.  Buy one pot at a time to cut down on costs.  Only buy the primary coulors,  black and white.  Learn to mix your own paints.  Not only will it save you money but it is a great skill to learn.
•  Clean all you equipment as soon asyou have finished.  This will keep your tools fresh and ready to use
• Routinely service you machine.
• Share tools with friends.  Someone may have a felting machine another a die cutting machine andother person a heat gun.  Rotate them around so everyone can have a play withouot huge costs.
• When looking to purchase a new tool ask yourself can I do the same thing with out a new tool?  where will I store it?  Can I use it more that 3 ways?  Will I use it at least once a month?  Will it do what I want it to?  Are there any hidden costs? I.E.  What does it cost to service?  Do I have to buy any consumables for it? etc  Can I get it second hand? 
• Talk to others about their opinions on products. 
• Use before you buy