Ores, pelts and alchemy ingredients are my only means of income save dungeon diving and I don't loot the undead unless it's a boss. I don't buy from merchants, I only invest in them so I can sell them the stuff I make from gathering stuff. It seems like crafting and selling stuff to make money would be tedious, but I've found that gathering and crafting saves me about a million load screens overall once I factor in how much I used to go in and out of shops. When I do sell stuff, I only hit outside vendors to further avoid load screens lol. I hate load screens.
Whenever I start a new playthrough, I always look forward to the vampire missions. If you hit the vampire quests early in your development, you will end the questline with an unbelievable amount of resources. Including soul gems if you fully exploit the Soul Cairn (highly recommended). Convert and craft your resources at the end and profit big in money and crafting experience.
It took me a couple playthroughs before I wasn't overwhelmed by it though. The Glacial Crevice almost drove me to drugs the first time through. You'll appreciate it more on your next visit.
