It would seem that Blacksmithing, is by FAR the hardest profession to level to 525.

Not only do you need spend several hundred gold at the trainer, and grind thousands of golds worth of mats, but you also must then obtain reputation with a faction, buy MORE plans, then craft them again.

As someone who is going for Realm 1st BS on Sylvanas, and having spent all night getting to 515, I find this rather annoying since I have not gained any other experience so far, apart from small amounts of exploration trying to find ore deposits / veins etc.

Now, Ive been a Blacksmith since day one, and know it can be a real pain in the ass to level.. but this is beyond a joke to be honest.

As far as I know... Blacksmithing is the only profession / non-raiding / non-instance achievement left for "Realm First" grabs.