When should I invest perk points into Smithing & Enchanting?

I am a newbie in Skyrim and i wondered when i should start enchanting and smithing. I started enchanting on my Mage at about level 5 and i did it for so long that i got about level 10 but i didn't invest my perk points into any other skills. I was weaker later because of this.

So the conclusion to this boring explanation is: When should I start enchanting to still stay strong? This goes for all class builds.


Solution 1:

Generally speaking, spend 80% of your perks on direct effectiveness in combat until you get up around level 25 or so.

In other words, limit perk spending on all these non-combat skills (enchanting/smithing/alchemy/speech/lockpicking/pickpocket) to 5 perks before level 25. This gives you 20 perks to your main attack/defense/healing abilities.

Perks have a much stronger effect than skill levels, so I wouldn't worry much about exact skill levels (exceptions: magic skills not high enough limit your spell choices, all skills not high enough limit your perk choices).