Need is the Mother of Invention. If what you need are better resources, you get very creative with what you have on-hand.

The 'Number 8 wire' culture of New Zealand and how it inspires

http://michaeljeans.co.nz/2008/07/08/no-8-wire-attitude/

To get an idea of what I am talking about, if you have never heard this term before, please read the short wiki entry here:  Number 8 wire meme in New Zealand

My time in New Zealand had a very profound effect on me and one of the cultural memes that struck a chord, and amplified it, was the very inventive ways to solve problems with limited resources.  Every crafter deals with this, especially when we are broke or don't live in an area of the world with handy shopping malls.  We can't find that brand of glue or that type of fastener.  What do we do?  We improvise.  

I will let you in on a little secret regarding my own soap making.  Nidelva soap doesn't use fancy soap moulds bought online.  My goat milk soap is poured into wooden boxes that were originally meant to be used as gift boxes for wine.  I found these wooden forms at local thrift shops and tried them out by lining them with baking paper.  They work perfectly for about one-tenth the cost of the fancy ones and they create the best sized bars with my cutter.  One of my favourite sources for inspiration is the Op-shop.

Kiwis made due with what they had because they were a remote island nation and had to solve their problems with what they had.  

Improvisation and creative solutions can sometimes result in unexpected successes that turn out even better.     

In an interview between Neil de Grasse Tyson and David Byrne they discussed the similarities between doing science and doing art.  It is most definitely a creative process but what makes that process most creative is when there are parameters set, time constraints, material limits.  The borders between where the work needs to happen will drive the creative, with both art and science.  You can listen to the whole interview here:  Startalk-David Byrne