The best way to level up any craft in the alpha/beta tests was to use local guild leves. In Limsa Lominsa, there were two people behind the counter, and it was the chick on the right that offered them. Speak to her (could be different in w/e town you're in), select local guild leves > blacksmithing and you should have a few to choose from. There are basically two different types of local leves. One of them they give you the ingredients for the leve straight off the bat (access them through the synthesis menu), and you then have to find the NPC to deliver the completed products to in order to get your reward, the other, you have to find a random NPC in town, who will give you your ingredients AND your reward.
The former of these, the NPC's were all at Aetheryte camps, no idea if that's a common thing with all cities/crafts, but the guild leve will tell you if you read it carefully.
None of them actually require you to complete the guild-leve in order to rank/level up, that's just how you get your reward.