As the old adage goes.
Take chances, make mistakes, get messy!
The majority of the props I've built over the last year have had a major new skill learned through construction or a large improvisation of a skill I already had and just applied it differently. Some people learn through reading and watching, for me that's only half of the process and I need to get into it and mechanically go through the motions. Set up some test pieces, mock ups with offcuts and throw away material and generally just see how stuff works.