How (Not) to make a prom dress

I should preface this- incase anyone planning on making a lovely dress from a pattern comes across this from google or some other search engine.

"Dressmaking should be a simple and enjoyable art from which is hugely rewarding for all it's challenge."

If you want the afore printed statement to be true, buy a modern pattern. not retro, not reprinted. MODERN.

This was my first error- I bought a Butterick 60s "retro" reprinted pattern, and it says on the packet in big letters that it is "easy" and aimed at "beginners". Beginners in the 60s, that is. not a modern novice. Without my mothers dressmaking know-how from her school lessons, in the 60s I'd have ended up making a right balls up of this.
The second issue with a retro patters is the assumption that you'll be wearing undergarmenst of the era- e.g, in this instance, A girdle.
Add to this that modern sizes are greatly changed- I has some of my Mums skirts from the 70s, and they don't fit round one of my thighs, let alone my waist. In the back, they carry the same size I wear. Except the vintage items are half the size.
After some very careful reading and measuring we decided to cut the 60s size 20.
42" bust projection (This is not the back number from the bra, but the overbust measure at the biggest point- If you're new to dressmaking don't be fooled!)
34" waist
42" hip.
It turned out we could have cut the 18.

The pattern called for 7m of fabric. I bought the fabric for this from Malaysia- for just over £1 per meter.
If I was making this from shop bought material from the UK (The best price I've found for printed cottons or polycottons is £5- if anyone has found better please tell me!) I'd have been really stressing about every pattern piece as I'd have no material left to play with/error margin- especially for that cost! as it is, My only stress has been that it'd be difficult to get matching fabric in the UK, but not impossible.
For like £9 cost for all the fabric, I'd have been inconvenienced if this had gone wrong, but not bankrupted.

So, pattern cut out, the next challenge was finding a surface big enough to lay out all that material- it stretched from the conservatory, through the dining room and into the bay window!

We cut all the pieces following the pretty minimal instructions- loads of actually quite complex tasks were "assumed knowledge"- e.g, tailors tacks, bust darts, how to fit a zip and which seams to leave were not explained.
Neither was the idea of using a grain line- which I'd never done before so I was pleased to be working with someone who realised we needed to check the distance from the salvage edge (With the writing on!) to the grain line was the same across all the pattern pieces.

I also didn't realise that you cut the bodice the opposite way to the skirt- to stop if from stretching. It sounds so obvious- and it wasn't detailed in the instructions at all!
It makes sense though.
The skirt was huge! 4m of fabric- so it ended up really heavy.

We zig zagged round all the edges of every piece for the pattern to make sure it didn't fray. I learned that at the makery in Bath when I made my tunic! Then they were ready to use!

That all done, and the bodice and skirt bits all made into a separate top and skirt, I was delighted that they ended up the same size!
Measuring win!

From here I pinned them together and sewed round the seam.
Thankfully I didn't catch any other fabric in it- I was expecting to be spending hours and hours unpicking stritches where I'd sewed the wrong bits together.

The half finished garment:

My mum had gone out for dinner after helping me to cut the bits out- so I'd done all my sewing without supervision.
She returned at 11pm took one look at it and declared it was looking misshapen and needed facings!
So, fuelled by gin, we cut facings from thetop part of the bodice pattern pieces, zig zag hemmed them and sewed them right side to tight side round the arm holes ann neckline.
we finished at 2am, and it looked like every orifice of the dress had a peter ban collar of it's own.

I got up early and used another of my Makery skills to roll and pin all of the facings. It took me about an hour so I'd finished by the time mum had got up in search of coffee.
She took over and sewed the seams whilst I had a shower.

She fitted the zipper for me- as I'd never done one and we were on limited time. That is my next skill to master.
Once the zip was in I tried it on and it honestly looked like a sack!
It was so big.
I had no idea what we did wrong!

My mum started to panic, thinkingI'd be really upset- but this happened at the Makery. I learned that all you have to do is take your seams in- so I did that and it looked better- see I do listen to instructions!
My Mum then took in the bust and waist darts- because she's neater, and they had to match!
By the end of 12 hours of combined work, this was the end product:

I still need to hem the bottom edge of the skirt., and I might rouche the shoulder straps because the look a little wide.
Other than that, I'm chuffed to bits!
We made a prom dress!

I'd like to take this moment to direct you attention to my £6 shoes from the PDSA charity shop- they're Clarks, don't you know!