Worth every penny or a bit of a rip off?

After my blog the other day where I talked about my lack of progression with the sewing, and my inspired Sunday trip to spitalfields, I emailed Cockpits Arts to enquire as to whether any progress has been made on pulling together a longer dressmaking course. Katherine, the sweet lady who books all the courses, replied with details of a 10 week course. The course content was outlined in the email; developing sewing skills but also learning to create a simple pattern of your own. All for the bargain price of £425!!!! Which I consider to be a vast amount of money. Plus there was the added pressure of a 'places are going fast so you'd better hurry up' line.

Which leads to a dilemma - is it worth it or will it be money down the drain? Well, not the drain maybe but definitely money that could be spent on the trip to Paris I'm planning for my boyfriend's 30th Birthday. A trip where I'll be able to sample the delights of Parisian cuisine and fine wines, plus the Parisian fashion scene (although keep having to remind myself this trip is for my boyfriend NOT me).

So, what's a girl to do but turn to her mother for advice and wise words. And wise words I did get. Basically, as I said in my introduction I work pretty hard and am I going to a) be able to make every session and b) find the time in between to work on the my pieces. The answer being probably not, which will lead to frustration, and undue pressure to get the best out of the course given the cost. I think I will look into courses at local colleges that may not cost quite as much! I know no one really reads my blog, but if anyone knows of any courses that are starting in January 09, please let me know.