Well I sat down tonight and tied up my first flies. I opted for a wooly bugger to get started with. First thing I learned is that not all fly shops have what you would think would be staples. Second thing I learned is that people tie the same pattern with so many different tweeks and minor changes that patterns don’t matter as much as techniques. I’m meeting up with a buddy this week who has been tying for around 30 years but I got antsy and impatient and decided I had to break out the vise and play with it a little. I got Skip Morris’ book from the local B & N and got to it. First fly came out okay. I’d say its fishable and will probably catch a fish or two. I was rather pleased with the outcome, but found something not quite right about it when I looked it over. With the help of Youtube I figured out what it was. My tail was too thin and the palmered hackle was done starting from the rear of the fly. Well I followed the book so it wasn’t entirely my fault. After a little playing around I found that I like the tail to be a bit longer than what the book says and I like at a minimum of three marabou feathers. The second issue, the palmering, gave my fly a backwards look to it. I like my buggers to have fatter hackle up front, if anywhere. So I sat down to tie a second fly and see what I could do. The videos I found showed wire being used to secure the end of the hackle and I’m assuming reinforce it as well. I don’t have wire yet, go figure. To make a long story a little bit shorter, I improvised with thread in my own way and the fly turned out okay for me for now. So I got four flies tied tonight and had two totally botched attempts that I kept for reminders. Three flies are buggers and the fourth is some kind of streamer. My three year old wanted to help daddy just as I got the chenille tied on for a fourth bugger. Well it didn’t go exactly as planned but I ended up with my first original tie. Its a size 6 hook with a marabou tail, chenille body, two hackles for a wing (they actually ended up on the sides), a fuzzy feather from the underneath of the saddle for a collar, and a bead head. The wings are too long but it may catch a fish of some sort somewhere. I told the wife we were packing up the kids and headed out on a materials shopping trip tomorrow.
When tying a bugger, I tie the chenille and hackle in at the same time at the back of the hook, wind the chenille forward and tie off, then wind the hackle forward and tie off. Sounds like you did the same. Where we differed is more than likely that I tie in the tip of the hackle instead of the butt of the feather. You get that nice small to big look you like, too.
You might want to wait until you can go with an experienced tyer unless you have a fly shop you have reason to trust for good advise about the kind of flies you want to tie. Picking out the good material from the junk and knowing what you really need isn’t always easy for a beginner.
Thanks kb. I hadn’t thought of that.
you could get a life time worth of copper wire from cutting down old cords! old cell phone chargers, any cable… ethernet cord… telephone cable… & etc. If you’re lucky you might even find some silver,green,red ones too (i found my share of wires from a old stereo cable) i think almost everyone have done this once in their fly tying years 
Hoo boy! What a can a worms. I discovered years ago how to tie cheap and very effective flies. Check it out: http://gibbysfishingblog.blogspot.com/2010/01/fly-fishing-bug-is-still-biting-after.html