Craft Stores!

[flyderaght 0]

They also carry the pipe cleaners in some really interesting colour combinations. bought myself some packs to play with. here is another: http://douglastradingpostonline.com/ they are based in Vancouver BC. it is what they do not show on their website that is the best part. you can get strung marabou by the bagful. the colour range is limited but when I was there last I bought alot of marabou for 2$ The same amount gets put into packs and sold for well over double the cost in the flyshops.. several years worth o be exact. works like a charm. purple.black, green. different cloured pheasant tails, beads, goos quality chicken hackles. I would email them and ask them if they have what you want first plus the cost. I got some reindeer patches there once too that were cutaways from the plush dog factories. these were all tanned pieces. great stuff for spinning and since it is softer than regular deer, far easier to work with. The store is very popular with fly tiers in the lower mainland too.

marc

[petelangevin 0]

My local craft stores have foam and other interesting items but the feathers were subpar and yarns were also lacking. I look all over the place for unusual items.

[Nick Williams 0]

Do craft stores sell brass beads like for copper jons? I only saw glass and plastic!

[surfbunker 0]

My local craft stores have foam and other interesting items but the feathers were subpar and yarns were also lacking. I look all over the place for unusual items.

 

Try to avoid knitting yarns...look for rug yarns..a bit stiffer, make great spent wings( hit it with some waterproofing or stain resistant spray) most i find ave a little bit of "sparkle" just enough to add a realistic look. The best is Aunt Lydias if you can find it. I find real good peacock feathers in the floral arranging sections.

[Voodoo 0]

i use the leather for worms and streamers. The fake pheasant feathers make a durable stone fly wing..cute girls...cute moms lol

[tidewaterfly 0]

I've bought a lot of different things at both craft & fabric/sewing shops. Fact is, much of the cool synthetics sold for fly tying originated in the arts & crafts or sewing industry.

 

I posted some Striped bass flies, and among them was a couple made with velvet cord, which is commonly used as a trim for upholstery or even dresses. I purchased the velvet at a local Joann's Fabric Shop.

 

Try to avoid knitting yarns

I have to disagree with this, rug yarns certainly have there uses, but so do knitting yarns. There are many different types of yarn. The basic acrylic knitting yarns may not have as much use as acrylic rug yarns, but yarns such as mohair make excellent tying materials. Wool yarn at one time was a staple for tying, but is not used as much today. Still, it's a fine material, so don't overlook it. Even chenille yarns, which are used in knitting can be used in many patterns, in place of "fly tying" chenille. I'm not saying replace chenille's made for tying, but there's nothing wrong with adding those that are not commonly used for tying.

 

For example, I recall a "sucker spawn" fly pattern I saw once that was tied with cotton chenille, which was recommended in the pattern recipe and not other types of chenille, which according to the originator of the pattern, didn't give the same appearance or performance. That fly was tied in the manner as the "Crystal Meth" flies, with loops of chenille but the cotton chenille absorbed water & drifted differently than other chenille materials, such as rayon or nylon. Sometimes, what a material looks like in the store, has nothing to do with how it can be used to tie an effective fly.

 

My point is of course, be open-minded about what's available in a craft or sewing shop. You may find things that you never thought of using to tie flies with!

[surfbunker 0]

I've bought a lot of different things at both craft & fabric/sewing shops. Fact is, much of the cool synthetics sold for fly tying originated in the arts & crafts or sewing industry.

 

I posted some Striped bass flies, and among them was a couple made with velvet cord, which is commonly used as a trim for upholstery or even dresses. I purchased the velvet at a local Joann's Fabric Shop.

 

Try to avoid knitting yarns

I have to disagree with this, rug yarns certainly have there uses, but so do knitting yarns. There are many different types of yarn. The basic acrylic knitting yarns may not have as much use as acrylic rug yarns, but yarns such as mohair make excellent tying materials. Wool yarn at one time was a staple for tying, but is not used as much today. Still, it's a fine material, so don't overlook it. Even chenille yarns, which are used in knitting can be used in many patterns, in place of "fly tying" chenille. I'm not saying replace chenille's made for tying, but there's nothing wrong with adding those that are not commonly used for tying.

 

For example, I recall a "sucker spawn" fly pattern I saw once that was tied with cotton chenille, which was recommended in the pattern recipe and not other types of chenille, which according to the originator of the pattern, didn't give the same appearance or performance. That fly was tied in the manner as the "Crystal Meth" flies, with loops of chenille but the cotton chenille absorbed water & drifted differently than other chenille materials, such as rayon or nylon. Sometimes, what a material looks like in the store, has nothing to do with how it can be used to tie an effective fly.

 

My point is of course, be open-minded about what's available in a craft or sewing shop. You may find things that you never thought of using to tie flies with!

Tide, i agree...after reading my response I realized I should have rephrased it a bit better. I saw the other poster said he found the yarn sub-par and assumed he was talking about basic all-purpose yarn, which has its uses ( i've tied literally thousands of BND streamers and Mickey Finns with craft store red yarn tails). I often am amazed at the stuff sold in catalogs for premium prices that we were buying for years in craft stores for next to nothing. Estaz is a perfect example, used to only be found in craft stores, then F/T'rs found it and someone bought the rights and it ended up only in catalogs and shops. Countless fish have fallen to craft store flies and hopefully will continue to be. BTW tide...check in the foam section at Michaels or AC Moore and check out the foam marshmallows....they make great offshore poppers and BIIIG bangers...alot more sturdier than Raineys foam cylinders.

 

Cheers,

 

Sean

[tidewaterfly 0]

Sean, you & I are on the same page then! Funny you mention those foam marshmallows, I have a bag of about 25 of them I got with some other stuff I bought on Ebay. I have not yet tried making any flies with them, but know they'll make some great large poppers! I just don't know I'll be able to cast them with my 10 wt!

 

At one time, when I was tying flies commercially, I had some various craft items that had been sent to me as samples by a crafts company I was dealing with. Stuff that was not in the fly shops already. I really didn't know what I could do with them, but saw that they might have some potential for tying flies. Some eventually were introduced & marketed as a fly tying material, but not by me. I guess I missed out! Story of my life!

[surfbunker 0]

Sean, you & I are on the same page then! Funny you mention those foam marshmallows, I have a bag of about 25 of them I got with some other stuff I bought on Ebay. I have not yet tried making any flies with them, but know they'll make some great large poppers! I just don't know I'll be able to cast them with my 10 wt!

 

At one time, when I was tying flies commercially, I had some various craft items that had been sent to me as samples by a crafts company I was dealing with. Stuff that was not in the fly shops already. I really didn't know what I could do with them, but saw that they might have some potential for tying flies. Some eventually were introduced & marketed as a fly tying material, but not by me. I guess I missed out! Story of my life!

 

Try tube style on the marshmallows. One version I tied was to burn a hole big enough to wedge in a red coffee straw....on the backside I burn in 8 holes around the main hole and epoxy in a Large saddle hackle or schlappen feather in each hole. Finish the foam like you would a Bob's Banger (witchtape and eyes) Made a few for a Tuna guy...he slayed 'em!! Id you have the time an patience i've stuck them on a bodkin, put bodkin in drill and run them on sand paper to make them thinner...still cheaper than Rainey's cylinders. They do cast with a 10 Wt with some effort...great on a boat.

[Toirtis 0]

Do craft stores sell brass beads like for copper jons? I only saw glass and plastic!

 

Not generally, no...but you might try specialty bead shops, or some online places like http://www.canadianllama.com/

 

 

With Michaels, you really need to get their flyer, or sign-up for online coupons...regularly have 40%-60% off any one regular-priced item.

[kodiaksalmon 0]

I'll hit craft shops, but if I need something I buy it from a fly supplier. There is alot of stuff you can find in craft stores, but I have learned that not all materials are created equal. For some things, there are no substitutes. Flashabou being one. Christmas tinsel/ice cicles are flashy, but they're not Flashabou; they're far more brittle and break easily. I've had issues with substandard feathers as well some other dyed materials from craft stores having poor color that literally washes out as soon as it hits the water.

 

But I like the selection of beads and some of the fibers they have available. Definately worth the look, but they'll not put fly shops out of business any time soon.

[surfbunker 0]

Do craft stores sell brass beads like for copper jons? I only saw glass and plastic!

 

Not generally, no...but you might try specialty bead shops, or some online places like http://www.canadianllama.com/

 

 

With Michaels, you really need to get their flyer, or sign-up for online coupons...regularly have 40%-60% off any one regular-priced item.

 

if you have an iphone they have a michaels app....coupons on there they scan your phone plus you can use it many times in a day

[rockworm 0]

I'm pretty sure the early tyers raided their wive's knitting baskets for thread, yarn, and whatever else they could use. We tyers should do the same. Obvious sources include art shops (markers, spray fixatives, paints, inks, etc), sewing and milinery shops like Joannes (tinsel, thread, yarn, stretchy necklace cord, silk, organza, Ultra Suede, feathers, beads, etc) and hardware stores (epoxy, superglue, solvents, wire, etc). At my local grocery stores I have bought dusters (for the ostrich feathers), brooms (for the Japanese-leg-like fibers), Rit dyes, toothpicks, Zip Loc baggies (for storage and wingcase material), para-dichloro-benzene (insect deterrent), etc. Craft shops like Michaels are also a good source of mylar sheets, raffia, Krylon fixative, etc, etc.) Let's face it- everywhere you look you find material useful for tying: my wife's new sweater, my kids' hamsters, ... It never ends.

[Nick Williams 0]

How about Mod Podge for a glue/clear coat? Anyone try it? It isn't an epoxy so it isn't a rock hard finish, but it isn't as soft as Softex. I decided to give some a try, and while it is white in the bottle like Elmer's glue, it dries clear and looks pretty dang good. The other good thing about it is a sealer and top coat in one, it doesn't make you wanna die from breathing it, and it cleans up with soap and water if you get it on your fingers! I have yet to fish with one of my flies that I used it on, that's the next test!

[surfbunker 0]

How about Mod Podge for a glue/clear coat? Anyone try it? It isn't an epoxy so it isn't a rock hard finish, but it isn't as soft as Softex. I decided to give some a try, and while it is white in the bottle like Elmer's glue, it dries clear and looks pretty dang good. The other good thing about it is a sealer and top coat in one, it doesn't make you wanna die from breathing it, and it cleans up with soap and water if you get it on your fingers! I have yet to fish with one of my flies that I used it on, that's the next test!

 

 

The key is in what you said...it washes off with water. Mod Podge is probably water soluble as most decoupage is. Hence, will dissolve when fished.