Fly Tying: Sparser Dressings Provoke

Over dressing a fly pattern abdomen, thorax and wing is easy to do. The temptation is to do this because visibility of the fly is increased…life like appearances might be enhanced…the shape may be more realistic.

Tying sparser (much like tying on smaller hooks) is a leap of faith for many. Here is a nice review of the sparsely dressed Flymph patterns at Bakslengen (Vegard Jønnevald).

Stillwaters really test your faith in smaller patterns, once one gives up the comfort of Woolly Buggers and the like. Here my wife plays a nice stillwater trout that took a small, sparsely dressed wet in the film during a Chironomid (Midge) emergence.

My patterns above, although quite productive, are over dressed in comparison to some of the sparser dressed patterns that do attract a fish’s attention. Skinnier bodies, one turn or less of hackle and fewer thread wraps produce a sparsely dressed fly that does produce.