I really enjoyed Allan Liddle’s article, Star-spangled Future, in the January issue of FF&FT;.
There definitely exist a certain breed of flytyer who are known to inhabit sewing shops looking for the happy accident of finding new exciting materials. Alas like Allan I am one of those poor souls.
I came across the metallic thread that Allan talks about in his article about four or so years ago.
The material was called Supertwist ,Metallised Embroidery threads made by Maderira.
It’s a fabulous material and you can use it in a lot of different ways.
It comes in 200 meter spools and Supertwist 30 , which is what I buy, comes in about 156 or so
different single and multiple colours.The intense colours of the metallic threads are fantastic.
Madeira supply a colour sample card which contains samples of the thread and your better purchasing the card first before you start buying individual spools and spending money like a kid in a sweetly shop ( that’s what I did ).
The sample card cost me about £10 or less from Barnyarns.co.uk which is the online shop I buy from.
The thread is multi stranded so you can strip out the very fine tinsel and use it to form to my eye, very well proportioned body segmental rings on flies .
I like to form body segments on traditional flies and detached body flies this way.
You can’t tie in the very fine tinsel with a continuous spiral as it is easily broken , so you need to tie in individual segments rings using a different technique, which is quite easy to do.
I’m looking forward to Allan’s next article as I like to use the Supertwist for damsel nymphs with
a simple parallel weave using two different coloured tinsels for the top and bottom of the nymph.
Having said that , if you are reaching the age of being doolally, as I am, you can extend the use of the Supertwist metallic thread by combining it with other materials ,normal thread ,floss, glo-Brite , etc.
Attached are some photos of flies which I have been having a lot of fun with over the years
The lures simply show a range of patterns using the metallic thread, incorporating flou materials and some other patterns you can make , great fun to do.
The other is for salmon and sea trout.
They are a work in progress and came about around four years ago after fishing for salmon for the first time on Lewis and Harris.
I fell in love with the place so, the top fly is called a Garynahine Easag (Stoat) which if you look at the body you will see a ‘herring bone pattern’ the same pattern as they have on Harris Tweed cloth.
The bottom one is called a Chalanais ( Calanish ), re. the standing stones of Lewis, which again if you look at the body you will see the ‘snake pattern’ , in deference to those ancients who worshipped it.
Thanks for the Article Allan, it’s back to the sewing shops for another serendipity moment.
