Hook Curved nymph, barbless (Ahrex or similar), 14 (tie 12-16)
Thread Black 18/0
Materials
Flat tinsel, 0.8mm Silver oval tinsel (One strand for the body)
Fine wire Silver wire (One strand for the rib)
Ice dub Black dubbing (A very small pinch for the thorax)
Hen cape feather (partridge substitutes) Brown, mottled with black (One feather)
Head cement or nail polish Clear head cement (One drop)
How to tie it
Start the thread behind the eye and lay a smooth base of touching wraps all the way to the start of the bend, then back to the 80% point.
Tie in the fine silver wire and the flat silver tinsel together along the side of the shank and bind them both down to the bend, keeping the underbody smooth.
Wind the flat tinsel forward in touching, very slightly overlapping turns to the 80% point and tie it off with a couple of wraps behind and a couple in front, then trim.
Counter-wind the silver wire forward in evenly spaced open turns over the tinsel, tie it off at the 80% point and helicopter the tag off. Optionally coat the body with UV resin or head cement for durability.
Spin a very small amount of black ice dub onto the thread and make two or three wraps to form a compact thorax in the front 20% of the shank.
Prepare a hen feather from the lower part of the cape: strip the fluff and the long butt barbs, hold it by the tip and gauge the barb length, then snip the tip into a small triangle so the thread has something to grip.
Tie the feather in by the trimmed tip in front of the thorax, stroke the barbs rearward, and take two turns of hackle, then secure with a couple of wraps behind and a couple in front and snip the stem out.
Sweep all the hackle back with your fingers, checking that the barbs are distributed 360 degrees around the shank, and build a small black thread head against the base of the hackle.
Whip finish, snip the thread, and put a drop of head cement or nail polish on the head.