Bodkin / Patterns

Foam Dry Damsel

Dry Fly · Trout · Intermediate · 1 version

Reference Recipe

  • Hook Standard dry-fly hook, 10-12
  • Thread Blue or olive 8/0

Materials

  • Extended body Electric blue or olive (2mm foam, thin cylinder, thread-segmented)
  • Underbody Blue/olive material (sparse dubbing)
  • Wings Clear/dun material (poly or organza, folded flat over back)
  • Hackle Grizzly or blue dun hackle (2-3 turns)
  • Eyes Black ostrich herl (melted mono, optional)

How to tie it

  1. Mount the hook and lay a thread base to the bend.
  2. Bind a thin foam cylinder extending well past the bend for the slim damsel abdomen and segment it with 4-5 thread wraps.
  3. Dub a sparse thorax up to the 65% mark.
  4. Fold a clear poly wing flat back over the body, then split it slightly for the paired damsel wings.
  5. Wind 2-3 turns of grizzly hackle for legs and float, then sweep the fibers to the sides.
  6. Add optional melted-mono eyes at the head.
  7. Build a small head, whip finish, and trim.

Tying videos

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