Singlebarbed reader “San Mateo Joe” sent me some of his seed bead creations – instantly driving me into a paroxysm of creativity. The medium is fur and feathers, but we’re prey to all the foibles and idiosyncrasies that mainstream artists endure.

All it takes is some pretty color or odd shaped fiber and we’re willing to cut our ear off… both ears, if the sumbitch catches fish…

SMJ’s samples were nameless, buggy, and simple, all that’s necessary for quality fish food. The above-right fly caught my eye, I immediately dubbed it the “Yellow Arsed Wombat” – not sure if Joe has a name for it or not.

Nothing beats a glimpse at another fellow’s work to get the creative juices flowing, the bloody IRS can wait.

My fly is hereby dubbed the “Angry Auditor” – unworthy of a name as it’s merely a concept, I’ll plead my case just before the “what did you make, give us the rest” speech.

I figured a “Bird’s Nest” style damselfly was just what was needed for the lakes I fish up north – there’s plenty in the Little Stinking so it’s a double bonus, a fly that can serve as Carp food also.

All of the above flies simply string the beads on the hook shank. The tail assembly serves as a “stopper” preventing them from sliding off the rear of the hook.

Joe adds a tip that is priceless, “I like to thread the hook shank with more beads than necessary before I start tying. It’s easy to break one or more off with a pair of needle nose pliers later on if you need more room for hackle, dubbing, etc.”

It works really well, a quick press of the pliers results in your wife wondering what’s making the racket in the vacuum cleaner…

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