making a list

[Warm Water Fly Fisher]

i've found that making a list is helpful before going to a fly shop. I take away items on the list that aren't really needed or that i forget what i wanted them for. The only problem is every time i take something off the list more goes on

WWFF

[Mark k]

I make a list also, because I don't want to have to go back to soon. The closest Fly shop is 75 miles away and its an Orvis Shop. Next closest I know of and can find is Bass Pro in Nashville, 150 miles away, and I don't want to forget anything.

[white43]

Doesn't this go against the whole concept of shopping? Aren't you just supposed to go into these places and do "Oh mys!" JGW

[Sagittarius62]

When I shop online I always like it when a retailer offers an online wish list. I put items in my wish list as I think of things I "need". Then when it comes time to place my order, I look through the list and try to be pretty brutal with pruning out stuff to stay in a predetermined budget.

[flyandtie]

i always make a list also!
i hate forgetting something even if its not an important material
and for some reason i can never only get whats on the list

[Rick Z]

I make a list also, but I list the pattern I want to tie with the material next to it.
Also if the pattern is in a magazine, I list that also. then before I orfer I look at it again to seeif I still want to do it.

Rick

[Gringo]

I make a list also, but I list the pattern I want to tie with the material next to it.
Also if the pattern is in a magazine, I list that also. then before I orfer I look at it again to seeif I still want to do it.

Now that's organisation for you! I run a list but usually I either buy something on the list and forget what I wanted it for, or forget where I saw the recipe.

D'Oh!

[Warm Water Fly Fisher]

ussually i'll forget to bring the list or i'll always end up with more than what was on it

[Eight Thumbs]

Hi WWFF,

I've actually gone one step better than just making a shopping list. I have a list of all my fly tying materials (item by item) recorded on an Excel Spreadsheet. Yes, it took a little bit of time to do that but it's well worth the effort. After a tying session, I subtract the approximate amount of the material I've used. I keep a pretty accurate hook count and change the background color of other materials that are running low. I use yellow to show heavy use of a material, pink to show almost gone and red to show I've used up all of that material. I can then tell at a glace what I need to put on my shopping list. This way I don't buy stuff that I already have. I hated buying a pack of copper Flashabou and then discovering 2 other packs stashed away in another drawer. My Excel Spreadsheet has really worked well for me. Try it---you'll like it. 8T

[DShock]

Eight Thumbs,
I am very impressed by your organization! I would like to know more details about how to set up the Spreadsheet??
Unlike going to the grocery store, where I take a list of items and I ONLY buy what's on the list and behave myself, going to the fly shop with a list doesn't work that way! When I go in a fly shop I'm like a kid in a candy store. It's sort of like, "Let's hurry and get the stuff on my list so I can spend 3 hrs snooping around the shop and developing new ideas!" Yea! I'm like a Mad Scientist!
Being a perfectionist drove me nuts because it had to be the exact material made by the correct company or I had a fit. I appreciated the Post a while back about 'Where Do You Store Your Materials?' because it proved I wasn't completely off my rocker, since my materials weren't neatly stored.
Doug