I know some of you have used craftlace before! I picked up some from Wal-Mart the kind with metal flakes in them.
My question to you all is, what have you tied with them and do you have any pics of them.
Thanks for your input.
EPuffer
I use them for midges and chironomids. I wrap the whole body with clear or black and then give it a top coat of sally hansens for extra dimension in a fly.
I have also used it as ribbing for basically any fly I wanted to use it on instead of wire.
It makes a killer bloodworm also by the way!
Oh yeah, And the Tabou caddis emerger.
I tie many other things with it, I just can’t think of them right now.
If you have the most current issue of flytier magazine it actually has a article in there on craft lace with some flies you can use it for. I also do what Flyandtie1 does with it and it makes some really nice flies.
I use it for salmon fly bodies, particularly a bright blue I tie with a dark blue marabou soft hackle. Just two items and a very fast tie… It was hugely effective the last few years on silver salmon in small streams.
The problem I have with it is the size. I cannot see using it for ordinary-size trout flies, let alone chironomids…
Suggestions?
thanks
art
harleybob87-
I think I had that one, flytier magazine in my hand and put it back 
not sure why I did that. I’ll go back and check it out,Thanks.
hap-
Sounds like a good fly, do you have any pics?
Flyandtie1-
Bloodworms, wrap red or brown around the hook shank and 1/2 way down the hook bend?
Hap,
It stretches to a small size for bloodworms and stuff.
see attachment for my bloodworm.
Body: red thread
ribbing: clear craft lace, stretched thin.
Coating: sally hansens.
Epuffer…IMHO this issue of Flytyer is an especially good issue…
Harley and Chris I’m a little confused…Harley,I assume you are talking about the article…“Jelly Nymphs” ?..and in it I see no mention of craft lace…in fact I was in JoAnn’s and Michael’s yesterday seeing what they have relative to that article and I had some craft lace in hand and it’s fairly wide …as hap said…
Chris are you sure you’re not using Stretch Magic?
The article talks about stretch cord [and names a lot of others] and the many colors it comes in…a google using stretch cord brings up sources…
I just tried to stretch the craftlace I have in a large number of colors. They have metalic sparkle inside a flattened plastic tube and are sold at Wal-Mart for crafts… So I assume I have the “right” stuff. When stretched the interior breaks and seperates and the lace stretches a fair amount.
However, like any polymer it only stretches until all the random links are stretched and it stops stretching. At that point it is still far too fat for chironomids…
art
Craft lace and stretch cord are very different things.
Craft lace is rather stiff, doen’t stretch very well, but comes in a lot of great colors and is pretty cheap. It’s a solid vinyl like material and it’s crossection is like a flattened oval. It is not hollow.
Stretch cord is what they use to make those stretchy bracelets with beads. The stuff has a soft, ‘jelly’ like feel, stretches very thin, and comes in several diameters and a few colors. More colors are showing up alll the time. It also not hollow. Not too cheap, makes good bodies in colors and good overlays in clear.
There is a ‘jelly cord’ or ‘pony bead lacing toobs’ (I have both in several different colors from a couple of manufacturers). Seems t obe the same stuff. It’s sold in the same area as the craft lace and is a softer, stretchier than craft lace hollow vinyl/rubbery type tubing…still not as stretchy as the stretch cords, it’s pretty stiff but has some uses.
Haven’t seen the article, but there is lots of this kind of stuff out there.
Buddy
i agree with buddy
you guys are talking about 2 different things
the fly tyer magazine article uses the equivalent of “stretch magic” from the beading aisle at the local big box craft shop.
“stretch magic” probably has different names by different manufacturers
Sometimes they call it “Bead and Stretch” It is at the craft section at Wally World. Comes in two sizes and black or clear, good stuff. The lace is there also but it is to big for my taste.
Flyandtie1-
Thanks for the Pic nice looking Fly.
Ok, on my package of Craftlace it is made by Toner Plastics, inc.(www.tonercrafts.com) Sold at Wal-Mart. Mine is the Designer Collection 12 colors all with metalic sparkle.
So far it does not seem to stretch very well,Unless under my light for 20 seconds or so.
Again thanks for all the input and lets keep it coming 
EPuffer
the craft lace or “gimp” as ive always heard it is pretty good but yes very stiff. but by heating it up by rubbing it fast with youre fingers, it will stretch a fair amount and be easier to use.
i agree with budy sanders on what the stretch cord or stretch magic is. it goes by both names.
also, at m local michaels, they sell a product which they call craft lace which is identicle to larva lace.
then theres plastic lace, which you can get a pack of about 100-200 strands of at the dollar store. this stuff is a thin plastic tubing, although its about as tough as the gimp. you can still heat it up to make it softer and more flexible though.
that craft lace/gimp sure does look like a version of the old “swannandaze” from years ago.
Thanks to DDRRedneck500. A few years back I bought some stuff called rexflex at one of those craft stores. Thought it would make nice bodies for gill flies, gold with specks in it. But alas it was too stiff to tie what I wanted. After reading your post, I got the spool out, heated it up, stretched it out, etc and I now have some great pliable material.
Thanks again.
Tim
I went to the Flytyer article and he has a web page in NZ but it does not show how to tie them, the article in Flytyer shows how to tie but it is a little vague on steps
Just out of curiosity…the author is listed as James Smith and the end reference and web site is Marc Griffths…what’s that all about?
whoops mine is stretch cord.
Sorry for the mix up.
bad editing :?::?:
Yea, don’t it though. 
An old Swannundaze trick from years ago that works on any of that vinyl/plastic stuff is to plunge it in boiling water and SLOWLY stretch it to any thickness needed. I “woiks” like a charm.
I do that with the Swannundaze I still have along with D-Rib.