Does anyone have a good source for natural wool yarn? I like to tie classic winged wet fly patterns and prefer to use natural materials. Most fly shops seem to have nothing but synthetics, and if you ask for natural wool they look at you like you have three heads. I have a few sources for some of the more common colors, but when I need something like rusty orange or pale yellow, it’s always a challenge to find some. Of course you could always go to a yarn store, but the quantities needed for fly tying are miniscule compared to what they sell there.
Gadabout;
One place to look, (on line), is http://www.lambikins.com
They sell, ONLY “100% wool yarns”, in pretty decent selection of colors.
Instead of buying the $4.00 big skeins of a color, or, colors…on their home page click on the “Color Card” link. It’s a color selection card, with a fair length of yarn of each color they sell and sells for @2.00 Should be enough to at least turn out a few flies and several of the cards may be better than owning 100 yards of one color!?
I make a fairly small Dragon Fly sometimes and I like using their wool in their “Pastry” color for the twisted, extended, body I use. It’s nice yarn and so far… very nice people to deal with!
I had to call them, once, on a credit card screw up and got talking to a nice lady and happened to mention that: “Well, I don’t KNIT, I use your great yarns for fly tying!” She didn’t miss a beat and as dead pan as could be, told me back… “Well, Mr. Wilmoth, we ALL have our own crosses to bear!”
Customer service, like THAT, treating you with humor and not like you’re a number, goes a long way with me!
Good Luck, Paul
sheep? 
I posted this as part of a reply to another string below.
Quote - There is also Anchor and DMC Tapestry Wool, which also have a large range of colours.
A useful alternative to Seal’s fur etc., it is also quite cheap and one hank will last a long time.
If you are tying up a load of traditional wet flies, of the Bergman type for example, for a major attack on holiday,
a lot less expensive, from a true Scot.
There are colour charts for the wool as well. - Unquote
If you look for them on Google, you will find the prices are very reasonable.
Thanks for the replies. Actually, my wife is a big-time knitter and I could get yarn from her, except the stuff she uses would scare the trout. :lol: I was sort of hoping that someone would suggest a fly tying catalog or web site that sells wool yarn in quantities convenient to fly tiers. I know of a couple but they only have a few colors.
can’t help you with a shop, I went down to the local thrift store, bought a pair of like new wool socks and unraveled them, I have a 20 year supply of light gray.
One suggestion, almost every knitter has a bag of small balls of leftovers, too much to throw out but never going to be used, put up a note at the yarn shop asking for wool leftovers, you wont be able to use everything but should get a good selection of some things.
Eric
I asked my wife about a source for Wool Yarn, after reading your post. She said that in her office, there are a few women that knit, and she said they always had scraps. If you have access to an office, church, etc., I would ask there. She also said that there were probably knitting, crochete Bulleitin Boards on the web. She thought dropping in there might produce results.
Check out fly tying shops and see if any of them carry a “UTC” product called, “WEE WOOL YARN”. It comes in many colors and on a spool that will fit your bobbin holder. I have purchased it from my local fly shop and have it in the following colors: Brown, Caddis Green, Brown Olive and light Gray. I know that it comes in other colors. This may or may not be what you are looking for.
Here is an example of an Anchor (Coats & Clarke) colour card, there are three more to complete the series
http://www.willowfabrics.com/acatalog/anchor_tapestry_wool__8000.html
It is a British source but as Coats & Clarke is a Scottish/American company, I am sure you will find a U.S. source on the web.
They are 45pence each, which is about 90cents American.
So for less than $10.00 you can have ten colours. One hank will last a long time.
Wapsi has wool, your fly shop can order some.
i went to a local needlework shop where all the local embroiderers (not knitters) go for their stuff. They sell large and small skeins of wool, silk, cotton, and blends in an amazing array of colors and weights. i was not the first fly tyer in there, and the saleslady remarked that tiers liked her shop because they could find small quantities of real fibers in great colors.
We have a store called Yarn Barn and they sell that stuff by the ounce off of big spools.
Donald, I noticed the Kreinik logo at the top of the screen when I followed your link. Some of those threads are quite good as well. I really like some of their metallics. From what I have seen on the web, I am not the only tyer to discover how useful some of their materials are.
Ed
Ed,
What did you say Ed?
I don’t think trout see too many Black and silver, reds etc but they will probably work well with Warm Water fish.
The Bluebottle is a succesfull trout catcher.
Beautiful flies, Donald. I’ll have to try those patterns out on our local “bream”. Sounds like an important research project and I volunteer to slave away on my local streams to see if these patterns work.
Thanks,
Ed
Hi Donald,
Hmm, put some peacock herl on for a head on the black and red and that would be very similar to Pritt’s Spanish Needle, but more of an attractor pattern with the metalic thread.
As for wool, I agree on the Tapastry yarn. I use DMC and have a great collection of colours.
- Jeff
Ooooohhhh!! Very nice, Donald. I like the Krenick metallics. Especially like the Blue Bottle fly. Nicely dressed.
REE
if you want some nice wool yarn for speys drop me a pm on here, I have hot pink, dark green, light green, dark blue and has a sorce for a nice gold.
Ghost.
well i find lots of wool yarn, chenille, silk thread & the like fer tyin flies at a fabric shop nearby called HANCOCK FABRICS…i can buy as little or as much as i want…they also sell beads of all types & other stuff…
Try Tandy leather. They have some nice stuff that is really long, about 8 ", it’s off white but I’m sure you can make it any color you like. Best thing is it’s really cheap. The wool I got was under 5 bucks and has lasted me over a year allready. Guess that would depend on the amount of flies your tying!..jeff