I tried to tie my first fly tonight. I guess it looks pretty cool. But, my lack of knowledge was evident. I couldn't get any of it to secure to the hook very well and I don't know how to tie-off/secure the thread when you're done making the wraps.

Anyways, here it is....

Note: you can see at the bottom of the pic the thing I was using to hold and wrap the thread with. What is that "stick" looking device that everyone uses to wrap their thread???

looks really good! nothing cooler than catching a fish on a fly you tied yourself
my advice: when I was tying this summer, I was focused more on the look than the quality. a few actually fell apart and it was costing more money to tie than if I would just have bought some. make sure they are glued and dried 2 days before put in the water.

Looks good to me. Nice job!!

Did you start with a pattern such as the Woolly Bugger, or Clouser? I started with known patterns, then moved on to my own originals.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKnlD0MLrwM
whip finish by hand

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S0JF94-qhQw
with matareli tool

Nope, no starting pattern. I just put a hook in the vice and started adding stuff that I thought looked good together.

Gonna try another one tonight. I'll post the results.

Congratulations on your first fly!

A "bobbin" is used to hold the thread when tying. And from the picture, it looks like you are using a bobbin, but I'm not sure you are using it right. The thread spool is loaded in the bobbin like in your picture, but the thread is threaded through the "tube" located where the two legs of join together. By passing the thread through the tube you can control where the thread is placed on the hook. (Maybe you have it setup this way, I can't really tell from the picture.)

Colleyville is not that far from Bonham. Come out to Bonham state park this weekend and you'll find one of the best opportunities to learn how to tye flies that will be offered anywhere in Texas this year.

I'll second the recommendation to start with existing patterns. They are a good way to learn the basic tying techniques.

Have fun!

I've fixed my bobbin issue. I didn't have the thread going thru the tube. No wonder it was so hard for me to secure the fibers to the hook....

Not sure I can make it to Bonham this weekend. I've got a full slate of kid activities.

Today's fly. I had some help with this one:

That's a fish catcher!

Well done!

Here is today's fly. My buddy taught me how to spin some deer hair. End result is a orange/tan bass popper with a feather tail!

Great start!

Well done!