Lilith Li Chinese Silk Floss
Posted: Sun Feb 14, 2021 4:25 pm
A couple weeks ago I came across some cheap silk floss on Amazon and decided to give it a try. The silk comes in small skeins. Fifty (50) different colors for $25 dollars. The silk is fairly fine (roughly one quarter the size of unsplit Pearsall's Marabou) and is single strand. Not as smooth as Marabou silk, but definitely useable for fishing flies.
The main downside is working with the skeins. I spent a couple evenings carefully winding the silk onto small cards, to keep the material from getting all tangled together.
Here is how the silk arrives:
Ten bundles/Five Colors in Each Set
I borrowed the lazy susan from the kitchen, slapped on an upside down cake stand (the legs helped keep the strands from tangling together) and started winding...and winding...and winding...did I mention that this stuff was cheap?
Warm Greys
Cool Greys
Assorted Blues
Assorted Lavender/Purple
The golden brown silk was the very first one I tried to wind by hand. Unfortunately it ended up getting knotted in several places, and I had to cut it off in frustration. That's when I came up with the lazy susan/cake tray contraption. All the rest wound onto the cards nicely (tangle free).
Experience = Solutions to Prior Failure
The main downside is working with the skeins. I spent a couple evenings carefully winding the silk onto small cards, to keep the material from getting all tangled together.
Here is how the silk arrives:
Ten bundles/Five Colors in Each Set
I borrowed the lazy susan from the kitchen, slapped on an upside down cake stand (the legs helped keep the strands from tangling together) and started winding...and winding...and winding...did I mention that this stuff was cheap?
Warm Greys
Cool Greys
Assorted Blues
Assorted Lavender/Purple
The golden brown silk was the very first one I tried to wind by hand. Unfortunately it ended up getting knotted in several places, and I had to cut it off in frustration. That's when I came up with the lazy susan/cake tray contraption. All the rest wound onto the cards nicely (tangle free).
Experience = Solutions to Prior Failure