Sir Pete Graf

So named for a kind friend who supplied me with the feathers I needed for certain Atlantic salmon flies I was tying.  The pattern is as follows:
                                                                                   Sir Pete Graf
Hook: Partridge CS10/1
Tag/tip: flat gold tinsel, tied well forward of the point, low water style.
Tail: yellow golden pheasant flank
Butt: black ostrich
Body: rear 2/3 flat gold tinsel, veiled above and below with hooded merganser crest and butted with black ostrich, front 1/3 black seal
Rib: over gold, 2 strands of fine oval silver wound cross ribbed to each other, over seal; medium oval silver
Hackle: long white coch-a-bondhu over seal only
Throat: speckled guinea
Wing: two hooded merganser flanks, topping over
Cheeks: hooded merganser crest
Head: red

Hooded Merganser has a lovely dusty cinnamon look to it that lemon wood duck and similar ducks do not have.  The bicoloured crest also is a superb addition to the repertoire of a salmon fly tier, making a unique and good cheek or tailing and body veil, in my opinion.

In designing this fly, I was after a bright fly for a bright day, with good low-water characteristics for use as a summer run steelhead fly.  The gold tinsel body with black and white veilings, go well with the black and white of the fore-body.  The wing of course compliments the whole thing by accentuating the gold, black and white with out being over the top.  These colours should work pretty much anywhere I would think.

Wings over Jungle Cock

Wings over Jungle Cock
Hook: Partridge CS10/1 size 2/0
Thread: Black
Tip: fine silver wire
Tag: canary yellow silk
Tail: Topping and wide strip of barred wood duck
Butt: black ostrich
Body: in 3 segments, 1: flat silver ribbed with fine oval gold twist, 2: dark blue silk, ribbed with medium oval silver tinsel, 3: black silk ribbed with medium flat gold tinsel.  Each segment veiled above and below with pairs of jungle cock back to back, increasing in size towards the head.
Wing: Two wide furnace spade hackles, with married strands of white turkey, Kori bustard, Florican, black turkey, repeated 3 times. Topping over.
Throat: two long jungle cock back to back
Shoulder: red tipped, black and white barred Lady Amherst rump
Cheek: yellow Lady Amherst rump
Horns: blue and yellow macaw
Head: black ostrich

My thoughts on it after it has sat for a couple of weeks allowing me time to examine it critically... I should have used a long jungle cock over the middle of the yellow and black cheek.  Also, this photo is very over-exposed.  That hook should be black!

The Wild Turkey

The Wild Turkey
Hook: Partridge CS 10/1 size 2/0
Thread: Black
Tip: fine oval gold
Tag: lemon yellow
Tail: topping and barred wood duck
Butt: black ostrich
Body: 2 turns light green silk, 3 turns red-orange silk, remainder purple-claret seal
Ribbing: flat copper tinsel followed by red wire
Hackle: yellow marabou tied full from the green silk
Throat: spotted guinea dyed red
Wing: peacock herl long and low, with golden pheasant tippets over, married strands of Argus secondary, wild turkey dyed yellow red and green, repeated 3 times, turkey dyed yellow and red to separate each strip, 2 toppings over.
Shoulder: jungle cock
Cheek: kingfisher
Horns: blue and yellow macaw
Head: black ostrich

Surprised at how pretty a wild turkey feather is when dyed, and wanting to do an eagle style pattern, I created this to celebrate my successful dying of a bunch of wild turkey tails into different colours. 

Red Shift

Red Shift
Hook: Partridge CS10/1 size 1/0
Tip: fine gold wire
Tag: lemon yellow silk
Tail: topping and small jungle cock laid flat
Butt: black ostrich
Body: in 8 equal parts, yellow, buttercup yellow, golden yellow, light orange, orange, red-orange, red, purple silk, butted in the middle with orange toucan and vulturine guinea fowl. Rear half veiled with orange tipped yellow toucan above and below, front half with red toucan above and below.
Rib: rear half fine oval gold tinsel cross-knotted forwards above and below, front half fine oval silver tinsel done as the rear half.
Hackle: Lady Amherst topping and blue peacock breast
Wing: underwing; Lady Amherst tippet dyed red over peacock sword fibres. Overwing; married strands of florican, light speckled bustard, yellow turkey, wild turkey dyed yellow, orange turkey, wild turkey dyed orange, red, wild turkey dyed red, Kori bustard, Argus pheasant tail in the following formula, 1,1,2,1,4,1,4,1,1,1 X3; topping over
Cheeks: Impyan neck and jungle cock
Horns: blue and yellow macaw
Head: black

Following on the success of the Dark Side of the Moon and its exploration of light came the Red Shift, named for the Doppler shift that occurs when light is moving away from the observer.  It is this red shifted light that tells astronomers that other galaxies are moving away from each other, that the universe is still expanding, and by calculating the degree of shift, what the speed of the expansion is.  The opposite of the red shift is a Blue Shift, and that pattern has not revealed itself to me yet.  For more on red/blue shifting in light, see the wiki link provided. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Redshift

The Dark Side of the Moon

The Dark Side of the Moon
Hook:  Partridge CS10/1 size 2/0
Thread: white for the body, black for the head
Tag: fine oval gold
Tip: white floss butted with 3 turns fine silver tinsel
Tail: two toppings
Butt: black ostrich and 3 turns of fine silver tinsel
Body: in seven segments as follows: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet silk.  Each segment is butted fore and aft with 3 turns fine oval silver tinsel except for the indigo and violet silk where it is fine oval gild instead.  Each segment is also butted with a corresponding colour of feather as follows: red- red cocks hackle 2 turns, orange- orange toucan or cocks hackle 2 turns,  yellow -golden pheasant topping 3 turns, green- mandarin duck crest 3 turns, blue - cobalt vulturine guinea 1 turn, indigo - peacock neck 2 turns, violet -golden pheasant rump 2 turns.  There is also a butt of corresponding coloured ostrich herl after each "hackle" feather.  So the entire sequence goes as follows:  Black ostrich, tinsel, red silk, tinsel, red feather, red ostrich, tinsel, orange silk, tinsel,orange feather, orange ostrich, tinsel, yellow silk, tinsel, yellow feather, yellow ostrich etc...
Each section of silk is ribbed with 1 turn of fine oval silver tinsel, except for the indigo and violet silk, which are ribbed in fine oval gold. 
Lastly, it goes with out saying that the size of each butting hackle feather increases as you get closer to the head. 
Throat: finely speckled guinea dyed kingfisher blue
Wing: underwing: white striped, finely speckled vulturine guinea body feather, married strips of white turkey and wild turkey dyed red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, with argus tail along the top.  The sequence is as follows:  1 strand dyed white to three strands dyed wild, 2 strands argus to finish, 1,3,1,3,1,3,1,3,1,3,1,3,2
Topping over

This pattern actually came to me some 25 years ago, while tripping with Pink Floyd.  It stuck around in my head, occasionally trying to get out, but not succeeding.  Eventually I forgot it.  Then one night in 2007, I was listening to the same album, but not tripping, I had given that up 20 years prior, when the pattern jumped out of my head full force and demanded to be tied.  Surprisingly, it came out very well and has been warmly recieved so far.  One of my best works I think.  The one and only original is with Monte Smith now as I promised the tying gods while actually tying it. 

The Lady Camille

The Lady Camille
Tip: fine oval gold
Tag: Silver Dr. blue silk
Tail: topping and two strands Peacock sword, long
Butt: black ostrich
Body: in 4 sections as follows; 1 buttercup yellow silk, ribbed with fine oval gold,
butted with yellow toucanet wound as hackle, and black ostrich
2 orange silk, ribbed with fine oval
gold, butted with red/orange toucan wound as hackle, and black ostrich
3 claret silk, ribbed with fine oval
silver, butted with Lady Amherst topping wound as hackle and black ostrich
4 dark royal blue silk, ribbed with
fine silver tinsel, butted with Golden Pheasant topping under Peacock breast, both
wound as hackle, followed by black ostrich herl
Each 'hackle' is longer then its preceding ones
Wing: Ruby Macaw shoulders Shannon style, married strips, 2 strands, dark speckled
Bustard, yellow Swan, Argus tail, yellow Swan, Argus secondary, topping or two over.
Shoulder: Jungle cock long
Cheek: green Impyan neck
Horns: Hyacinth macaw

The Revision

The Revision
Hook: Partridge CS10/1 #1/0
Thread: 8/0 black Uni
Tip: fine gold thread
Tag: canary yellow silk
Tail: Golden pheasant crest, green Impyan in strands over
Butt: black ostrich
Body: 3/5 dark kingfisher blue silk, 2/5 black SLF #41 picked out roughly
Rib: oval silver tinsel, counter ribbed with fine silver thread
Hackle: Golden pheasant crest
Throat: fine speckled guinea dyed Kingfisher blue, bright yellow speckled guinea over, thin bunch of chartreuse  #05 krystal flash over
Wing: 2 pair Lady Amherst tippets dyed purple, back to back, 1 pair green impyan over
Shoulder: Junglecock long
Horns: 4 strands red #3 Kryatal flash spread wide, 6 strands chartreuse #05 krystalflash
Topping: 4 strands peacock herl


Ever have one of those days when you get the body right, you get the wing right, but they are on two different flies, or should be?  Well, I don't know how many times I redid this fly before I got the wings and body the way I wanted them. 

The Redwing

The Redwing
Hook: Partridge CS10/1 #1/0
Thread: 8/0 black Uni
Tip: fine gold thread
Tag: canary yellow silk
Tail: matched strips from yellow with blue base shoulder feathers of Scarlet macaw
Body: 3/5 kingfisher blue silk, 2/5 fiery claret SLF #13
Rib: oval silver tinsel
Hackle: fine speckled guinea dyed bright yellow
Throat: Guinea dyed kingfisher blue
Wing: 2 pair hen neck dyed scarlet tied long and back to back, 1 pair Lady Amherst tippet dyed scarlet tied over
Shoulder: double jungle cock, one longer then the other
Cheeks: Jungle cock
Topping: 2 Golden pheasant crest

The Koksoak

The Koksoak
Tip: fine gold thread
Tag: dark blue silk
Butt: red wool
Tail: peacock sword
Body: one turn flat gold tinsel, veiled with paired jungle cock back to back, above and below.  Remaining body section divided into thirds, each being composed of kingfisher back “chatterer” style, veiled above with paired monal neck back to back, jungle cock over, below, small tuft Canadian lynx fur, monal neck over jungle cock over that.  Butted with Lady Amherst crest wound as hackle, black ostrich behind and 1 turn dark blue floss behind that.  Each pair monal/jungle cock slightly longer, as also with the Lynx fur.  Hackle at the head is omitted and replaced with Lady Amherst as cheeks instead. 
Wing: two pairs Lady Amherst tippets back to back. 
Topping: Golden pheasant crest

In this fly I have tried to illustrate not just the complexity of life along the Koksoak River, but also the inter-dependence of each life form upon each other.  The River itself is illustrated by the complexly hidden blue feathers and silks that make up the body of the fly.  Woven into this are the fish, starting with the egg, as seen in the red wool of the butt, and in various stages of growth represented by the graduated sizing of the jungle cock feathers that overlay each of the monal pairings. 
These monal feathers also are used to divide the body sections and in part hide it, representing the spruce and larch trees that form canopy along, and islets in the river.  These trees serve to mark the rivers course  and also they provide food for the insects that feed the salmon smolts.  When they eventually die and fall in, they become cover for returning adult salmon.  Meanwhile, standing they are shade and cover for the wild life such as the caribou and lynx of the nearby forests.  With out the river, there would be no trees, with out the trees, no fish, and less game and nothing to keep the river in its banks.  There-by  the circle of life is complete.  The bright white and black of the wings remind us of the cold, snowy harshness that is the climate a good part of the year.  Yet despite this cold and seemingly barren winter landscape, there is life.  The black stripes are the marks that man has made living here.  When balanced with nature, we can see the marks almost blend in harmony with the landscape as here in the fly they are almost subdued by the monal feather trees. The red of the Lady Amherst crest that is used at each of the body segments, and finally in a bold sweep along the side and the yellow of the golden pheasant crest topping is this common life-blood and almost palpable energy that unites all the creatures including the humans in their struggle for life in this harsh climate.

The Conure

 The Conure
Hook: Partridge CS10/1 #1
Thread: White 0/8 Uni
Tip: Fine gold thread
Tag: Lilac silk
Tail: G.P. Topping, kingfisher over
Butt: Black ostrich
Body: 2/5 White silk, butted with G.P. topping and Lady Amherst topping wound as hackles, remaining 3/5 multiple yellow/orange Sun Conure feathers overlapped Chatterer style
Rib: on the white silk only, medium gold twist, 2 strands florescent orange Krystal flash, 2 strands red Krystal flash, 2 strands opalescent Flashabou. 
Throat: Blue peacock breast
Wing: a dozen or so G.P. toppings staggered over which 1 pair green Impyan pheasant back. 
Cheeks: European jay, large
Horns: Scarlet macaw

The Boreal

The Boreal
Hook: Partridge CS10/1 size 2
Thread: rear half white 8/0 Uni, front half black 8/0 uni
Tip: silver thread
Tag: pale blue silk
Tail: topping and married strands pale yellow, golden orange, pale green swan
Butt: black ostrich
Body: in two halves: rear white silk veiled below with green Lady Amherst neck under guinea under satyr tragopan. Butted with golden pheasant topping wound as hackle and black ostrich, front half as many tiny dark green ring necked pheasant neck feathers as can be tied neatly onto the hook “Chatterer” style, veiled below with green Lady Amherst under junglecock saddle.
Rib: on rear half only; medium oval silver tinsel, two strands opalescent ‘Flashabou’ one each sideof the tinsel, one strand florescent orange # 01 ‘Crystal flash’ behind the tinsel. 
Hackle: Golden pheasant crest wound as hackle under Lady Amherst crest wound same, under cobalt blue vulturine guinea wound same. 
Wing: Grey peacock pheasant eyes to the tail, under green Lady Amherst pheasant neck under finely speckled guinea
Cheeks: 5 strands each florescent orange #01 and green #19 ‘Flashabou’ fanned out widely.
Topping: Golden pheasant crest

The Boreal:
One of the distinguishing features of the boreal zone is the dark forests of larch and spruce represented in this fly by the green of the various components.  This forest is occupied by various kinds of wild life, in particular various large owls, caribou, wolves, foxes, voles and mosquitoes.  In this composition, the owl is represented in the wing by the large eye-spot of the grey peacock pheasant while the voles which are the prey of so many of the arctic creatures, are seen in the spotting surrounding the eye.  The wolf and the fox are seen in the lower veiling as an eye-spot cunningly hidden and a flash of red, which is about all you ever get to see of the red fox usually.  Caribou are seen as the fine almost tweed-like speckling in the lower veiling that is similar in colour to the pelage of the woodland caribou. These three are together on this veiling as the caribou is the prey of the wolf, and the fox follows after the wolf picking up the scraps.  Both predatory species dominant over the prey, and the feathers are similarly laid over each other.  Mosquitoes are suggested by the airiness of the hackles, suggestive of the dangling legs of a flying mosquito. 
Over all of this of course is the night sky suggested here with guinea in the shoulder part of the wing.  With clear skies the number of stars visible on an arctic night is staggering, and the finely speckled guinea seems an almost perfect mimic.  With the aurora borealis in play the sight is breath-taking.  Suggested in the colours of the tail, they are more played out in the cheeks and hackles which all suggest a lightness and visible colour change as can be seen watching the northern lights, especially on a frozen winters night when even the air seems to sparkle with moonlight (topping and tail) and fairly snaps with energy as suggested by the crystalflash.
The various features of the boreal zone are also seen represented again more broadly in the various parts of the fly.  Water is seen in the blue of the tag, but more so frozen in glittering ice white of the rear half of the body.  The dense forests are represented by the densely packed spruce green feathering of the front half of the body.  The wing divides into three parts, wildlife (grey peacock eye), forests (Green Lady Amherst) and the night sky (fine speckled black and white guinea).  Human impact is represented by the slash of the jungle cock saddle bisecting the green of the boreal forest, yet instead of being intrusive, it is harmonious as the relationship between the native human dwellers of the arctic has been for many thousands of years.

New materials used, Flashabou and Crystal flash. 

The Blue Fox

The Blue Fox
Hook: Partridge CS10/1, #0/1
Thread: white 0/8 uni
Tip: fine gold thread
Tag: canary yellow silk
Tail: Golden pheasant crest, scarlet macaw over
Butt: black ostrich
Body: darkest blue silk
Rib: oval gold tinsel, two strands opalescent flashabou, 3 strands red #3 Krystalflash over, counter rib with fine gold thread
Hackle: Golden pheasant and Amgold pheasant crest wound as hackle from the second turn of tinsel.
Throat: Amherst crest wound as hackle, cobalt blue vulturine guinea over
Wing: Small bunch natural white polar bear hair, small bunch of arctic fox hair lightly tinted with light blue, light green, orange and yellow fine tipped waterproof “Sharpie” marker pens over
Horns: blue and yellow macaw
Topping: Golden pheasant crest
Head: black ostrich herl


A companion to the Arctic Fox, for dark waters. 

The Arctic Fox

The Arctic Fox
Hook: Partridge CS10/1 size 1/0
Thread: 8/0 white uni
Tip: fine gold thread
Tag: pale pink silk
Tail: Golden pheasant crest
Butt: black ostrich
Body: rear 3/5 white silk, fore 2/5 spun white arctic fox fur picked out roughly
Rib: 2 strands each green Krystal flash #19, Florescent orange Krystal flash #01, pink Krystal flash #04, 3 strands pearlescent Flashabou Medium oval gold tinsel counterwound with fine gold thread
Hackle: Golden pheasant crest, tied long, Lady Amherst crest from the Arctic fox fur.
Collar: cobalt blue vulturine guinea fowl
Wing: white Arctic Fox Fur
Topping: Golden Pheasant crest

 The Arctic Fox, a ubiquitous little predator of the high Arctic.  Supremely adapted to the rigours of the long Arctic winter nights as well as the long summer days of relative plenty. Both hunter and scavenger, it follows the Polar bear, gleaning scraps from the great bear's kills.  In Spring and Summer it haunts seabird rookeries, stealing eggs and chicks, eating some, caching others in preparation of the always on the horizon, winters famine.  When voles and lemmings are plentiful, it feeds heavily, and as always, hordes food in shallow scrapes.  Winter is not long away and the fox seems ever mindful of this.  In this fly design, I have tried to incorporate the elements of the foxes habitat, ice, cold, water, sunlight and the Aurora Borealis, the northern lights.  Ice gleaming and reflective of colours above seen in the white silk and various shades of reflective mylar and tinsel.   Water and sky seen in the blue of the collar, and also reflected in the tinsels of the ribbing.  Sunlight, ever bright in summer is seen in the topping and tail. The Northern Lights show in the mixed hackles, light, airy, ephemeral and full of energy and again in the tinsels of the tip and ribbing.  And of course, the fox itself, represented in the white of the wing, as it sits, partly on snow and partly on ice with it's sometimes companion, the beautifully pink Ross's gull, another equally adept Arctic denizen. 

Cindy's Once

Cindy's Once
Tip: fine gold thread
Tag: light blue silk with three wraps fine gold thread over
Butt: speckled Guinea dyed yellow
Tail: Golden pheasant rump, kingfisher tied long over
Body: in two sections, aft; conure chatterer style, butted with speckled guinea dyed red, fore; versicolor pheasant neck chatterer style (aprox. 200 feathers each section) with thin band of red conure at the front. 
Hackle: ringneck pheasant rump dyed purple over small throat of scarlet polar bear hair, tied to the bend of the hook.  Lady Amherst pheasant crest dyed scarlet over to the bend of the hook also.  
Wing: Small bunch of yellow dyed polar bear tied long, two pairs yellow hen neck over, 1 pair golden pheasant tippets back to back over.
Shoulders: Green impyan neck
Cheeks: kingfisher tied long  
Topping: Golden pheasant crest

This is one of those flies where I went sort of berserk with the feathers.   I don't know what I was thinking but as is implied in the name, I only want to tie this one once. 

Cindy's Fancy

Cindy's Fancy
Hook: Partridge CS10/1 #1/0
Thread: 8/0 black Uni
Tip: fine gold thread
Tag: canary yellow silk
Tail: Impyan crest, long, Kingfisher over
Butt: black ostrich
Body: ¼ buttercup yellow silk, close ribbed with fine gold thread, veiled above and below with paired Impyan head scales, butted with red ostrich.  ¼ hot orange SLF # 15, ¼ fiery orange SLF # 16, ¼ fiery claret SLF # 13
Rib: oval silver tinsel, counter ribbed with fine gold thread
Hackle: fine speckled guinea dyed yellow, sparse
Throat: fine speckled guinea dyed red, lemon wood duck over
Wing: 2 pair hot orange hen neck feathers back to back, tied long, 1 pair golden pheasant  tippets  over, 1 pair Lady Amherst tippets dyed scarlet over.
Shoulder: junglecock
Cheeks: metallic reddish brown neck feathers from Impyan pheasant, 1 pair green Impyan head scales slightly shorter over. Also 1 pair slightly longer Impyan head scales drooping Dee style. 
Horns: Impyan crest tied to the orange hen
Topping: Golden pheasant crest

In retrospect, a bit over the top I think. 

Camille's Delight

Camille's Delight
Hook: Partridge cs/10, #1/0
Thread: white 8/0 uni-thread
Tag: flat silver tinsel
Tail: topping and speckled guinea
Butt: black ostrich herl
Body: 3/5 flat silver tinsel, veiled with oily black cock’s hackle above and below.  Front 2/5 white silk,
Rib: oval silver tinsel over the rear 3/5, oval gold tinsel over the front 2/5
Hackle: fine speckled guinea over the white silk Throat: spotted black and white guinea
Wings: a small bunch of white polar bear hair, over that is a pair of silver badger rooster neck hackles.  2 pair Lady Amherst tippets back to back, staggered Ranger style, married strands light orange, black and white as follows, 2 strand orange, single strands of black and white alternating 5 times, two strands light orange to finish.  
Cheeks: Jungle cock
Horns: scarlet macaw
Topping: Golden pheasant crest

Arctic Nights

Arctic Nights
Hook: Partridge cs10/1, #0/1
Thread: white 0/8 uni
Tag: Two strands flat, opalescent flashabou
Tail: Golden pheasant crest, paired Impyan head scales over
Butt: black ostrich
Body: spun natural white arctic fox fur
Rib: oval silver tinsel, two strands opalescent flashabou over, counter rib with fine silver thread
Hackle: Golden pheasant and Amgold pheasant crest wound as hackle
Throat: cobalt blue vulturine guinea
Wing: 1 pair spotted guinea back to back, 1 pair speckled guinea over, slightly shorter
Sides: 2 strands each Krystalflash 03, 05, 04, 01 and single strand red 3, splayed widely over wing
Cheeks: small bunch of arctic fox hair lightly tinted with light blue, light green, orange and yellow fine tipped waterproof  Sharpie marker pens, to lightly cover half the wing.
Topping: Golden pheasant crest
This fly was created in response to a challenge by the FQSA to tie original patterns using Arctic Fox hair.  I forget now if this was a fly I sent off as an entrant in the contest or not but I do like the fly.  The hair in the sides is supposed to represent the Northern Lights on a starry night sky composed of the guinea fowl feathers.  Came out rather nice I think.

Brenna’sDesign

Brenna’s Design
Hook: partridge cs10/1 #1/0
Tag: flat gold tinsel
Tail: golden pheasant breast feather
Ribbing: oval gold, cross-ribbed with fine gold thread
Body: in 4 quarters, flat gold tinsel, canary yellow silk, magenta SLF#25, light claret SLF#14
Hackle: chartreuse marabou, one side stripped, over all, Speckled guinea dyed green over the front half
Collar: ring neck pheasant rump dyed claret
Wing: peacock herl, blue peacock neck over top, tied short so as to form a roof extending half way up the wing.

My daughter, knowing little about fly tying, but seeing what I do with fur and feathers, handed me a sketch one day and said, “Daddy, tie this.”  She was about 9 at the time as I recall.  She has an eye for a good fish getter I think!

Cindy's Charm

Cindys Charm
Tip: silver thread
Tag: crimson silk
Tail: yellow GP rump laid curve upwards, kingfisher over
Butt: black Ostrich  
Body: 1/4 pale pink silk,1/4 hot orange silk, 1/4 hot orange seal, remainder crimson seal
Rib: 6 turns flat wide gold tinsel, oval gold tinsel same.
Hackle: hot orange with guinea dyed red from the seal.Throat: lemon wood duck long.
Wing: 1 pair hot orange neck hackle back to back, under red GP sides 3/4 as long as saddles, under yellow GP rump 3/4 as long as red GP sides.
Cheeks: jungle cock long
Topping: GP

My ex has the loveliest red hair.  I think it is one of her best physical features.  This fly celebrates her and that hair.