Brush eyes

Premade eyes for shrimp, crab and damsel nymph patterns don't come cheap. I actually considered them so expensive that I never used them. Until I thought of hairbrushes.

The Fat Shrimp
Read about hair brush eyes

Tube:	Bidoz aluminum tube, 15 mm
Thread	White 6/0 or Monocord
Antennae:	White bucktail
Shell:	Strip of heavy duty, clear plastic bag, 3-4 mm wide
Eyes:	Black from a hair brush
Rib:	Silver tinsel
Body/legs:	Natural white rabbit
Tying instructions: Line the tube with thin plastic tubing and melt both ends to form a tightly fitting collar Mount the prepared tube in a tube vice Start the thread 3-4 millimeters from the rear end Take a small bunch of bucktail and tie in as antennae pointing to the rear of the tube and extending a bit longer than the length of the tube Cover the butts with thread taking it to the front end of the tube Do not trim the butts but take the thread so close to the collar of the tube that the hairs flare out to form a tail. Trim tail to a suitable shape and length Prepare two hair brush eyes by bending them slightly just under the 'pupil' Tie in the eyes on top of the tube a bit on eahc side Cover the eye stalks with tying thread Varnish Cut a narrow strip of plastic, taper one end and tie in pointing to the rear of the tube Tie in ribbing pointing to the rear of the tube Dub the tube using fine rabbit fur. Shape a thin layer of dubbing to a tapered shape. We do not want the Fat Shrimp too fat! Fold the plastic forwards over the body and tie down just behind the collar Trim the plastic as close to the collar as you can. Pull ligthly on the platic while cutting. The butt will retract in under the thread Rib tightly over the dubbing and plastic shell Trim ribbing Whip finish and varnish Tease out legs with a velcro teaser Add a piece of silicone tubing - 5-10 millimeters Add a very short shank, preferably stainless, hook size 4-10