Touch Dubbing is a valuable technique to make your flies look buggier. The Touch Dub technique was promoted by Gary La Fontaine in the 80s. Gary spent thousands of hours researching caddis flies, including countless hours scuba diving. His research led him to discover that hatching insects frequently trap bubbles of air on the way to the surface. Touch dubbing compared to tightly dubbed bodies allows your fly to more naturally trap air bubbles.
Nymphs tied this way may look ugly…but boy do they work. Give touch dubbing a try next time you are tying nymphs or caddis dry flies.