Call them what you want – retainers, chums, croakies, whatever – but that simple strap on the back of your sunglasses is invaluable in making sure your shades don’t end up in the drink. Whether you’re sporting some gas-station budget shades or a pair of 250 dollar Costas, the fact is, losing your sunglasses stinks.
Should you leave your sunglasses retainer at home on your next fishing trip, not to worry – you can make your own! Don’t risk losing another pair to the river – all you need is a short piece of old fly line. Check out how.
Cut a short piece of old fly line, approximately three feet long, and cut in half. Small parachute cord, a shoelace, or even heavy backing would work as well, but style points go to the gnarliest fly line.
Nail knot a piece of fly line to each earpiece of the sunglasses. Make sure to tighten the nail knot enough to hold but take care not to break the fly line. The number of wraps is personal preference as to what is the most comfortable on your sunglasses (the nail knot in the photo was tied with ten wraps).
Measure the distance you want your sunglasses to hang around your neck when not on and tie the two pieces of fly line together using a 3-4 turn blood knot. Trim all excess ends and smooth out any sharp edges.
Finished product at the top of the post!
Ha! You discovered one of my fashion secrets. I’ve been doing this for ages on all my sunglasses. Fellow flyfishers lost in a concrete jungle, will be able to spot you amongst the crowd!
Loving the style tips! Very practical and a great idea. Kind regards – metiefly
Brilliant! Any idea what I could add to the fly line to make them float in water as well? A few pieces of foam would work, but it would look really ugly.
I hate to admit – that sure beats duct tape
This caught my eye–been nail knotting old line to glasses for years and you do get comments from like minded strangers in odd places. What is the purpose of the blood knot? Why not cut to length prior to tying 2nd nail knot?
If you want to get really fancy, instead of blood knots, tie uni- or other slip knots around both loose ends (one around the other) and leave the tag ends long. Then you can snug them up against the back of your head by pulling on the tag ends, or lengthen the loop for dropping them down on your chest when you put on your reading glasses to tie on a new fly.
Not that I or anyone I know would need reading glasses.
Awesome idea Redside! We’ll definitely have to give it a try.
A couple of twist on indicators same color and you have a fashion statement …. okay sort of … but it will float.
I’ve been using 30# backing for years. No blood knot in the middle I just put a bead and a stand alone nail knot in the middle to make them adjustable. Stops all my glasses from slipping down my nose.
This price of Chums retainer are definitely right and I appreciated the colour options. I was actually able to get the strap successfully on, so that right there is a big plus! They are comfy and seem secure. Work well on the wide arms of the sporty frames. The size is generous and they’re cotton so they’re comfortable around your neck.
Hi Stephen. Chums work well. Any retainer that prevents your glasses from falling into the drink is good, I say.
I like that NETTEMPT retainers don’t leave a “tail” hanging down the back of my neck. I feel great and the strap keeps them in place whenever I am running. I like how they came in two little individual plastic boxes for safe keeping. I will see how long they last. I love how it was a dual pack.