The rule of thumb is five or less.......materials.

[Chucker]

Sticking a purple rabbit strip onto a hook with contact cement makes an effective steelhead fly.

 

[Zak]

This snowshoe emerger (thanks Bob Wyatt) is a variety of Usual that works for me on lakes. This one doesn't have a rib but sometimes I tie it with a rib. I also tie it with deer hair instead of snowshoe for the wing. I only grease the wing, so the body rides low in the film.

 

[Zak]

I assume you are talking to me. Body is orange deer hair with the tips making the tail and wound around the shank. Wire counter ribbed and elk hair for the wing. Tied in various sizes of 10-6.

Thanks, @_WW_ !

I really like this fly and look forward to fishing it.

 

[Norm Frechette]

tan thread midge

hook

tan thread

black marker

 

[Mike Cline]

Moose Humpy - 4 materials including hook and thread

Moose Body Hair for tail and hump
Thread for underbody
Hackle for legs

 

[kmudgn]

I would nominate a Woolybugger. You can use one, or a hundred and one different materials to make the fly.

 

[DryFly82]

Here's a good list of lake flies for trout...

Dries: Tom Thumb, Elk Hair Caddis, Adams (regular and parachute)
Nymphs: Six Pack, Carey Special, Nyerges Nymph, Halfback, Fullback, Pheasant Tail, Hair's Ear
Chironomids, Leeches, Scuds, Waterboatmen, Boobies: 90% are 5 or less.

Gomphus are also just deer hair and pheasant, but I wouldn't wish that on anyone trying to keep it simple.

 

[srickaby99]

Go for a zebra midge. It's 4 materials (hook, thread, wire and bead). 5 if you use resin. Stupidly simple, fast to tie and I've caught some beauts on it!

 

[Smalma]

For lakes I would nominate soft hackles. These simple flies require a body, some ribbing, and appropriate color hackle. For more than 50 years a box of soft hackles in sizes 14 to 6s and in a variety of colors/hues have been a staple in my lake fishing. In fact, if I was building a collection of flies for my lake fishing that is where I would start. Confident that I could catch at least some fish with that collection on almost any still water.

If need to reduce that collection I would go to a dark olive soft hackle in the above sizes.

Curt