One of the traditional materials for making the mari for Temari is rice hulls. They are not the easiest to find for purchase iin the US, but readers say that garden centers might have them as they apparently make great mulch.... and also, they are used in beer making. You will find a link or two on the supplies page for them..... and the following web readers offer their thoughts and help:

From Carolyn - I've used nothing but rice hulls for the last 18 years for my maris.  I put them in a regular sandwich baggie, stuff the noise maker in the middle, wrap it with a sheet or two or kleenex (depending on the size) and then wrap with thread. I put on usually what amounts to two of the large spools of thread, again depending on the size. it makes a firm  ball, but still has the give for the stitching.  For my  noisemaker I usually put two bottle caps together with a few washers in side. Just make sure you have enough of a layer of thread that you will have plenty to grab with your needle.  You learn real quick how much you need. I don't twist the baggie, just fold the top over, squish it together, put the kleenex around it and then start wrapping,  making sure I'm not wrapping in just one direction, but always moving the ball around and squishing and molding it to make it round.  Some people roll it on the table top to make it round but I seem to loose threads when I do that. It works up real easy.  I learned this from a gal who learned temari  while her hubby was stationed in Japan years ago. If I can be of any help, let me know. 

From Helen - I'm a rice hull user for the last 10 or 12 years, but since I've never used a stryo ball I can't make a comparison.  There was a wonderful posting within the last few days about how to use rice hulls.  I'd only add that  just recently I've been making little boxes out of old greeting cards, for the noise makers.  The box is from a pattern about one inch wide and shaped like a cross; you fold in the sides and the ends -- it's very simple to figure out how to use it.  I scotch tape it together except for the top, put in tow or three little pebbles, shells, or bits of beach-washed glass, then tape the top down.  The reason I don't use bottle caps is that although I bury the little box in the middle of the rice hulls, sometimes it drifts toward the surface while first forming the ball and then when I go to insert a pin, the bottle caps won't let me whereas the little box will.  Am I making sense?  Also not mentioned is the business of the size of the ball -- this must be true for the styro balls too -- after I've been wrapping my ball for a while and I think the layer of thread is thick enough I measure the ball and if it's close to a whole number either in centimeters or inches I wrap a little more to get the whole number, which is helpful in figuring out divisions and therefore in getting accuracy. Rice hulls are clean and easy to use -- I really love them.  I love the heft of the finished ball.

From Karen StJ - people have been asking how much a ball takes to make a rice hull core... I just used  1pound  of rice hulls: and taking 1 cup and putting them in a pleated sandwich bag I  made 11 balls averaging  9 1/4 inches in circumference; then using 1/2 C  rice hulls  I made 6 balls averging 7 1/2 inches  circumference.

From Carolyn V - Well when I use the rice hulls I used one discarded cleaned knee high hose.  I have a metal funnel that has a large mouth, that I used when canning food ( to get the food into the jars without messing up the edges). I put the knee high over the funnel and poured about one cup of hulls into the knee high. then twisted it and folded the top over the hulls. The twisted part squishes into the ball as you wrap.

From Yoshie  -  I too have used only rice hulls for temari. I save panty hose with runs in them. You can make a temari the size you'e like. Just cut off a section of the leg, sew the end of it, put the rice hulls, and noise maker in and the sew the other end closed. Smush the bag into rough sphere shape. Then I wrap the bag with the coarse yarn to get a more spherical shape. I use the fine thread to refine the shape.Where did you get the rice hulls? I used to get them from the feed store. It is sold in CA as a soil amendment for REALLY cheap (maybe 30 cents a pound. and a pound makes a LOT of temari. I think I bought five pounds one time and only recently need more.) Since moving to WA two years ago, no one in the feed stores even knows what rice hulls are! I'm interested in trying other mediums if I can't locate a source for rice hulls.  Runned panty hose in constant supply, unfortunately (We have made it to the moon, but have yet to make panty hose that doesn't run...)

From Helen - The pound bag full is roughly the size of a gallon milk jug.

From Susan L - Rice hulls are just the outer husk that is removed from rice when it is refined.  It can be used to make the mari instead of using Styrofoam. It does not make noise, but you can still add a noise maker inside the mari.  To use it, I just take about 1.25 cups of it and put in in a plastic bag, twist the top of the bag  close and tape it shut, then cover that with a couple Kleenex to prevent the yarn/thread from being in contact with the plastic, then start wrapping it just  like you would a regular mari.  At first it is looks like it will never turn out round, but it shapes up fast and comes out great for me.  Temari made with the
rice hull base have a nice firm, heavy feel, much nicer than Styrofoam in my opinion.  Susan

All Seasons Gradening and Brewing Supply Co.
3900 Hillsboro Road
Nashville, TN  37215
(615) 385-0300
(800) 790-2188
For 1-20 lbs. it is $4 per pound.  Purchases over 20 pounds are $1.55 a pound. All prices are plus shipping.
 

Susan L also offers Beer at Home as a Rice hull source.

        If you are rice hull user and have some experiences or thoughts to share, drop a note and we'll add you in!