While most temari making traditionally uses pearl cotton or silk for design stitching, there seems to be an increasing number of folks at least try using stranded floss versus a corded spun thread if for nothing more than just trying something different. Others use floss on more frequent basis for different reasons, the two most common being that it is usually more cost effective than pearl cotton and that it usually is more easy to obtain than pearl cotton. We've had more discussions on TalkTemari as such as well as web readers submitting hints on using floss.. and it does take a little more effort than spun threads but the results can be stunning. Here is the collected info from  the list and submitted tips, and the floss tips that were previously included on the General Hints and Tips page are now consolidated here also.

These pack of info comes from Martha:   I just finished my second temari which I made with 6-strand floss.   It wasn't all that hard to keep the strands laid side by side nice and flat with no twisting.   I think the trick may be to be sure you stitch with the "grain" of the thread.   When you pull the thread off the skein, you need to thread the needle with the end that comes out easily - there is a little 'hand' on the label that shows which end to grab. Another way to identify the 'right' direction is to try to separate a strand.  If it is easy to remove the strand, you are not pulling against the grain (twist)   Knot the end that you cut.  Do that as soon as you take the floss off the skein.

Like all  yarns, floss has a very definite grain direction or 'twist' which is determined by the way it is spun.   Most has a "Z" twist. If you don't use it going the right direction it will kink up and tangle and you will hate it. Sewing thread works the same way - if you have trouble with your thread tangling, its almost always because you are working against the twist.   Think of rubbing a cat's fur the wrong way.  You want the thread to move through the ground fabric, or in this case the threads on the temari, in the same direction as the twist of the thread.   The nearly-microscopic little burrs on the thread  will then be pulled flat, not rubbed against the fabric/ball.

For regular embroidering, including X-stitch, you need to separate the strands of floss, pulling them from the end where they come out smoothly without
tangling, then lay the threads side by side and gently stroke them back together.   This is called - its ok to giggle - stripping and stroking. For temari, I discovered this is not practical since you need such a long piece of floss.    For mine - and I speak from vast inexperience! - I made sure I knotted the end that I cut from the skein (or if wound on a paper bobbin, the end that was loose since it is reversed when you wind it off the skein) so that I was working with all six strands going in the right direction to avoid tangling.

As I stitched, I was careful to keep the thread from twisting (let it dangle once in a while) and also gave my needle a quarter turn with each stitch to help keep it from twisting so much.   You can kind of "needle-comb" the strands several inches from the end as you go along to help it lie flat and smooth.
As you lay the stitch, you can run your needle, or a second  tapestry needle, under the threads to encourage them to behave and lie nice and flat beside each other.

This sounds a lot harder and more complicated than it really is.   The floss gives a quite different look than the pearl cotton I think -  a more matte finish for sure.   I was crazy enough to put some Marlit in my second temari because that was the only non-floss kind I had in the shade of green I wanted.   It wasn't too bad, but I was glad I had one of those dryer sheets to tame it.   I might have given up temari altogether! ..... Martha

Oh, be sure to include the hint somebody posted today  that keeping the twist does different but very good things if you don't need the 'flat' look. 


Other hints and tips:

02/00 - Help on using 6 strand floss - there are some saying that one should never use 6 strand embroidery floss on Temari.... we (I as well as most of the members of the discussion group) tend to think otherwise. First of all, Temari were originally made by reusing fabric and threads of old kimonos so in a sense to use threads that you have is in the true spirit of making do. Second, as you advance and feed your longing to learn more, you will branch eventually into the Japanese books, and while the predominance is the equivalent to #5 pearl, it is by no means the only thread used in Japan. Variations of cotton and silk threads and flosses abound.. so have at it. You may though, find that working with a single corded thread (like pearl) is easier to learn with, and pearl also has a sheen on it that regular floss does not (unless it is rayon, which is very slippery to work with). That not withstanding, here are some hints to working with stranded floss:  Others of the group have added hints - Carol M. mentions railroading the threads ((Railroading is when you place the needle between the plies before going into the fabric and by separating the plies you get flat threads). Karen M. says: A "trick" I use when working with shorter lengths (this will not work when using a long piece for wrapped balls), is to separate all six strands--keeping them in the same direction due to the grain/nap--then put them all back together, thread the needle and then run a "dryer sheet" down the length. It reduces static, smoothes the strands and makes it glide through the foundation. You will still have to do some smoothing and holding with your thumb as mentioned on Judy's page, but will save time "railroading" as often. From Pam D - as taught to her by a very experienced embroiderer: with floss there is a grain and that I was taught that if you run the floss under the tender part of your nose you can tell which end should go in the needle.   The direction that the floss feels the softest and smoothest is the end that goes in the eye of the needle so that the same direction pulls through the stitching base. If it feels rough when you run under your nose than that is the wrong end. You're going against the grain then, and it will knot as you stitch among other problems. There is also a grain to pearl cotton that can be found the same way, but most people are unaware of it. From Sue H.: If you look on the cover of Cosmo book #5, you will see a large lime-green and white ball on the left upper corner of the photo.  I have made that ball (along with several other practice balls) that use floss under the guidance of Ozaki Sensei.  Most of the pattern is wound, so once you get your starting end in place with the needle, you remove the needle from the thread, and use the needle to slide through the skein of floss, undoing all the twists, and smoothing the separate strands. Tips include: - using a rubber band or a clip on the floss to keep it in a ball or loop (or blob) so it does not become tangled. - let the floss (blob) hang free so it can untwist as you slide your needle through it. - only slide/smooth a short bit at a time. One trick that sensei taught us, which works for both floss as well as well as using double-strand stitching - when taking a stitch, slip the needle between the two (six) threads as it enters the stitch point.  Then, as you pull your threads through, it prevents twists and un-tidy stitches... no more fighting to get it to lay neatly. I found that once you get the hang of "railroading" it goes quite quickly. When our class at Tokyo Union Church did it, I seemed to be the only one who latched on to the rhythm of ...slide/untwist - lay-it-down (in the pattern on the ball)...slide/untwist - lay-it-down...  (keep in mind, it took me three practice balls before I ever started that "green thing" - I had more tangled messes! - but like learning to ride a bicycle, it became a "breeze" once that rhythm set in!)  Once you start that kind of "wound" ball, you must see it through to the end, as there is no "good" stopping point... at least until you change threads.  Also, use a "new" skein so you will be sure to have enough to complete your pattern in one go.... don't cut your thread into smaller sections to work with like one would usually do with the pearl or when embroidering.