I used rice in mine with no problems. Haven’t seen a bug near it in the 5 years since I made it. A friend gave me one filled with sand. It Leaves fine sand everywhere.

Have you considered FLAX Seeds. I would avoid rice. If it gets a little damp from spilled water or the cup of tea, it..... well it molds and gets stinky.

Poly pellets here, too, with no problems. Pins slide in and out easily.

Caution with walnut or other nut products. Some people are severely allergic.

I did some homework...okay...I used Google...:o Earlier in the thread I mentioned steel wool and there was a question about humidity. Haven't seen anything negative (so far) and one site recommended it for pins and needles in humid areas to keep them from rusting. Would it effect long term? No idea. One tip I did see was to put a heavy metal washer in the bottom of the cushion to give it some weight. Some sites are listed below if you are interested.

https://www.craftsy.com/quilting/art...hion-stuffing/
https://www.ehow.com/info_12002477_s...hion-with.html
https://jacquelynnesteves.com/what-s...y-pin-cushion/

I thought I read somewhere that many years ago women used the hairs that got caught in their hairbrushes as pin cushion stuffing. Apparently the natural hair grease helped keep the pins and needles sharp. Seems smart to me. I've been intending to try it for sometime, but always forget. I'm losing so much hair lately, I should try!

ETA I wouldn't give that pin cushion away as a gift though, lol!

I use ground walnut shells for the pin cushions I have made. Bought it at the pet store, sold for reptile or bird cage bedding. It is a nice weight for pin cushions. I've only made a few and they are for my own use, mainly decorative. So I don't know if the pins are affected. I guess if the animals are ok, my pins will be ok. If I were giving them as gifts or selling them to people I don't know, I would label them as made the a nut product.

My grandmother had a small container on her dresser to collect her hair.

Use English walnut shells---Black walnut will stain black.

Look for reptile bedding *made of crushed English walnut shells*. It's a lot cheaper than purchasing "pin cushion stuffing."

I'm with you, Irishgal. If my wool balls aren't big enough to fill my pincushion, I wrap a bit of wool batting to fill it out.

I've also heard of people using bird gravel. It gives some weight to the pincushion.

Leslie