The "snow" inside the dome is a closely guarded secret of the snowdome-makers. Early snowdomes contained snow made of ceramic bits, sand, sawdust, treated wax, even rice. Today's snow appears to be made up of either tiny plastic pieces or a ground up mineral substance - one collector tells us she has had great success in making her own snow by grinding vermiculite. (But you don't have to work that hard - see our Make your own snowdomespage for a fun and easy way to create your own special dome).