How to Make a Snow Globe: Crafting Winter Magic in a Jar

Somewhere between childhood wonder and adult nostalgia lies the snow globe—that peculiar object that captures an entire winter scene in the palm of your hand. I've been making these miniature blizzards for years, and there's something almost meditative about watching those tiny flakes swirl around a frozen moment in time. Maybe it's the way they transform ordinary objects into something magical, or perhaps it's just the satisfaction of creating your own pocket-sized snowstorm whenever the mood strikes.

Snow globes have this funny way of showing up everywhere during the holidays, from department store shelves to grandmother's mantle, but few people realize how simple they are to create at home. The basic principle hasn't changed much since Erwin Perzy accidentally invented them in 1900 while trying to improve the brightness of candle-lit surgical instruments (yes, really—he was experimenting with water-filled glass globes and semolina). What started as a failed medical device became one of the world's most beloved decorative objects.

The Anatomy of Wonder

Before diving into construction, let's talk about what makes a snow globe tick. At its core, you need four essential elements: a watertight container, a scene or figurine, liquid medium, and something to act as snow. That's it. Everything else is just window dressing.

The container is your foundation, and this is where most people get hung up. You don't need fancy equipment or specialized glass spheres. Baby food jars work brilliantly—I've made dozens with them. Mason jars offer more real estate for elaborate scenes. Even plastic containers can work, though they lack that satisfying heft of glass. The key is finding something with a tight-fitting lid that won't leak when you inevitably shake it like a maraca.

Your scene is where personality enters the equation. I once made a snow globe featuring a tiny plastic dinosaur wearing a knitted scarf (my nephew's request), and it remains one of my favorites. Traditional choices include miniature trees, houses, or figurines, but honestly? Anything waterproof and small enough to fit works. I've seen people use everything from Lego minifigures to seashells painted white.

The Liquid Equation

Now here's where things get interesting—and where most DIY snow globe tutorials get it wrong. Pure water is actually terrible for snow globes. It's too thin, causing your "snow" to fall too quickly, and it can grow cloudy or develop algae over time. What you want is a mixture of distilled water and glycerin, roughly 70-30 ratio, though I sometimes push it to 60-40 for really slow, dreamy snow falls.

Glycerin is the secret sauce here. This thick, clear liquid (available at any pharmacy) increases the water's viscosity, making your snow drift down slowly instead of plummeting like rocks. Some people use baby oil or mineral oil instead, which works but can yellow over time. Corn syrup is another option, though it tends to make things sticky if there's ever a leak.

I learned the hard way that tap water is a no-go. Made a beautiful globe for my mother using tap water, and within six months it looked like a science experiment gone wrong—cloudy, with mysterious floaties that definitely weren't part of the original design. Distilled water costs maybe a dollar at the grocery store and saves you from this heartbreak.

Snow Selection Strategies

Choosing your snow material is where you can really get creative. The classic choice is glitter—specifically, chunky craft glitter rather than the ultra-fine stuff that turns your globe into a glittery soup. White or iridescent works best for that authentic snow look, though I've made some spectacular globes with silver and gold for New Year's themes.

But glitter isn't your only option. Crushed eggshells (thoroughly cleaned and dried) create a more organic snow effect. Fake snow from craft stores works well too, though test it first—some types dissolve or clump in water. I've even used small white beads, tiny styrofoam balls, and coconut flakes (sealed with clear nail polish to prevent deterioration).

One winter, I experimented with actual snow, thinking I was clever. Spoiler alert: snow is just frozen water, so it immediately melted and left me with a very disappointing regular jar of water. Sometimes the obvious solution is obvious for a reason.

Assembly: Where Magic Meets Method

Start by creating your scene on the inside of the jar lid. This is backwards from what most people expect—you're building upside down. Use waterproof glue (E6000 or aquarium sealant work great) to attach your figurines to the lid. Let it cure completely. I mean completely. Twenty-four hours minimum. Patience here prevents the heartbreak of watching your carefully crafted scene float away like the Titanic.

While that's drying, prepare your liquid. Mix your distilled water and glycerin in a separate container. Add a tiny drop of dish soap—this breaks the surface tension and helps prevent air bubbles from clinging to your scene. Too much soap creates foam, so we're talking one drop for a cup of liquid.

Fill your jar almost to the brim with the liquid mixture, leaving just enough room that water won't overflow when you insert your scene. Add your snow material—start with less than you think you need. You can always add more, but too much creates a blizzard so thick you can't see your scene.

The Critical Seal

This next part separates successful snow globes from wet disasters. Run a thin line of waterproof glue around the threads of your lid. Not too much—excess glue squishing into your perfect scene is devastating. Carefully lower your scene into the liquid, watching for overflow. Screw the lid on tightly and immediately wipe away any liquid that escapes.

Let the sealed globe sit upright for another 24 hours before the first shake. This curing time lets the glue fully set and reveals any slow leaks. Better to discover them now than after you've wrapped it as a gift.

Troubleshooting Common Disasters

Bubbles are the enemy of snow globe perfection. If you've got a massive air bubble, you'll need to open it up, add more liquid, and reseal. Small bubbles often work themselves out over time, or you can live with them—I've convinced more than one recipient that bubbles add "character."

Cloudy water usually means contamination. Either your figurines weren't fully waterproof, or something is breaking down in the liquid. This is why testing materials beforehand matters. I once used polymer clay figurines that looked perfect until they started dissolving three weeks later. Seal everything with clear nail polish or mod podge if you're unsure.

Leaking is usually a seal problem. If it's minor, you can sometimes fix it by adding more glue around the outside of the lid. Major leaks mean starting over, but hey, now you've got practice.

Beyond Basic Globes

Once you've mastered the standard snow globe, variations become addictive. Oil-based globes using baby oil instead of water create an entirely different snow effect—slower, more dreamlike. Adding food coloring to your liquid creates colored "snow" or can tint the entire scene. I made a Halloween globe once with orange liquid and black glitter that looked like falling ash.

Lighting changes everything. Placing an LED tea light under a globe transforms it into a luminous display. Some makers drill through the lid to add battery-powered lights inside the globe itself, though this requires serious waterproofing skills.

The container doesn't have to be round, either. I've made snow globes in rectangular spice jars, heart-shaped containers, even in light bulbs (requires patience and possibly some swearing). Each shape creates different flow patterns for your snow.

The Unexpected Philosophy of Snow Globes

There's something profound about creating these little worlds. In an age of digital everything, making something physical, something that exists solely to create a moment of wonder, feels almost rebellious. Each globe is a meditation on preservation—an attempt to capture and keep something beautiful, even if it's just plastic figurines and glitter.

I've made snow globes with my kids, with friends at craft parties, alone on winter evenings when the real snow won't come. Each one tells a story, not just in its scene but in its making. The globe with too much glitter because my daughter dumped the entire container. The one with the crooked tree because I sneezed while the glue was setting. The perfect one I made for my grandmother's 90th birthday, featuring a tiny replica of her childhood home.

These imperfections and stories are what separate handmade snow globes from mass-produced ones. When you make your own, you're not just crafting a decoration—you're bottling a moment, creating a small world that exists outside of time, where it's always snowing and everything is perpetually peaceful.

So go ahead, raid your junk drawer for small toys, hit up the dollar store for figurines, save those baby food jars. Make something wonky and wonderful. Make something perfect and pristine. Just make something. Because in a world that often feels too fast, too much, too everything, sometimes what we need most is to hold a little winter in our hands and shake it up, knowing that no matter how chaotic the storm, everything will eventually settle back into place.

Authoritative Sources:

Perzy, Erwin III. Snow Globes: The Collector's Guide to Selecting, Displaying, and Restoring Snow Globes. Running Press, 2002.

McManus, Nancy. The Art of Crafting Snow Globes: Traditional and Contemporary Designs. Sterling Publishing, 2005.

Smithsonian Museum of American History. "The History of Snow Globes." National Museum of American History. https://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/search/object/nmah_1303063

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. "Glycerin Safety and Usage Guidelines." EPA Chemical Safety Database. https://www.epa.gov/chemicals

Cornell University Department of Chemistry. "Properties of Glycerin in Aqueous Solutions." Cornell Chemistry Resources. https://chemistry.cornell.edu/glycerin-properties