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A snow globe is a sealed jar of water with something pretty inside. What separates one that looks magical from one that looks like a jar of cloudy water is two decisions: what you glue inside it, and whether you add glycerin.
Sarah from She's Crafty and She Knows It builds two here. The first one failed, and she leaves that in the video, which is more useful than a tutorial where everything works.
Plain water lets glitter drop straight to the bottom in about two seconds. Vegetable glycerin thickens the water just enough that the glitter drifts and swirls the way snow does. Six drops is the number for a globe this size.
Do not substitute. Baby oil, mineral oil and dish soap all get suggested online and none of them behave the same way. Glycerin is cheap, it is sold in the baking aisle or online, and one bottle will outlast every globe you ever make.
The first globe used Model Magic to build a little snowy mound for two small owl figurines to sit on. It looked perfect on day one. By day three the water had gone slightly cloudy, and by day five it was murky enough that you could barely see the owls.
Air-dry clay breaks down in water. Sealing it with spray polyurethane did not save it, and may have made it worse by putting more into the water. So: nothing porous goes inside a snow globe. No air-dry clay, no polymer clay you have not tested, no paper, no wood, no fabric.
The fix is not a better sealant, it is a taller figurine. Choose one that fills the globe on its own and you do not need a mound underneath it at all. The second globe used a single resin fairy, and weeks later the water was still perfectly clear.
Resin and solid plastic figurines are the safe picks. Cake toppers, small toys and railway-model scenery all work.
Super glue on plastic is slow. It bonds skin instantly and then takes its time on the two surfaces you actually care about. Glue the figurine down, run a second bead around where it meets the base, and leave it 24 hours before it goes anywhere near water. A figurine that comes loose inside a sealed globe cannot be fixed.
If you want a tray of it to play with rather than a sealed jar, how to make fake snow compares three recipes and names the one that holds a shape best.
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Make a snow globe that stays clear. Glue a figurine to the base, add glitter and water, then six drops of glycerin so the glitter drifts slowly. An easy project: about 30 minutes, plus 24 hours to dry or set. Materials cost about $10 to $20. You need 9 things, including plastic snow globe kit, resin or solid plastic figurine and fine white and silver glitter. The 10 steps start with lay Out Your Supplies.
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You need a plastic snow globe blank, a figurine, glitter, vegetable glycerin, super glue and a scrap of ribbon. The blank unscrews at the bottom and the cap doubles as the base the figurine stands on. Kits are sold specifically for this and are far easier than trying to seal a mason jar yourself.
Plastic over glass if children will handle it. A glass globe full of water is heavier than it looks.
Hold your figurine against the empty globe before you glue anything. You want one that nearly fills the space on its own. A short figurine tempts you into building a mound underneath it, and mounds are what ruin snow globes. Resin and solid plastic are the safe materials.
Cake toppers and model railway figures are cheap, solid and come in the right scale.
The cap that screws into the bottom of the globe is your base. Put a good blob of super glue on it and press the figurine down squarely in the middle. Check it sits straight from the side before the glue grabs, because a figurine glued on a lean stays leaning forever.
Dry-fit first. Screw the base into the globe with the figurine held in place to check it clears the sides.
Run a second bead of glue right around where the figurine meets the base, catching the feet or whatever touches down. Then leave it alone for 24 hours. Super glue sets fast on skin and slowly on plastic, and this is the one joint in the build you cannot reach again once the globe is sealed.
Tug the figurine gently before you fill anything. Better it comes off now than tomorrow, inside the water.
The globe is round and will roll off the table the moment you let go of it. Sit it open-side-up in a glass measuring cup or a small bowl so it stays put and both your hands stay free for the filling.
Do this over a tray. Loose glitter travels, and you will be finding it for weeks otherwise.
Tip in fine glitter, mixing whites and silvers for something that reads as snow. There is no wrong amount here, though a generous pour looks better in the swirl than a sparse one. Fine glitter floats and drifts; chunky craft glitter sinks fast and looks like debris.
Mix two or three sizes of white and iridescent glitter. A single grade looks flat once it is moving.
Pour water in, stopping short of the rim. The figurine and the cap both displace water, so a globe filled to the brim will overflow when you screw the base in. Lower the figurine in briefly to test the level, then top up or tip out until it sits right.
Distilled water stays clearer for longer than tap water, which can leave a faint film over time.
Six drops of vegetable glycerin into a globe this size. It thickens the water just enough that the glitter tumbles slowly and swirls instead of dropping like sand. Screw the base in, turn the globe over and watch it fall. Too fast means another drop or two.
Go one drop at a time past six. Too much glycerin and the glitter hangs there instead of settling at all.
The seam where the cap meets the globe is the one unlovely part of a kit build. A narrow ribbon hot-glued around it hides the joint and finishes the piece. Entirely optional, and it takes about a minute.
If your globe seeps at all, run a bead of glue around the cap before the ribbon goes on.
Glue the base shut permanently if small children will be shaking it. Otherwise leave it so you can top the water up later.
Put the finished globe somewhere with light behind or beside it. Glitter needs light to do anything, and a globe on a dark shelf just looks like a jar. A stack of books, a mantel or a windowsill next to a string of fairy lights all work.
Keep it out of direct sun. Sunlight through a water-filled globe fades whatever is inside it.
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How to Make a Cyanotype Sun Print on Fabric
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Plain water lets glitter drop in about two seconds. Add six drops of vegetable glycerin for a globe this size; it thickens the water just enough that the glitter drifts and swirls the way falling snow does instead of dropping straight down.
No. Baby oil, mineral oil and dish soap get suggested online, but none of them behave the way glycerin does. Stick with vegetable glycerin, which is inexpensive, sold in the baking aisle, and one bottle outlasts every globe you'll ever make.
Something porous was sealed inside it. Air-dry clay and similar materials break down in water and cloud it within days, even sealed with spray polyurethane, which can make it worse. Keep anything porous, like clay, paper or wood, out of the globe, and use a solid resin or plastic figurine instead.
No, and it's better not to. Choose a figurine tall enough to fill the globe on its own; a short one tempts you into building a mound, and a mound made from porous material is exactly what clouds the water over time.
A full 24 hours. Super glue bonds skin instantly but takes its time on plastic, so glue the figurine down, run a second bead around its base, and leave it a full day before any water goes in, since a figurine that comes loose inside a sealed globe can't be fixed afterward.
How to Make a Snow Globe
E6000
E6000 Craft Adhesive, Clear (3.7 oz)
The industrial-strength craft glue that bonds glass, wood, ceramic, metal, fabric, and concrete. The one adhesive most craft projects reach for.
OLFA
OLFA 18" x 24" Self-Healing Cutting Mat
The pro-standard cutting surface. Gridlines for square cuts, self-healing so blades never leave grooves, and big enough for paper, fabric, and leather.
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Question 1 of 5
What does glycerin do inside a snow globe?
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5 questions, answers, and one-line explanations. Tap to expand.
1.What does glycerin do inside a snow globe?
Answer: Makes the glitter drift slowly
It thickens the water so glitter swirls instead of dropping like sand.
2.How much glycerin does a kit-sized globe need?
Answer: Six drops
Six drops is enough to slow the fall without going syrupy.
3.Why pick a figurine that nearly fills the globe?
Answer: It avoids building a mound
Mounds built to raise a short figurine are what ruin the look.
4.How long should the glued figurine cure before filling?
Answer: A full 24 hours
Super glue sets fast on skin but slowly on plastic.
5.Why stop short of the rim when pouring the water?
Answer: The figurine and cap displace it
Fill to the brim and it overflows when you screw the base in.
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