Snow globes can be such a nice gift to give to grandparents or teachers at Christmas. Kids love to watch the glitter swirl inside and they will love helping to make their own DIY snow globe.

Making a snow globe is actually a lot easier than you’d think and it doesn’t take too long to put together.

Our favourite snow globe is the photo version – great for the memories! Below we walk you through the step-by-step instructions for how to make your own DIY snow globe. We promise it’s easier than it looks!

You can of course buy a kit which contains everything you need – it’s entirely up to you.

You will need:

• Plastic ready to fill snow globe or a jar with Lid (remove label first)
• Laminated picture (optional)
• Iridescent chunky glitter
• Small silver sequins
• Fake snow or small white pom poms (to act as snow)
• Small Characters or other item to add inside for decoration (we got ours from Hobbycraft)
• Glycerin (found in the baking aisle of all major supermarkets)
• Mineral/Spring water
• Hot glue (glue gun best for this)

How to make your Snow Globe:

1. First, get your snow globe or jar and picture (this step is optional). We have both an old jam jar with the labels removed a ready to fill snow globe (available from Hobbycraft or other craft stores). Measure the size of your photo to fit the globe/jar, print it out and laminate it prior to crafting.

2.  Hot glue your laminated photo and/or objects to the base of the snow globe or jar lid. Try to the items in the centre, the glue can affect the seal if they’re too near the edge. Adults should do this part and make sure it’s dried before you move onto the next step.

3. Get your supplies together that you’ll want to put inside your snow globe. For the “snow” falling effect, we really like chunky iridescent glitter. This will give you a snow falling effect but won’t be too opaque like regular glitter which may obstruct your view of the photo. You can also find all these things again at Hobbycraft – search snow globe and all the items pop up!). We also added in a few small silver sequins. Don’t add too much glitter and confetti to start. You can always add more after if you feel it is not enough.

4. Add in 1/2 teaspoon of glycerin. This will help the glitter fall a little slower in the water. The glycerin is optional however we do recommend it. You can find this in the baking aisle of your local supermarket.

5. Now fill your snow globe with Mineral/spring water. You’ll want to leave a little space from the top for the lid to go back on.

6. Make sure you allow some time for the hot glue to fully dry before adding into the water. Now add your base/lid back. You may need to bend the picture in slightly to fit it back into the snow globe.

It is optional to hot glue the lid shut – if you want to keep the snow globe for many years to come we recommend not doing this, so you can top up the water in a few years if needed.

If you’re letting kids play with it, be sure to supervise them, if the lid loosens it will leak!

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We love how simple but effective these are and – the kids love them! – there so many options to make it personal to you. We hope you have fun making them & don’t forget to tag us in your creations on social media – use the hashtag #ayearofplayadvent