Whether it snows where you live or not, you can have wintertime fun by making a snow globe from a jar with a wintry snow scene inside. All it takes is a few plastic toys, rocks, glue, glitter and water to turn a small jar into a winter wonderland where a gentle shake makes it snow.
This is a great project for family craft time, with plenty of opportunity for creativity. The hot glue gun or epoxy adhesive should be handled by an adult or teen. When doing this craft with a group, be sure to have one adult or teen per two or three children.
Related craft: Recycle empty jars into pretty candy containers, see how in the Valentine's Day Candy Jar craft project.
Gather the materials needed for making the snowy jar. Remove any cardboard from the jar lid, and wash and dry the jar and lid. Be sure that the plastic animal fits in the jar with room for other scenery items. Test whether your glue will stick to glass underwater by gluing an item inside of a jar, filling it with water and shaking.
Tip: The project can be done in one session with a hot glue gun. Epoxy or other glass adhesives are more durable, but require good ventilation and time to cure between steps.
Think about how you want your scene to look. Lay out the items on the table and experiment with arrangements. Place the plastic animal in the jar, along with the white rocks and any other items you have selected. Does everything fit? How does it look from various directions?
Following the instructions for the glue gun or adhesive, glue the scenery items to the bottom of the jar. Be sure to first glue items that should be under other items in the jar.
Tip: Use tweezers to place items inside jars with narrow necks, or to handle small items.
Fill the jar with water and enough glitter to make a snowy scene without burying your scenery items. For a small jar, ½ tablespoon of glitter should be enough, but larger jars may require 1 or 2 tablespoons. Add a few drops of food coloring to the water if you like.
Tip: For best results, use distilled water or water that has been boiled and cooled. This will help prevent clouding of the water. Also, use large glitter and a few drops of glycerin for the best snowing effect. Fine glitter tends to clump and drop too fast.
To glue the lid to the jar and make a watertight seal, run a bead of glue around the inside of the lid and/or the threads of the jar. Tighten the lid down and wipe any excess glue away. Let the glue set/cure fully before shaking the jar.
Tip: If there are any leaks, dry the jar and apply more glue or a waterproof caulk between the rim of the lid and the jar.
That's it! Now give your jar a shake!