Reuse Glass Jars to Make Christmas Snow Globes
A fun and easy Christmas craft for kids and adults alike. Even better, this project reuses old glass food jars to make whimsical winter scenes as DIY snow globes.
Although I’ve named these “snow globes”, they actually don’t have any water. Instead, they just create the look of a snow globe without the watery mess. My kids loved creating little scenes inside the jars, and I found it surprisingly fun as well!
I’m always looking for ways to reuse glass jars. I currently have a box of glass jars in the basement stashed away for future projects. We picked out a few and then found some cute little figurines to add to the inside.
Supplies to Make DIY Snow Globes
You’ll only need a few supplies to create these mini snow globes. See the notes below the supply list for tips on the cheapest places to buy these items.
- old glass food jars
- miniature Christmas figurines
- sparkling faux snow
- hot glue
Glass Food Jars: The best glass jars for making snow globes are those that have a wider base. This allows for more room to create a little scene inside. Of course, if you have any taller items you want to include, you’ll have to find taller jars.
I have a slight (guilty) obsession for salsa cheese in a jar, and as a result, I always have some of these laying around.
Miniature Christmas Figurines: I’ve found the best selection of tiny figurines at Michaels, year after year. The Ashland company has so many small figures at reasonable prices (when they’re on sale around Christmas time). It’s quite fun to walk through the aisles and pick out these cute little supplies.
How to Make Snow Globe Scenes
step one
Remove the labels and clean the glass jars. I have a full post on the best way to remove labels from jars – it works every time!
step two
Sand and paint the lids. Lightly sand the lids with 220 grit sandpaper to scuff them up. Then, use spray paint to paint the tops of the lids.
step three
Create the winter scenes. Use hot glue to attach the figurines and trees to the bottom of the inside of the lid. Brush glue on the bottom and sprinkle with fake snow.
After the glue has dried, you can screw the lids back on top and flip the whole scene over to make the little “snow globes”.
If you do this Christmas craft with kids, I’d highly recommend letting them make their own. I had my kids “help” me, but found myself getting too controlling and wanting to set up the scenes the way I wanted. Haha! So let everyone pick out out the supplies to make their own.
The deer family is my favorite scene, but there are so many creative ways to set these up!
Looking for other ways to reuse glass jars? Here are a few more ideas:
Not only do I love reusing glass jars, I’m pretty convinced you can upcycle a lot of items into something new, especially to decorate your home.
Here are a few more of my DIY Christmas decorations using thrift store finds and upcycling:
Post by Jenny Leads
Jenny is the voice behind Refresh Living. She has a passion for helping people to create a home they love without spending a lot of money.
I love this idea. I’ll have to search for a few jars. I think I have a few miniature tree in boxes somewhere. Thanks for sharing on Sunday’ Best. I’ll be Pinning your idea and sharing on Twitter.
Thanks so much for sharing it, Rhonda!
I love these! They turned out so pretty!!
These are so cute and would make great gifts too! Thank you for sharing at Merry Monday!
Love your snow globes in repurposed jars. Thank you for sharing your tutorial at the Snickerdoodle Create~Bake~Make link party!
Hi Jenny, these litle sno globes are so cute for Chistmas. Thank you for sharing them on the Oh my Heartsie Girls WW last week 12/6. I have pinned them and they will be Featured this coming week. Hope you will stop by. Have a great week, Happy Holidays!
Karren
I was cleaning up and came across mine I made last year. They are super fun to make. Thanks for sharing at the Inspiration Spotlight party! Pinned & shared.
These are very cute. Would love to make some.
Hi Debra. They are super easy, and I’ll admit it’s really quite fun to shop at the craft store for little items to put in. 🙂
I’m very exicted. This makes me happy.