How to Make Adorable DIY Snow Globe Ornaments

Learn how to make easy DIY snow globe ornaments with these helpful tips.

I’ve always loved snow globes. They’re something magical about their tiny little scenes and swirls of glittery snow. So when I started thinking about what kind of handmade ornaments I wanted to make for my tree this year, I knew I wanted to make some cute diy snow globe ornaments.

I had so much fun making these ornaments and today I’m sharing a basic tutorial for creating your own snow globe ornaments along with lots of ideas of things to put inside, tips for choosing the best ornaments to use, and tricks for creating beautiful ornaments.

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Choosing the best snow globe ornaments

There are actually several different types of empty snow globe ornaments you can choose from.

Some are classic ball ornaments that pop apart in the center. Some have a flat bottom with a cloche top. And some look more like a traditional snow globe with a spherical top over a flat base.

After using all three, I strongly recommend using an ornament with a flat base. It makes putting just about anything inside a million times easier. My personal preference are the cute little cloche ornaments but the traditional globe ornaments also work well.

What about fake snow?

One of the best parts of a real snow globe is all the fake glittery snow swirling around. I really wanted to figure out how to capture that in an ornament, but unfortunately, I really haven’t found a good way to recreate it.

Real snow globes use water to suspend all that beautiful snow so that it swirls around when you shake it. But DIY snow globe ornaments definitely aren’t water-tight.

The ornament pictured above with the traditional snow globe shape does have a double seal at the bottom so I did a little test to see how well it held water. And while it did well for something that only cost a couple of bucks, there was definitely water slowly dribbling out – not what you want on your Christmas tree!

It’s possible you could seal everything up with hot glue or special tape to make it more secure, but I think the safest plan is just to skip the water all together

I did a little experimenting to see if I could recreate that snowy look without the water. I tried a few different types of fake snow, but it turns out you really need the liquid for it to do anything other than immediately fall straight back down to the bottom.

So these ornaments don’t have real snow globe action, but adding plenty of pretty fake snow around the bottom still looks nice.

What to put inside DIY snow globe ornaments

So now that you have your ornament ready to be filled, what in the world do you put inside?

What’s great about snow globes is they contain a tiny world inside. And that’s what you’re trying to capture with your ornament – one tiny little scene.

You want to look for mini things that would make a great scene – tiny Christmas trees, Santas, reindeer, wreaths, houses, toys. Anything that would look cute – and if it has personal meaning, even better.

Half the fun of making these ornaments is searching out the perfect tiny little things to put inside. Here are a few ideas of things to look for to get your started:

• dollhouse items and other miniatures
• mini ornaments for tabletop trees
• small toys like tiny cars and doll accessories
• Christmas craft supplies
• tiny strands of Christmas lights
• cheap Christmas jewelry – a lot of times cheap jewelry has tiny parts that make great ornaments

Materials for Snow Globe Ornaments

Now that we’ve talked about the things you’ll need, here’s a simple list of everything together in one spot:

• empty snow globe ornaments – these are my favorite and the ones I used for these ornaments. These are also great if breakable ornaments aren’t a problem for your family.
• cotton rounds and fake snow – to create a snowy base
• lots of mini things of your choice
• hot glue gun

Tips for Making DIY Snow Globe Ornaments

Filling up snow globe ornaments isn’t rocket science, but I do have some tips that will help you create the best possible ornaments.

1 – Glue down your main items first.

Fake snow makes a great base for a snow globe ornament and it may be tempting to start attaching the snow first. But before you add your snowy base, you want to start by gluing down your main items.

Gluing them directly to the plastic bottom is a lot more stable than trying to attach them to a blanket of fake snow. Hot glue works great for gluing things securely to the ornament.

2 – Cotton balls and cotton rounds make great fake snow.

Once you’ve attached your main features, you can add that snowy base around them.

One of the best ways to get a super easy and cheap snowy base is to gently pull apart a cotton ball or cotton round. Then you can glue it in place using hot glue or craft glue.

Once the cotton is in place, you can sprinkle a bit of fake snow on top to give it a more sparkly, finished look. I didn’t glue this fake snow in place since it doesn’t really matter if it moves around a bit.

3 – You can use paint or glitter to customize your materials.

If the tiny things you find to use in your snow globe don’t look exactly the way you want, you can always paint them a different color or just cover them in glitter.

I found these great little deer at Hobby Lobby but I didn’t love how plasticky they looked so I coated them with craft glue and glitter.

I also wanted to make an ornament with a little car with a Christmas tree on top, but I couldn’t find a little red car I loved. So I decided to paint the cute yellow one I found red instead.

4 – Don’t put anything too close to the edges of your snow globe.

I learned this the hard way. Be careful not to get anything too close to the edges – including hot glue. It will keep your ornament dome from closing properly.

5 – Add a few things to the outside of your snow globe to really finish things off

Once your ornament is all filled and you add the dome back on, it can look a little plain. Adding a few small touches to the top of your dome or along the bottom edge really helps take it up a notch. Ribbon, faux greenery, and tiny pinecones all look great.

6 – Upgrade the string.

I almost always switch out the string that comes with ready-to-finish ornaments. There’s nothing wrong with the basic ribbon they come with, but switching it out for bakers twine, yarn, or leather cord almost always makes the whole thing look much nicer.

7 – Double check that everything is facing the right way.

My kids also made snow globe ornaments with me and it wasn’t until we finished gluing everything and went to add the dome that we realized my 6 year old’s ornament was completely upside-down.

He arranged everything himself but I’m definitely the one who actually glued it like this so it’s easier to do than you might think!

I thought about scraping everything off and redoing it the correct way, but instead we hung it on the tree like this and I honestly can’t wait to pull it out every year and have a good laugh!

Snow Globe Ornament Inspiration

Here are my own finished ornaments.

This one is just a tiny tree and a glittered deer. I found that when it comes to creating snow globe scenes, adding just one or two items typically looks better.

I also made a sweet little ornament that is perfect for the DIYer/handyperson/woodworker in your life. (Even if that person is you!)

I found this absolutely adorable little toolbox at Michaels’ with the dollhouse furniture.

There are eight little tools and the scissors and pliers even open and close! I cut up a few small craft sticks to make ‘wood’ to go with it and then tied them each with a red ribbon. I love how it came together!

Of course there are many more ways to decorate your ornaments, but hopefully these tips and inspiration will get your wheels turning.