Here we are, friends! Week 2 of the Deck the Home DIY challenge! This week’s theme is 2-hour DIY, so that means any type of holiday DIY that can be done in 2 hours or less. So this week I decided I wanted to make DIY mason jar snow globes! I have done this in the past with small mason jars but I wanted to take a different turn this time. I made up two different snow globes, one using glass you can find at a thrift store (or your garage!) and another that is made with a vintage blue mason jar!
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Materials Needed to Make a Mason Jar Snow Globe
- Mason Jar (vintage or new)
- Thrift store glass container
- Glass etching cream
- Faux snow (I used two different types, this will depend on your preference)
- Miniature Christmas village accessories
- Hot glue gun
When I made the snow globes in the past I didn’t use water, I like the look without water and that it can be changed out if needed. I decided to do that with these as well. And some might think that is not a true snowglobe but I am ok with it!
I started with the vintage blue mason jar since I knew this one would take the least amount of time. Because this is vintage I did not want to disturb the glass or lid in any way. I used a hot glue gun to add the trees and snowman to the bottom. The nice thing about hot glue is that it tends to weaken over time and usually can be peeled off the surface with a little nudge. This way if I wanted to change it out in the future I could do this and use the jar for another purpose.
Because these jars have a narrow opening my hand could not reach inside to place the trees and snowman. I used a pair of kitchen tongs instead to help place them inside exactly where I wanted them after applying a dot of glue to the bottom.


I added a small bottle tree and deer and left this one pretty simple. The first type of snow I used is confetti-like snow, this type of snow tends to have static and cling to anything it comes in contact with which actually works well for this snow globe since I didn’t want anything permanent inside or out. And I liked the look of the snow clinging to the inside of the glass.

These vintage blue mason jars are from our wedding, they were used as centerpieces and I have kept them all these years and use them in decor here and there and I love how the blue just mimics winter.
Snow Globe using a Thrifted Glass Container
I wanted to also try out another method for making a snow globe, so for this one, I used a jar that I had that the lid had broken off of. This could be made with any size of thrift store glass container, just use your imagination!
Because this is a jar that has been collecting dust for years I decided to make some permanent changes to it using glass etching cream to etch snowflakes onto the “back.”
Glass etching cream is super simple to use but is very abrasive so I would advise using gloves if this your first time using it. I had these mesh stencils from A Maker’s Studio that can be re-used for multiple projects/purposes and decided to use them this time with the etching cream. (Note: I found out this stencil set is no longer available and there is not a great alternative that is currently available, but you could definitely not use a stencil and just make dots of the etching cream on the glass to mimic a snow effect.
The first step when doing any type of glass etching is to make sure your glass is completely clean. Then apply the stencils (or skip this part if you don’t have the stencils) and work the etching cream into the glass by swirling around your brush. I like to cut off the end of a paintbrush so that I have a blunt tip to do this with.


After working the etching cream for about 5 minutes you can remove the stencils and rinse the container with water to remove the etching cream and dry thoroughly. Remember that glass etching will be permanent on any type of glass that you choose.

I had found an old Christmas village ornament that I had had for years that I wanted to add to this snowglobe, I just removed the hanger and it ended up looking like a perfect cabin in the mountains!
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For this snow globe I also switched up what I used for the snow. I happened to be in Michael’s browsing all the Christmas items and came upon this round popcorn-like snow and loved the way it looked.


And now I have two pretty snow globes to display for the holidays and to create both was under 2 hours! You could definitely create multiple mason jar snow globes or thrift store containers to line your mantle or table for the holidays.

Very pretty mason jar snow globes. It just reminds me of a beautiful snow scene. I love it!
Thanks Jenny!
What a fun idea! I’m a sucker for snow globes and these look to be fairly easy to create. Cute!
Thank you April!
I absolutely love your jar snow globes! They are so pretty!