When it comes to holiday decorations, nothing beats the charm of a handmade creation.
This year, I decided to craft something unique and fun, a glowing snowman made entirely out of disposable plastic cups.
It started as a fun idea, but let me tell you, the process was so easy and satisfying that I just had to share it with you. If you’re looking for a festive project that’s budget-friendly and guaranteed to impress, this is it!
How I Made My Plastic Cup Snowman
First, let me break it down for you: I used 120 plastic cups in total, 80 for the body and 40 for the head. The trick is to use small, sturdy cups (I went with the standard 7-ounce ones), so they’re easy to glue together.
You need to prepare:
- 80 plastic cups
- 40 plastic cups
- Hot glue gun and about 10 glue sticks
- Black felt
- Red ribbon
- Orange paper
- Green paper
- LED string lights
Step-by-Step Process
Step 1: Building the Body
I started with the larger sphere for the snowman’s body. The key here is to arrange the cups in a circular pattern, gluing them edge to edge.
The first layer had about 18 cups, and I built upward, reducing the number of cups slightly with each layer to form a dome.
Once I reached the halfway mark, I flipped it over and repeated the process to close the sphere.
Step 2: Crafting the Head
For the head, I repeated the same steps as the body but with fewer cups, about 40 in total. It’s a smaller sphere, so it comes together quicker.
Step 3: Bringing It Together
I glued the head onto the body using plenty of low-temperature hot glue. This step needs some patience to ensure the two pieces are well-aligned.
Step 4: Decorating the Snowman
Now you can cut out two large circles from black felt for the eyes, three smaller ones for the buttons, and a curved strip for the mouth. For the nose, I rolled up a small piece of orange paper into a cone shape and glued it in place.
To make my snowman festive, I wrapped a red ribbon around its neck as a scarf. You could also get creative with accessories, think Santa hats, twigs for arms, or even a miniature broomstick!
Step 5: Adding the Glow
For that magical touch, I inserted a small LED string light into each sphere before sealing them up. It lit up beautifully and turned the snowman into a glowing centerpiece for the holidays!
