Looking for some new winter wall decor? Make these DIY large wooden snowflakes! They add some fun to any space and only require one tool to make.
Alright, let’s start DIYing!
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Recommended Tools:
- Miter saw or handsaw with miter box
What You’ll Need:
- Superglue
- 36” square dowels (we used (5) ⅝”, (5) ½”, (7) ⅜”, and (4) ¼” dowels to create all of the snowflakes)
- Spray paint (I used Krylon Fusion All-In-One in Matte White and Krylon Glitterblast in Diamond Dust)
- Narrow command strips to hang the snowflakes
How to Make Wooden Snowflakes
New to DIY? Download our free 5 Steps to Getting Start with DIY guide!
STEP 1: CUT YOUR DOWELS
We made a total of 5 different snowflake sizes, with 4 unique designs. We’ll break down the cuts for each snowflake down below, but before you start cutting itty bitty dowels, be sure to read our post on how to make small cuts on your miter saw.
The larger dowels won’t require this additional step, but it is beneficial for the smaller dowels since those have a tendency to snap and cut poorly under the pressure of the miter saw.
Now for the snowflake measurements! Any measurements will reflect the longest side of the board if it is angled. The good news is that these cuts don’t need to be exact. Try to make the same pieces the same size, but it’s okay if they aren’t exactly what I have listed below. The following measurements serve as a guide.
Large Snowflake – made with ⅝” square dowels
- (1) 23 ⅞”
- (2) 11 ⅞”, one end cut at 30°
- (2) 11 ¾”, one end cut into a triangle tip with each side cut at 30°
- (24) 4”, one end cut at 45°
Large Snowflake – made with ½” square dowels
- (1) 24”
- (2) 12”, one end cut at 30°
- (2) 11 ¾”, one end cut into a triangle tip with each side cut at 30°
- (12) 3 ½”, both ends cut at 30° as parallelogram shape
- (12) 4 ⅛, one end cut at 30°, one side cut at 60° as parallelogram shape
If you’re wondering how to make a 60° on a miter saw, you’re not alone! Check out this post about cutting angles greater than 45-degrees on the miter saw.
Medium Snowflake – made with ⅜” square dowels
- (1) 18 ¾”
- (2) 9 ⅜”, one end cut at 30°
- (2) 9 ⅛”, one end cut into a triangle tip with each side cut at 30° (see image below)
- (12) 3 ½”, both ends cut at 30° as parallelogram shape
Small Snowflake – made with ⅜” square dowels
- (1) 13 ¼”
- (2) 6 ½”, one end cut at 30°
- (2) 6 ½”, one end cut into a triangle tip with each side cut at 30°
- (24) 4”, one end cut at 45°
Smallest Snowflake – made with ¼” square dowels
- (1) 10 ⅝”
- (2) 5 ⅜”, one end cut at 30°
- (2) 5 ¼”, one end cut into a triangle tip with each side cut at 30°
- (28) 4”, one end cut at 45°
When cutting small pieces, I placed a piece of tape on my miter saw to act as a guide of where I should place my board to cut it. This prevented me from having to measure each piece!
STEP 2: ASSEMBLE WITH SUPERGLUE
Start by marking the center of the longest dowel. This is where the other long dowels will intersect. Super glue the 5 longest dowels of each snowflake together to get the main structure.
Next, we’ll mark where the smaller pieces will go. I used my multi-mark tool for more of the measurements. The measurements below reflect how far to mark from the edge of each of the dowels you already assembled. The smaller pieces will be placed on the inside of these marks.
- Large Snowflake – made with ⅝” square dowels: 3”, 6”
- Large Snowflake – made with ½” square dowels: 4.5”, the pieces that include the 60° cut should be placed approximately 7.5” down from the tip, but you’ll just place those where they fit snugly between the other dowels.
- Medium Snowflake – made with ⅜” square dowels: 3.5”
- Small Snowflake – made with ⅜” square dowels: 1 ⅝”, 3 ¼”
- Smallest Snowflake – made with ¼” square dowels: 1 ¼”, 2 ¾, 3 ⅞” (only mark the large dowel with the final measurement listed. The rest of the dowels will only have two extra pieces)
Now that you have everything marked, superglue your smaller pieces to the main structure of each snowflake. Because you have to hold the dowel in place for a few seconds while the glue dries, this step will take a few minutes for each snowflake.
Pro tip: I recommend putting some parchment paper down underneath your snowflake as you work on gluing it together. This will prevent it from getting glued to the surface you’re assembling on!
STEP 3: SPRAY PAINT
For this project, I used Krylon Fusion All-In-One in Matte White for the snowflakes. Check out this post for all the spray painting tips.
Once I sprayed them all, I decided to try out Krylon Glitterblast in Diamond Dust on a couple of the smaller snowflakes and let me just tell you, I’m obsessed. It’s so sparkly!! But it doesn’t photograph nearly as beautifully as it is in real life, so you’ll have to try it out for yourself!
STEP 4: HANG
For the smaller snowflakes, you might need to cut the command strips in half so that they aren’t visible.
As you’re removing the snowflakes from the wall at the end of the season, use caution. Despite its ability to glue your fingers together, superglue isn’t the strongest thing in the world.
Putting too much pressure on one area of the snowflake may cause a piece or two to snap off. Luckily it’s a simple fix (more superglue), but still, be careful!
There you have it! Now you know how to make some beautiful wooden snowflakes. Which design is your favorite?
