One of my favorite snowy day activities is building snow sculptures, whether that be the classic snow family or something a bit more outside of the box. And with all this fresh snow from our most recent winter storm, now is the perfect time! Matthew Morris, of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, has taken the snow sculpting game up a notch. See his most recent sculpture, a rendition of the Tower of Pisa, below for an example of his incredible snow skills. 

Matthew Morris - Snowbank Productions - January 28th, 2021

Sculptures like this aren’t created overnight, or without a little bit of practice, but thankfully Matthew has detailed instructions on his website along with Youtube videos on how to create a plethora of different snow creations!  

You can even join his free, virtual snow sculpting club created to bring a little joy to people during the beginning of winter in 2020. Check out Matthew’s website, https://snowbankproductions.weebly.com/, for more information and loads of tips and tricks on how to create sculptures! 

Now, if you want to stick to something a bit more traditional, continue on to learn how to build your classic snowperson! 

Supplies:

Snow! 

Accessories (hat, scarf, carrots, or you can use things found in nature!)

Warm clothes (for you, not the snowperson!)

1. You’re going to want wet, packing snow for your best snowman (although if you have crunchy or light, fluffy snow don’t let that stop you from getting creative!)
2. Make a snowball about the size of your fist or a grapefruit, it doesn’t have to be perfect. 
3. Start rolling the ball on the ground,  and you’ll notice that it’s growing larger and picking  up more snow as you go.
   1. Try to roll it in different directions to keep it nice and round - but don’t worry, you can always touch up the shape at the end!
4. Stop rolling your ball once you have it in the area where you want your snowperson to be and when you think you have a good size base - remember, this will be the biggest part!) 
5. Make another snowball! Roll it around just like the first one, but don’t make it quite as big. And remember,  you’ll need to be able to lift it up onto your  base ball!
   1. If you make it too heavy to lift, fear not!  
      1. If you have another person, roll it onto a tarp or other flat piece and then you can lift it together onto the base. 
      2. Or, you can always break the ball down a bit and do a patch job once the second ball is placed 
6. Lastly, the head! One more small ball, placed on the very top!  
7. Decor! If you have a spare hat or scarf, throw that on top.
   1. If not, consider some fallen pine boughs to top the head off 
   2. Use pebbles for eyes or buttons
   3. Use sticks for arms
   4. Give them a mouth (you can use whatever your heart desires - it’s your snowperson!)
   5. And VOILA! You’re very own snow sculpture! Be careful now, or they might just come alive like Frosty! 

Make sure to take a picture with your creation and share it on social media with #februaryfrolic or on our Encounters page, and then go inside and warm up with some hot chocolate, tea, or coffee! Get up and get outdoors with Nature Up North!