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All Shook Up About Snow Globes

Frog is enveloped* in a gorgeous, slow-motion snowstorm.

Although some dismiss the snow globe as a tasteless trinket*, many more are enchanted by the quirky decoration that’s been delighting us for more than 125 years.

“It’s just such an unusual kind of fantasy world,” says collector Nancy McMichael, author of the book Snowdomes. “The whole concept of taking something and putting it under water, and then shaking it up and looking at snow,” she says. “And when the snow settles, it’s pretty to look at, but it’s ; I mean, who would think, for example, of taking a statue of a little girl and putting her under water?”

Anatomy of a snow globe

The snow: The floaty stuff---whether it looks like white snow or glitter---is referred to as “flitter.” In the early snow globes, manufacturers tried everything but the kitchen sink*: bone or porcelain chips, ground rice, sand, sawdust and wax bound with . Now it’s mostly plastic.

The liquid: The cheap plastic ones are usually just filled with water, but the higher-end globe makers mix their water with glycol, an , which helps slow down the snowfall. (The antifreeze also helps when manufacturers need to ship their globes in the winter.)

The figurines: They used to be made of bisque (unglazed porcelain), bone, metals, minerals, , rubber or wax.

The base: Bases have been made of clay, marble, metal, plastic, porcelain, pottery and wood. If a snow globe plays music, as many fancy ones do, the globe may have three or four ball feet attached to the base.

Vocabulary Focus

envelop (n) ---to cover or surround something completely

Specialized terms

trinket (n)--- 廉价小装饰品 a small decorative object that is cheap or of low quality

everything but the kitchen sink (idiom)--- 一大堆东西；几乎所有东西 a much larger number of things than I necessary