Crystal Snowflake or Icicle Craft

Throughout much of the northern hemisphere, January means snow and ice. Most of us are familiar with snow and have seen outside ice, but how much do we really know about it?

No two snowflakes are ever exactly alike, but they do fall into certain forms.

Stellar Dendrite
Stellar means it is like a star and dendrite means tree-like. These snowflakes are flat, have six main branches and many randomly placed side branches. The whole snowflake looks like a star, but if you look at any one of the branches on its own, it looks like a Christmas tree.

Sectored Plates
These snowflakes are flat and thin, usually with six sections, thus "sectored." The sections are wide and flat, like armor plating, thus "plates."

Hollow Columns
These columns are hexagonal, like a pencil, and the ends are hollow cones.

Needles
As the name suggests, these snowflakes are long and thin. Sometimes these ice needles contain thin hollow regions, and sometimes the ends split into additional needle branches.

Spatial Dendrites
This formation consists of many dendrite (tree-like) branches stuck together randomly. They may take on nearly any shape.

Capped Columns
These crystals started out to be columns, but then developed plates on the end. This happens when a crystal is blown into a region with a different temperature.

Rimed Crystals
Water droplets that freeze onto a falling snow crystal are called "rime." These flakes may look like flower petals or bushy dendrites. Sometimes a snowflake becomes just a ball of rime, which is then called "graupel," or soft hail.

Irregular Crystals
Warm snowfalls, especially if it is windy, may bring irregular snow crystals. These have been blown around and arrive broken, ill-formed, or damaged in some way.

Did you know : Wilson Bently photographed a snowflake for the first time on January 15, 1885.

You can make your own snowflakes or icicles indoors.

Indoor Snowflakes or Icicles

Some parental guidance required.

Supplies :
Borax powder *
Pipe cleaners
Wide mouth jar
Spoon
Pencil
Boiling water
(have an adult help with this) String (optional)
Scissors
Food coloring (optional)

Directions :
Fill the jar 3/4 full with boiling water.
Stir in Borax powder into the hot water a spoonful at a time until no more will dissolve. (About 3 Tablespoonfuls to each cup of hot water.)
Add a few drops of food coloring if you want colored snowflakes or icicles.

Try bending the pipe cleaners into different shapes such as trees, stars, or snowflakes before putting them in the Borax solution. You can make a giant snowflake by using three white pipe cleaners and string. Twist the 3 pipe cleaners together in the center to make a 6-sided, spiky figure. Tie the string between the branches.

Place a straight pipe cleaner in the jar to make an icicle.

Place a bent pipe cleaner shape in the jar to make a snowflake.

Use a piece of string to tie the pipe cleaners to a pencil placed across the top of the jar. This should be placed to keep it away from touching the sides.

Wait overnight...

In the morning, the Borax will have formed crystals on the pipe cleaner.
Hang your indoor snowflakes or icicles on your Christmas tree or in a window.

* Called 20 Mule Team Borax Laundry Booster - the product called Boraxo will NOT work.
* Caution Some people may be allergic to borax (and any product containing it).
* You can do the same type of project using supersaturated sugar-water and a string, making edible rock candy (but the crystals take longer to form).

Original craft at Girl Guides

For more information on snowflakes go to :
Snowflakes and Snow Crystals

Snowflakes

The Chemistry of Borox