Fun Facts About Snowmen To Get You Excited For Winter!

With winter comes Christmas and the jolly sight of many families making snowmen in their front yard.

Snowmen have always been a popular icon for the wintertime, making their way onto mugs of hot cocoa, greeting cards, wrapping paper, and almost everything related to Christmas! But, how did snowmen come to be?

Are you wondering how they came from being crude sculptures made by people to pass the time, to the adorable, jolly snowman that we know and love today? Read on to learn more about spectacular snowmen, and indulge the young artist in you.

If you enjoy this article, do check out our pages on facts about Christmas in England and when you should take down your Christmas tree.

Different Sizes Of Snowmen

Snowmen exist purely because of the imagination of the creator so they can be found in each and every size! You can make a small snowman to display in your yard, or team up with your friends to make a colossal Christmas companion if you're feeling adventurous!

To make it simple for kids, snow is made from frozen crystals of ice water, which freeze high up in the clouds. If the temperature remains constant as they fall down, they will retain their crystal-like nature and fall as snowflakes.

People all over the world have unleashed their creativity using the 'free art supplies' of the sky - snow - and have come up with some marvelous creations over the years.

The world's tallest snowman built to date was made in resemblance to Maine Senator Olympia Snowe in Maine in 2008. The giant snowman effigy towered over everyone at a whopping 122 ft (37 m)!

In comparison, the smallest snowman ever built by hand was only 1.125 in (2.85 cm) tall.

This tiny snowman was made by Doug McManaman of Nova Scotia, Canada. The world's smallest snowman EVER was created in the Western University Nanofabrication Facility, in Ontario, Canada, and was even less than three micrometers - only properly visible with a microscope!

If you think you love building snowmen, then you should definitely look up Karen Schmidt of Minnesota who built a total of 5127 snowmen over one winter in 2013! The record for the most snowmen built in one hour goes to Japan where citizens built 2036 snowmen in just under 60 minutes, by hand!

The earliest known photograph of a snowman was taken in 1853, though they did exist for a long time before then!

They were also an important part of early American history and were surprisingly quite prevalent during one of the bloodiest events of the 1600s.

The story goes that the two sentries at the gates of fort Schenectady left the permanently frozen open gates unguarded by leaving a couple of snowmen built in their places instead to go to a nearby tavern.

This allowed French and Indian intruders to enter the village with ease and massacre everyone who lived inside.

Religious Significance Of Snowmen

Though there seems to be no religious significance behind why building snowmen is such a famous pastime, it definitely is a tradition that has been associated with Christmas for years.

It is thought to have been made up during the Middle Ages as a fun activity to keep people entertained during the long, cold winter months when there was not much else to do because of the heavy snowfall.

Snowmen are thought to represent a form of expression for the people, who would show their skills through the snow. Though, there is evidence that cavemen made snow sculptures and snow columns as well, as self-portraits or models to depict themselves.

Because of this, making snowmen is actually considered one of the earliest forms of folk art!

The ever-popular 'Frosty the snowman' has been described as smoking a corncob pipe with a button nose, old silk hat, and coal eyes and is based on a popular song. Frosty remains a popular Christmas symbol to this day and can be found on a number of festive merchandise such as ornaments, gift bags, decorating postcards, and wrapping paper!

One famous festival involving snowmen is the spring festival Sechselauten which takes place in Zurich, Switzerland to mark the end of the winter. A cotton snowman, lovingly nicknamed Boogg, is placed on a large pile of scrap wood which is lit on fire.

What most people don't know is that the snowman is stuffed with dynamite making for a fun, unexpected ending to the bonfire!

The bells chime six times of the Church of St. Peter right as this is done and spring has officially sprung! It was believed that a shorter combustion would lead to a longer summer, which was what people hope for every year.

Temperature Related Facts About Snowmen

In order to actually form the balls to build snowmen with, the temperature of the snow must be near melting. This ensures that it is sticky and can be manipulated easily.

If the temperatures are too low, the snow will end up being dry and fluffy - typically resembling powdered snow. Any attempts to construct snowmen using this dry, flaky snow will not end well as the balls will crumble.

The most perfect time to roll up your sleeves and build a snowman is typically on the next warm afternoon of a heavy snow day which is when rolling the body parts for the snowman tends to be the easiest.

Techniques For Building Snowmen

Building snowmen is quite a fun, easy task and is a great bonding experience for family and friends alike! Anyone can make a great snowman following these tips:

Always make sure that the snow you are using is easily malleable and sticks together properly. If the temperature of the packing snow drops to below freezing, it will become dry and difficult to work with.

Typical snowmen start with building three balls of various sizes and then arranging them with the smallest on the top as the head and the largest at the bottom. Start forming the snowballs by creating a spherical, tightly packed ball with your hands.

Once it becomes too large to hold, put it on the ground and start rolling it in order to accumulate more snow around it, making it bigger.

Roll it around in different directions to smoothen out the shape and make it rounder. If your snow dries out too quickly, you can spray or mist it with water to make it easier to work with.

Once your three large snowballs are ready, it is time to assemble the perfect snowman! If you want your snowman to last longer, make sure to build it in a shady place where there is no direct sun exposure.

Roll your base into position, and slightly flatten the top so that the subsequent layers do not roll off. You can also add a stick in the middle for more stability, as it will hold all the layers together.

Once all your layers are in place, pack a bit of snow in between to cement them in. You can now add finer details if you like, or keep it simple with a couple of stick arms and a carrot nose!

Use buttons, coal, or stones for the eyes and mouth, and spray the whole snowman with some water to add an extra layer of protection against the snow.

Be as creative as you want to be with the snowman! You can use old clothes to add a bit of style, or use sticks, wool, or weeds to give your snowperson a funky hairdo!

And no snowman is ever complete without a name, so put on your thinking caps and come up with the most amazing name for your fast-melting friend! The perfect snowman is whatever you want it to look like, so go wild!

You can also make mini marshmallow snowmen at home to go with a nice hot cup of cocoa by simply stacking three marshmallows and putting a toothpick through them. You can add details by sticking gumdrops for the eyes and the nose.

Another great and easy craft you can try at home is using an old white sock to make a snowman soft toy. Simply fill the sock with cotton, and tie off the sections using string. Sew on buttons for eyes and add an orange felt nose and red scarf.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for fun facts about snowmen then why not take a look at facts about the origin of Christmas colors or German Christmas symbols.