DIY Storm Glass in an IKEA Glass Dome — Turning Weather into Art

A “storm glass” is said to change its appearance every day depending on weather conditions such as temperature, air pressure, and humidity. It’s so beautiful that I find myself staring at it for a long time, completely losing track of time. The one on the left was my first attempt, and the one on the right is the second. I thought I had made them the same way, but the crystal shapes turned out completely different — perhaps because the mixture inside wasn’t exactly the same.

Ever since I saw a huge salt crystal during a trip to the Noto Peninsula, I’d been itching to try making crystals myself. I started with salt crystals — something I hadn’t done since I tried it on my apartment balcony back in elementary school, about twenty-seven years ago. They grew beautifully, which encouraged me to try alum crystals next, and those were also easy and fascinating to make.
(You can see the photo of the giant salt crystal in the travel diary linked below.)

As I kept researching, I realized that people who go down this rabbit hole eventually arrive at two destinations: “snow-like storm glass” and “iridescent bismuth crystals.” If you want to make them properly, the necessary lab materials aren’t easy to obtain. But there are always people who think along similar lines, and I found some clever methods using everyday supermarket items (potassium chloride sold as low-sodium salt, and ammonium nitrate from cold packs). Using those ideas as inspiration, I made the two pieces shown here.

In theory, the liquid works by dissolving camphor (a moth-repellent made from camphor wood) in alcohol, adding distilled water, and allowing temperature changes to trigger crystallization. It feels almost cosmic — my son looked at it and said, “It’s like stars… so pretty.”

That said, even creating the base solution is tricky. It fails easily if conditions aren’t just right, and there are still parts I don’t fully understand. Even now, some mixtures separate instead of forming crystals the way they should.

Then there was the question: what container would suit this liquid? What kind of vessel would make it beautiful? The choice of container probably determines half of the impression it gives.

While I was at IKEA Kobe on another errand, I happened to find the perfect glass dome. It’s meant for displaying dried flowers or small objects, but I wondered whether it might work if I sealed the lid with silicone — so I decided to give it a try.

BEGÅVNING Glass Dome with Base — ¥999
“A glass dome with a base — perfect for displaying your favorite decorative items.”

I applied silicone caulk along the rim of the lid using a caulking gun, pressed it gently into place, and let it sit for a day. If you fill the storm glass solution right up to the brim, surface tension and crystallization can cause it to creep up around the edge, so you have to be careful. After that, I slowly flipped it over, left it another day to check for leaks, and once everything looked fine, I added a coat of resin around the seal just to be safe — and it was complete.

If this kind of project sparks your curiosity, try making your own storm glass. Watching crystals quietly grow and transform inside a glass dome is a small but deeply satisfying kind of magic.