Do you or your kids ever feel stressed? Well, have I got the solution for you – DIY Stress Balls! Okay, so maybe my solution won’t remove all stress from your life, but it should help you lower your stress levels a bit. And hey, every little bit helps, right? These stress balls are super fun to make with kids and there are many options to personalize them. Best of all, they feel amazing when squeezed and they make a great fidget toy.
DIY Stress Balls
I was inspired to make these DIY stress balls after my daughter got a stress ball making kit for her birthday. I had no idea how easy it was to make our own stress balls, and once we ran out of materials from her kit, we bought our own so we could make some at home.
These DIY stress balls are easy to make with some basic supplies, many of which you probably already have at home.
You will need:
Kids can easily make these stress balls themselves with some supervision. Make sure you don’t do this with younger kids as the items might pose a choking challenge.
Place the small funnel over the opening of the balloon and hold to make sure the balloon doesn’t fall off. Start dropping beads through the funnel.
Fill the balloon up about halfway with the beads.
Now it is time to add the water beads. Keep in mind that these water beads will GROW, so you don’t want to add too much. Less is more.
Next, we will be adding water to the balloon. We added 2 tablespoons of water to the balloon.
You should add enough water to the balloon so that all of the beads are covered. Tie the end of the balloon.
Now comes the hardest part…the waiting.
Within a few hours the water beads will start to grow.
When left overnight, the real magic happens. The water beads will have soaked up the water and expanded to fit the balloon. The color of your stress ball will depend mainly on the color of water beads you use. We decided to do single color water beads in each balloon, but a mix would be lovely too.
These balloon stress balls really feel great. My kids love squeezing them and working those small muscles in their hands. Squeezing them is also a wonderful sensory activity.
As kids squeeze the stress balls, the water beads will break up more and more which will give them a cool, squishy consistency.
These DIY stress balls are so easy to make that you will want to make a bunch just to have some around whenever you are feeling a little stressed. Not that moms ever feel stressed.
If you are looking for more fun ways to make memories with your kids, I highly recommend KiwiCo. As a former teacher, I was really impressed with the quality of materials found in KiwiCo. Some moms have told me that they want to do activities like I do on Mess For Less with their kids, but they just don’t have to the time to go buy all the supplies and prepare them for the activity. KiwiCo is the perfect solution. Every month your KiwiCo will focus on a particular theme like Colors, Dinosaurs or Gardening. KiwiCo offer a variety of projects ranging from crafts, imaginative play, science experiments and more.
If you liked these DIY Stress Balls, you’ll love:
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Jennifer Brock says
I need these in my life!!!!! They look like such a fun and easy craft
Rachel says
My daughter made one of these at a birthday party. It was a good favor.
Amanda says
This is such a great activity for my anxious seven year old. Will definitely add it to our summer to-do list.
Cynthia Nicoletti says
Wow didn’t realize how easy these are to make. Thanks for posting. These are great for kids and stress.