Stressed out? Squishy stress balls are an excellent way to get out some of that pent up aggression. And luckily, you can make your own with just two “ingredients” – some regular old balloons and some kitchen flour. They are so cheap and easy to make and end up surprisingly squishy. Throw a strategically cut up black balloon to add a ninja effect if you’re feeling extra sassy. For instant stress relief, try making these stress balls courtesy of King of Random!

This is really cool project and it has a really fantastic purpose when all is said and done; in today’s day and age, with most of us running around like crazy, cell phones glued to our heads, stress is a pretty common feeling.

You don’t need much to make these stress balls either, just a few tools that you might even have at home right now. Just a container with a wide mouth (like a plastic juice bottle), a common plastic water bottle (smaller mouth than the “wide mouth” bottle you select), some party balloons, some flour, a damp cloth, a pair of scissors, and super glue (optional).

We’ve already received a number of interesting comments about this tip from readers.

Some really like the idea: From “Neat idea” to “good idea for a children’s party to make”, as well as these:

I am totally making these for my son. He keeps asking for something to squish. 3 year Olds ask for the most random things.

and

My kids and I used to make these for the residents in a nursing home that I worked in. It helped keep them busy when ur trying to do things like get them dressed or anything. It helped keep they’re mind off what u were trying to do for them.

Others brought up concerns about the mess it could make, such as: “What a mess if they pop!” and “Just imagining my Dogs biting it & getting flour all in their fur & over the whole house. Ghost dogs. Sounds like a movie. HAHAHAHA”. Another person pointed out that it can make a mess, but still fun to make and not a big deal if there is a mess:

These are great. Several years ago I made them for all the teachers in a school I worked in and they loved them. After a few [months] the balls started bursting. I guess that the oils from our hand interacts with the balloon causing them to degrade. So file [cabinets], drawers and closets in our school started had the little exploding [balloons]. It was kind of a funny mess.

Note that for this concern, you can increase the durability by adding a few more balloons (4 are used in the video for one ball, but you could add more than that). One person noted an alternative: “You can do the same with play dough and it won’t be as messy if it does pop”.

And cool tip from the video: These are great for juggling. Perfect for stress relief AND entertaining!

Have you made these? How have you used them? Please share in the comments below!