Smashing a Squishmallows Bracelet Kit: 30 Bracelets Later

Every once in a while I buy a craft kit because I think it might be fun.

And every once in a while I apparently take the number printed on the front of the box as a personal challenge.

“Make 25+ bracelets!”

Challenge accepted.

By the time I finished with this Squishmallows Bracelet Kit, I had made 30 bracelets.

Thirty.

Not bad for a kit I’m pretty sure I paid $19.99 for at Walmart.

For the sake of accuracy, I checked before writing this and Walmart Canada currently has the same kit listed for $19.97, so apparently Past Julie did particularly well that day. Either way, after making 30 bracelets from one box, I’m calling this one a pretty fabulous buy.

First, What Exactly Is a Squishmallow?

My knowledge of Squishmallows is admittedly limited.

I know my grandkids like them.

I know there seems to be an enormous number of them.

And, perhaps most importantly, I know my grandkids are very happy when Grandma pulls out Squishmallow cereal.

This apparently qualifies me to review the bracelet kit.

Squishmallows are round, ridiculously squishy collectible characters that have become a whole thing, with individual characters, names and personalities. The bracelet kit carries that idea over into jewelry making with colorful Squishmallow character charms and beads.

The kit is recommended for ages six and up and comes with supplies to make more than 25 bracelets. There are 10 enamel character charms, nine Squishmallow slider beads, alphabet beads, gold letter charms spelling SQUISH, colorful disc beads and loads of little metallic and matte beads.

And let me tell you...

The charms are simply adorable.

They were probably my favorite part of the entire kit.

Well, almost all of them.

One little mallard duck never made it onto a bracelet.

I took him hostage.

I need him for another project, and that's all the information I'm releasing at this time.

Center Stage and the Supporting Actors

If you've followed my bracelet making for any length of time, you know I don't think every bracelet in a stack needs to scream for attention.

Some get to be the stars.

Some are supporting actors.

This kit was actually perfect for that.

The Squishmallow charms, colorful heishi-style beads, slider beads and dangling SQUISH letters gave me some really fun center-stage bracelets.

Then I used the smaller black, teal, gold and silver beads to make quite a few simpler bracelets that could sit beside them.

And that's one of the reasons I managed to stretch the kit to 30 bracelets instead of the advertised 25+.

You don't need to throw every interesting bead onto one bracelet.

Give one bracelet the fabulous charm. Let another have the word. Make another colorful. Then make a few simple coordinating bracelets to pull everything together.

It's the same principle I use when making my regular bracelet stacks:

Not every bracelet gets to be the star.

Someone has to make the star look good.

My One Complaint

I really don't have much to complain about with this kit.

If I could change one thing, I would have included more of the colorful heishi-style beads.

Black and teal are definitely the dominant colors in this particular kit. They're cute together, and the gold and silver give you some nice options, but after bracelet number who-knows-what, I was starting to feel like I had already attended this particular black-and-teal meeting.

More colorful beads would have opened up even more combinations.

That's it.

That's my big complaint.

More color, please.

For a craft kit, that's not exactly a devastating review.

About the Stretch Cord...

I should also mention that I didn't use the stretch cord included in the kit.

I used my own.

There may have been absolutely nothing wrong with the cord in the box, but my stretch cord and I already have a relationship. We've been through things together.

I know how it stretches.

I know how it knots.

I know how it behaves.

At this stage of my life, I'm not leaving a stable relationship for some mystery cord I just met in a purple plastic tray.

So, my usual stretch cord it was.

Gift Idea Number One: Give the Kit

This would make a genuinely great gift for a child or grandchild who likes making bracelets.

It's easy to work with, the beads are fun and the charms give kids something exciting to build their designs around.

The only part that may require a little patience is hunting through the alphabet beads when someone decides they absolutely MUST spell something specific.

Anyone who has ever searched a pile of letter beads for one final E knows this is where coffee becomes part of the crafting process.

But otherwise, I think a kid could make some really great bracelets from this set.

Birthday gift.

Christmas gift.

Rainy-day activity.

Grandma's-house project.

Sleepover activity.

There's a lot of entertainment packed into one box.

Gift Idea Number Two: Don't Give Them the Kit

Hear me out.

Maybe you enjoy making bracelets, but the kids in your life don't particularly want to sit down and make 30 of them.

You do it.

Grab a kit, pour yourself a coffee and start stringing.

You could make a pile of inexpensive little Christmas gifts for grandchildren, nieces, nephews or any bracelet-loving kid on your list.

And yes — the boys are wearing bracelets too.

Between the black, teal, metallic beads, letters and different characters, there's no reason these need to be treated as a girls-only craft.

Make individual bracelets.

Make little stacks.

Personalize some with names.

Add a Squishmallow charm to another.

Suddenly you've got a whole collection of small handmade gifts without having to buy beads from six different places.

So... Was It Worth It?

For me?

Absolutely.

The box promised 25+ bracelets.

I made 30.

I got some really cute center-stage bracelets, plenty of supporting actors, adorable charms and enough variety to keep me entertained for a good crafting session.

And technically I still have a mallard.

At the $19.99 I paid for the kit, that works out to roughly 67 cents per finished bracelet — before we even assign any value to my little duck hostage.

Would I buy another one?

I just might.

Because if there's one thing I've learned around here, it's this:

Kids love bracelets.

And apparently I enjoy seeing the words “25+ bracelets” on a box and responding:

Hold my coffee!!

And What Was Left?

Not much!

After making all 30 bracelets, there were only a handful of beads left in the tray. And around here, we don't throw perfectly good stragglers away.

They went straight into the bead-fetti jar.

This is one of my favorite ways to deal with the odds and ends left behind after these bead-kit adventures. A few beads from this kit, a few from the next, and eventually I've got one glorious jar of completely random crafting possibilities.

So the final tally from one $19.99 Squishmallows bracelet kit:

30 finished bracelets. One mallard taken hostage. And a tiny contribution to the bead-fetti jar.

I'd say we smashed this one. Or Squished.