“Squishables are cute giant balls of squishy love. They’re soft, huggable, cuddly, and all-around awesome,” say Squishable.com co-founders Aaron and Zoe of their signature, Asian-designed stuffed animals.
A couple years ago we were backpacking around Southeast Asia doing some volunteering and being bums. We ran into our first fat, fuzzy piggy in Hong Kong and bought it as a tribute to Jhonen Vasquez. When we got back to the US he was immediately kidnapped by rabid fans. We took the hint.
How do you adopt a Squishable of your very own? Easy!
- Order your Squishable of choice — for the purpose of this review, the Squishable Octopus.
- Track the parcel online as it wings its way towards you.
- Squee and do a happy Snoopy dance when the box arrives.
- Open the box, marvelling as the giant pink octopus emerges, its body expanding to about double the size of its cardboard packing cube.
- Begin a Squishable Hug-a-Thon.
No need to hide the schoolgirls, this well-mannered octopus just wants to be friends! Hug him! Take him to restaurants! Introduce him to your parents! This octopus is one classy cephalopod! 14 squishy inches of tentacle, polyester fiber, ages 3 and up
The Squishable Octopus is incredibly soft, like an oversized, fabric-covered marshmallow. Sporting tentacles, silky pink- and cream-coloured fur, and a big, friendly smile, it could easily pass as a benign alien from any light-hearted anime series or whimsical sci-fi show like Farscape, and would make a great creature prop for an amateur sci-fi web series. Squishable.com’s suggestion is to “Use ’em as a pillow. Throw them at people.” The manufacturer’s tag reads “pillow is intended for decorative use only”, so apparently the Squishable Octopus was originally meant to be a funky throw pillow rather than toy, but something that adorable just begs to be played with. It’s no surprise, then, that Squishables have become more popular as playthings than home décor accessories. (P.S. Does anyone name the fluffy Squishable Octopus anything other than the obvious “Octopussy”?)
Squishable.com generates warm fuzzies by doing more than sell plushies, though. Engaging in admirable social practices, this business leverages the squishy power of its website to Save the World. Contributions are made to a number of charities, including Kiva, a non-profit organization that alleviates poverty by microfinancing small businesses in developing countries. In addition, a dollar for each picture posted in the Squishable picture gallery is donated to a monthly cause. Planet-friendly products marked as Good Karma Items are Fair Trade, handmade, or crafted from renewable materials.
Order directly through the Squishable website.
Big Squishable Animals, the Squishable Wardrobe, and Squishable Understudies are distributed by Squishable.com. For all the latest product news, follow Squishable on Facebook and Twitter.