Have you ever smelled a stranger’s perfume and immediately thought of your first date? Did the smell of freshly baked cookies ever remind of your childhood days when your biggest concern was how your next adventure inside your magical tent will unfold? Have you ever been instantly sent to a world where you can feel the warm rays of sunshine on your skin, the soft sand between your toes and a symphony of waves in your ears just by inhaling the scent of coffee all while standing in the rain waiting for your bus? We all have. Smell has a power of bringing back memories but also marvellously transporting you to their world.
On the other hand, a squishy toy provides endless amounts of joy and amusement. It is there for you to squeeze every time you feel the need to relieve stress or to just have some fun. They are the loyal companion that will always be there for you in the good and bad. They are just awesome.
Therefore, given the power of scent, combining it with the awesomeness of a squishy can only result in a shower of beautiful sensations for you to enjoy and savour. In the next part I will explain why scented squishies are the best squishies, but first of all, if you’re unfamiliar with the squishy world let me describe squishy toys for all you newcomers out there.
What are kawaii squishies?
As the name suggests, a squishy toy is in fact squishy. Duh! That doesn’t explain much, now, does it? Squishies are stress relief toys that are made of Polyurethane, a special foam, that has an easily squeezable texture and a slow reshape ability. The kawaii term comes from Japan and it stands for cute, which totally makes sense given that Japan is practically the Land of Cute.
They are famous for relieving stress while giving a soothing sensation. But they can do more than just that, like improving focus, boosting productivity and alleviating the mood. Check out this insightful article for more details.
In short, squishies are silly little cute toys that you can squeeze over and over again and watch magically go back to their original form. Plus, they come in different shapes and sizes so you can definitely find what suites your taste.
Now that you know what a squishy is, it’s time for you to learn what a scented one is. Think you can handle its awesomeness? Don’t worry, it is overwhelming, but only in an adorable beautiful way. As this article from OhSquishy.com puts it:” Scented squishies release a specific odour when squeezed. This is a new edition of squishies that are made with an integrated odour to match the design of the squishy. That adds a new dimension to the stress releasing impact of the squishies, and some people prefer this added feature.”. While the most popular scented squishies are Food Squishies, the scented category expands to cover also Animal Squishies, Character Squishies, Mythical and Magic squishies, etc. So basically, any cute squishy can be a smelly squishy.
So, as you can see, while squishing a squishy is already a magnificent sensation, adding a scent just brings it to a whole new level, making it the ultimate squishy experience. Why is that? One might argue. Basically for 3 reasons:
1# Powerful experience
The sense of smell is the most powerful and wide in range among the human basic senses. In a new study by The Rockefeller University, researchers tested the human ability to distinguish between a wide range of scents composed of complex mixes of molecules. For instance, the smell of a rose presents a characteristic scent of 275 components (or molecules); the human nose has neuron receptors called the olfactory receptors that recognise those components and, as a result, the smell is identified. The results of this study suggest that the human sense nose can distinguish more than an astonishing 1 trillion different stimuli. Putting that in contrast with other human senses as vision and hearing for example, researchers estimate we can distinguish between 2.3 and 7.5 million colours and about 340,000 audible tones. So, the sense of smell is the strongest in the human basic sensory system.
Now, what do we take from all this scientific gibberish, squishy-wise? Both the signals generated by the touch of a squishy and most importantly by the smell of its scent are received by the limbic region in the brain which is majorly involved in controlling the mood. Ergo, a good scented squishy offers a great experience. So, get yourself a wonderful smelly squishy and enjoy all the magic it offers with every breath you take.
2# Good memories
The brain’s limbic system is an area associated with memory on a close level. That’s why a simple smell is able of bringing back memories and powerful responses almost instantaneously. This phenomenon is called conditioned response in which the brain forges a link between the smell of a new scent and the memory associated with it. As a result, when the sensory system is exposed to the smell once again, the link which has been created beforehand, elicits a memory or a mood, therefore, the perfume/first-date link stated earlier.
You can use this info to your advantage, as the act of squishing is highly enjoyable and offers a deeply soothing sensation, having a beautiful scent with it is a benefit. So, have your kawaii squishy with you and its scent shall bring back good memories and put you in a good mood.
3# Positive emotions
In addition to a strong link to memory, smell is also highly emotive. The olfactory receptors are directly connected to the limbic area in the brain, being the most ancient and primitive part of this latter, it is seen as trigger for emotion. After that, smell sensations stimulate also the cortex responsible for cognitive recognition. This means that a smell is recognised only after a scent-related emotion has been associated and deep emotional response has been triggered.
This shows a strong relation between smell and emotion, and while your little companion is ready to give you all its love and cuteness if form of delightful scent and infinite squeezes, you can share the same emotions of love and cherishing just by enjoying its texture and savouring its scent.
What is your favourite type of squishy?
These were the reasons I believe scented squishies are the best. Feel free to tell me your favourite type of squishy in the comments section below. Also, if you enjoyed reading this article, feel free to give it as many 👏 as you wish and I shall keep bringing you wonderful stories and facts from the magic land of Kawaii.
In the end, no matter what squishy you like most, one thing is for sure, as long as you have your delightful little thing by your side then, as Bob Marley said, every little thing is gonna be alright. Squish away!
