- Easy
- 20–30 minutes
- No glue
- about 3.9 × 3.8 in (9.9 × 9.6 cm)
Brighten up your craft desk with this cheerful tangerine paper squishy! With its spotted orange peel, sparkly kawaii eyes, rosy cheeks, and little green stem and leaf on top, this round citrus pillow is super satisfying to squeeze. You get a free printable template in 3 versions (full color, a coloring page, and a blank outline) formatted for both US Letter and A4 paper. Pair it with our lemon paper squishy or strawberry paper squishy to build a cute fruit basket.
What you need
How to make it, step by step
1Print the template
Print your tangerine template at 100% scale on plain printer paper (make sure “fit to page” is turned off). Check the scale line in the top corner: it should measure exactly 2 inches on US Letter or 50 mm on A4. If you chose the coloring page, color the peel in warm orange shades and the leaf in bright green, then let any marker ink dry completely.
2Tape the pieces
Cover only the front and back tangerine pieces with strips of wide clear packing tape, not the whole sheet. Smooth each strip from the center of the round fruit outward without pulling or stretching, because stretched tape will wrinkle later. This glossy layer makes the orange peel shine, keeps the paper strong, and makes your citrus extra squishy.
3Cut out both pieces
Cut out the front and the back along the solid black outer line, keeping the narrow white border around the orange peel and the little stem and leaf at the top. Take your time around the slight curve where the stem and leaf meet the top of the fruit so your citrus shape stays neat and smooth.
4Add a tape border to the back
Lay the back piece printed side down onto strips of clear tape so the sticky side faces up. Cut the tape about 1 cm (½ inch) past the paper edge all the way around, then snip this sticky border every 2 cm (1 inch) right up to the paper. These little flaps around the orange curve and top leaf will hold your squishy together.
5Join front and back
Place the front piece on top of the back, white sides together, matching up the stem and leaf. Fold the sticky flaps over the front edge one by one and press them down well. Leave a gap of about 4 cm (1½ inches) open (shown by the pink line in the illustration) for the stuffing.
6Stuff it
Tear your plastic bags, cotton, or fiberfill into small fluffy bits and push them in through the gap. Fill the far corners and the top leaf area first, then stuff the round tangerine belly until it feels soft and puffy—stop before it gets too full so the seams don’t pop open.
7Close the gap
Fold the last tape flaps over the edge and tape the gap shut with an extra strip of regular clear tape. Run your finger firmly along the entire round edge and around the top leaf to press the tape down well.
8Squish!
Done! Give your kawaii tangerine a gentle squeeze and watch its round cheeks puff right back up. Want a slow-rising squishy? Prick one tiny pinhole in the back so air can escape and refill.
Free Tangerine Squishy Template
- Color
- Coloring page
- Blank, design your own
- Step-by-step guide
One free PDF: the template in three versions (pages 1–3) and the step-by-step guide (pages 4–5). Print the template at 100% on plain printer paper.
Tips for the perfect squish
- Tangerine feels too hard. If your round citrus feels too firm, it has too much stuffing. Open the gap, take a few pinches out, and tape it shut again.
- Wrinkles across the cute face. Use shorter strips of packing tape across the sparkly eyes and cheeks and lay them on without pulling.
- Edge splits near the leaf. If the seam splits open by the top stem or curve, put a new short strip of tape across the edge, overlapping the old ones.
- Smudged orange marker ink. Let your orange and green markers dry fully before taping over the coloring page. Printer ink is fine right away.
Questions
Can I use glue instead of tape for a fruit paper squishy?
Not for the edges. Glue doesn’t stick to tape-covered paper, so the seams would open. The snipped tape border folded over the round citrus edge holds best.
What paper works best for a paper squishy template?
Plain printer paper (80–100 gsm / 20–24 lb) works best. Cardstock makes the tangerine stiff and it won’t squish as nicely.
What can I stuff my tangerine squishy with?
Use plastic grocery bags for a crinkly and light feel, cotton balls or fiberfill for a soft squish, or small pieces of memory foam for a slow-rising squishy.
Can I make this fruit paper squishy bigger?
Yes! Print the page at a larger scale, for example 120%. Print the front and the back together on the same sheet so they match.
Can I make these with a class or a group?
Yes. Print 1 sheet per person and cut tape strips in advance. Kids can color the tangerine coloring page while you help with taping—plan about 30 minutes.
More paper squishies to make
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