Smiley Face Stress Ball: Design History and Current Shapes

A give-away design before it was a squeeze toy

The familiar smiley face stress ball is easy to describe: a yellow ball, two eyes, one curve. The Harvey Ball World Smile Foundation attributes the smiley-face design to Harvey Ball’s 1963 staff-campaign design. Smiley faces also appear on modern squeeze toys in other shapes, as the listings below show.

According to the Harvey Ball World Smile Foundation’s account of Harvey Ball, he created the smiley face in 1963 in Worcester, Massachusetts. The foundation says State Mutual Life Assurance Company contacted him to create a symbol for an in-house morale campaign.

The same account describes smiley pins that State Mutual printed and handed out during the 1960s, and the face later appearing on mugs, T-shirts and other novelty items. It does not identify the first smiley stress ball.

Three features of the familiar smiley stress ball

1. It appears on small give-away items. The foundation describes smiley pins handed out during the morale campaign. Our smiley-heart listing below describes classroom prizes and party favors: another small item carrying a cheerful face.

2. Its simple features are easy to describe. Two eyes and a curved mouth are the familiar pattern. Modern listings below put similar features on hearts, stars and buns.

3. The ball already is the face. On a round toy, the face and the toy can share one outline, with no separate character shape to align.

How the smiley squishy changed the face

Look at a shelf of squishies today and the classic yellow smiley face stress ball is only one branch. In our 2 October 2026 catalogue, 11 active listings had “smiley” or “emoji” in the product name. Only two of those descriptions call the toy yellow: the Smiley Banana Squishy ($12) and the Emoji Bao ($12), a small pleated bun in bright yellow with large oval eyes, a U-shaped smile and red blush lines.

The rest move the face onto other shapes and colours:

• Hearts. The Mini Heart Squishy Stress Balls, Smiley Face 24 Pack ($19.99, about 83 cents each) is described in the retailer listing as 24 little hearts. The listing describes foam that springs right back, says each one fits a small fist, and mentions classroom prizes and party favors.
• Stars. The Jumbo Star Squishy Stress Ball with Smiley Face ($17.99) is described in the retailer listing as a star with a big smiley face. The listing calls it foam and says it flattens under your palm and puffs back in seconds.
• Buns. Eight of those 11 listings, the Emoji Bao among them, describe bao or dumpling shapes. The retailer describes Pink Smiley Bao ($12) as translucent pink with gold glitter and a tiny U-smile on the pleated bun.

The descriptions offer another comparison: the Emoji Bao listing mentions large oval eyes, a U-shaped smile and red blush lines, while the Pink Smiley Bao listing describes black oval eyes, a tiny U-smile and blush dashes. Our guide to what makes a squishy face look cute looks at face design in more detail.

From smiley to emoji poop stress ball

The Pink Glitter Poop listing describes a “poop-emoji squishy” with a kawaii face. Other poop-toy listings use faces and eyes too, but their body shapes and fills differ.

The same 2 October 2026 catalogue has 8 active poop squishy listings. Seven descriptions mention facial features, including smiles, grins or eyes. They are not all built alike. The Mint Green Poop Squishy Sugar Ball ($17.99) is described as a smiling mint-green swirl with a tiny bead filling that shifts as you squeeze, while the retailer describes Pink Glitter Poop ($12) as a translucent pink coil with iridescent glitter and a kawaii face. Same joke, different fill descriptions, so read the fill line before you buy.

Which one to pick

• For a class or party bag: the retailer describes the 24-pack of smiley hearts as classroom prizes and party favors. The $19.99 pack works out to about 83 cents per toy before shipping or tax.
• For one on your own desk: compare the Jumbo Star listing’s foam and return description with Pink Smiley Bao’s described translucent body and glitter.
• For a laugh: compare the poop squishies’ stated fills and return descriptions as well as their faces.

FAQ

What are smiley balls called?

Our listings use several names, including the smiley-heart stress balls, Jumbo Star and Emoji Bao shown above. A face label does not identify a complete fill or return description, so check the exact listing.

Who invented the smiley face on stress balls?

The Harvey Ball World Smile Foundation attributes the smiley-face design to Harvey Ball in 1963 for State Mutual’s morale campaign. Its account describes pins and later novelty items, but does not identify who first put a smiley on a stress ball.

Is a smiley face stress ball slow rising?

The smiley-heart listing describes foam that springs right back; the Jumbo Star listing says it puffs back in seconds. Those are retailer descriptions, not our independent timing measurements. The bao listings describe different bodies, so check the return wording for the exact toy rather than inferring it from the face.

Is an emoji poop stress ball the same as a smiley stress ball?

The names describe a face or a character, not a complete filling formula. The linked Mint Green Poop listing describes tiny beads, while the Pink Glitter Poop listing describes glitter. Compare the exact toy’s fill and return description rather than assuming the names mean the same build.