Surprise Balls: A Tutorial

Have you ever heard of the glory that is a surprise ball? I hadn't until I happened upon the blog Oh Happy Day. You could literally spend hours mesmerized by all of the lovely things on that blog, I know I have... But these balls are just magical! My family is quite large so we choose to focus on the kids during the holidays, and I immediately knew surprise balls would be perfect.

I had such a great time getting all these goodies at Party City and Uncle Fun (which happens to be one of my favorite stores of ALL time), I totally felt like a little kid. I figured I'd write up a simple tutorial so you can get in on the fun, too!

Stickers! Chocolate! Dinosaur Masks! Nail Polish! Bug Pins! Bird Pins! Bouncy Balls! Moustaches! Finger Puppets! Tops! Erasers! Bubbles! Temporary Tattoos! Candy!

After gathering all of your small treasures, prepare your crêpe paper. I found that cutting strips in different lengths then folding them in half worked best. Otherwise the paper is too wide and it looks a bit wonky. A plus side to the wider strips is more coverage, so choose whatever works best for you.



Begin with the largest, roundest, or most obscure-shaped object and get wrapping.



My first one started out a bit rough and ended up more egg shaped than circular. It's good to remember the balls will be unraveled so no need to be a perfectionist!

Don't forget your life fuel :P


They really are super easy to make, just be sure to round out your ball by layering strategically placed goodies.



Confetti and glitter are nice little fillers to add in between the bigger items. Smaller items like stickers and temporary tattoos, too!



To finish these babies up you can use tape or a small sticker on the edge of your last strip of crêpe paper. Then decorate it to your heart's content! I used red and white pipe cleaners and holographic ribbon from the dollar store.



Shipping these to New York was a nightmare but they made it! The obscene amount of bubble wrap I used cushioned them well enough but their ribbons and ornaments fell off. You know, the only way I knew which ball belonged to which kid! Everything ended well, though, thankfully, and each kid got their ball. Next year I plan to make mini piñatas because I love crêpe and tissue paper so much! Gahh!