Cutting Open a Cheese Squishy: What Actually Happens
The short answer
Cutting a cheese squishy open does not reveal a hidden treat. On a moulded foam piece there is nothing inside but more foam, and once the outer skin is broken it stops rising properly and cannot be repaired. On a filled piece — a soft shell holding gel or a thick liquid — cutting simply releases the contents, which is messy and pointless. Either way the toy is finished.
The videos you have seen with Vaseline, coconut oil or clay are not refilling a squishy — they are hollowing out a shell and packing it with something else, which makes a different object entirely.
This article explains what is really going on, because a lot of people search for it. It is not a how-to, and we do not recommend doing it.
Why the “empty cheese squishy skin” trend exists
The clips follow the same shape every time: someone slices a cheese squishy, scoops out the middle, and repacks the shell with petroleum jelly, coconut oil, air-dry clay or slime. The appeal is obvious — the squeeze sound changes, the piece goes from springy to heavy, and it looks satisfying on camera.
What is less obvious is what is being destroyed. The “skin” people are keeping is the printed outer surface of a moulded piece. It is the part that gives the squishy its cheese look, its texture and most of its strength. Once it is cut, it is a bag, not a squishy.
What is actually inside
It depends which build you have, and we will tell you if you ask us.
A moulded foam piece is slow-rise polyurethane (PU) foam with a printed outer skin — the same material the whole way through, with no cavity. The 3 to 6 second rise comes from air moving back into the foam cells. That is why a cut piece never comes back: you have opened the cells to the outside, so the foam no longer builds the gentle vacuum that pulls it back into shape. It stays dented, or it rises unevenly and lopsided.
A filled piece is a soft outer shell — PU or a soft plastic — holding a gel, a thick liquid or a petroleum-jelly-type compound. The slow return comes from the filling moving back into place rather than from air. Cut one and the contents come out; there is no way to reseal it, and the shell alone does nothing.
Both builds are sold as cheese squishies, here and elsewhere. Neither has a surprise inside, and neither survives being opened.
Why Vaseline, coconut oil and clay change the feel
Each filling behaves differently, and none of them behaves like the original:
- Petroleum jelly. Thick and slow. It gives a dense, cold squeeze with no rebound at all — the piece stays exactly where you pushed it.
- Coconut oil. Solid when cool, liquid above roughly 24°C. The same squishy feels completely different in a warm room, and it will seep through any seam.
- Air-dry clay. Mouldable at first, then it sets hard. A clay-filled shell ends up as a solid ornament, not a squeeze toy.
Oils are also the fastest way to wreck the outer skin. Petroleum jelly and coconut oil soften printed surfaces over time, so the cheese pattern goes patchy, then tacky, then it lifts.
The part nobody films
A cut-open squishy is a safety problem, not just a ruined toy:
- Loose foam fragments are a choking hazard. They should never be around babies, young children or pets.
- Escaped filling from a gel or liquid piece can be an irritant. Keep it away from eyes, mouth and broken skin, wash hands with soap and water, and bag the item rather than trying to reseal it.
- Oil-packed shells split. When they do, they leak onto whatever they were sitting on — usually a bed or a desk.
- Nothing about it is repairable. Glue and tape do not restore a rise, and they add a hard edge that will tear the material further.
Our full guidance on tears, fragments, leaks and what to do if one splits is on the Product Safety & Allergy Information page. If a cut piece has caused a skin reaction, stop using it and follow the steps there.
If your squishy has already been cut
There is no fix, and we will not pretend otherwise. Wipe the area, bag the piece and dispose of it with household waste. Do not try to glue it, do not refill it, and do not leave it in reach of children or pets. If it came to you damaged rather than being cut on purpose, that is a defect — contact us within 14 days of delivery with photos and we will replace it.
Frequently asked
Is a cheese squishy filled with Vaseline?
Not the way the videos suggest. Some squishies are made with a gel or thick-liquid filling from the factory, and we can confirm which build an item uses if you ask. But a piece packed with Vaseline in a clip has been cut open and repacked by hand.
What is a cheese squishy skin?
The printed outer surface left behind after the inside is scooped out. It is a leftover, not a product.
Can you mould a cheese squishy?
No. A slow-rise squishy is designed to return to its original shape, whichever build it uses. Toys marketed as “moldable” are a different product made from a putty or clay-like material.
Can I make my own cheese squishy?
You can make a cheese-shaped object from clay or foam sheets, but you cannot reproduce a moulded slow-rise piece at home. The rise comes from a cell structure or a sealed filling, both set during manufacturing.
Prefer one that survives being squeezed?
Ours are sized in inches and centimetres on every listing, with the main material stated on the page, and picked to keep rising for years rather than days.