'Balloon-Pops' - cute and simple air-filled balloon designs.

'Balloon Pop's©' - it's all in the name!

How many of us name our designs? Sure we sell 'Bouquets of Balloons' or 'Balloon Arrangements' even balloons on a ribbon & weight, but do you name each of your designs?

Balloon-Pop's© by Sue Bowler  

I recently did a little 'snooping' around the internet and viewed a variety of websites. I started with the floral market and checked out a selection of companies, the results were very interesting. Some the florists named each of their beautiful creations, making it really easy to identify and order, some simply gave their designs a number (a bit boring) and others no name or description at all, which made me wonder if I found an arrangement on their website that I really liked how would I go about asking for it?

I then looked at other retail businesses, let's take IKEA, they name everything that they sell! Many of us use the 'NOT' lamp for example and without having a name, how easy would it be for us to identify the lamp when we visit the store... probably not easy at all? Perfumes all have names as do cars... there really has to be something in giving  a product or design a name!

Naming a design is not that easy, which I suppose is why most of us don't do it! But with a little time and effort it is possible and also fun!

So when I recently created a new range of designs using the Premium Balloon Accessories MaxiCups™ and MaxiSticks™, I decided they needed a catchy name.  

They are certainly not centrepieces or a bouquet or even an arrangement, so the name needed to captured the spirit of the designs... and not just to be known as a balloon on a stick!

So It's official and you heard it here first, this range of designs (created by me) are called 'Balloon-Pops'.  The reason I named these designs 'Balloon-Pops' is because one of my daughter's has recently become obsessed with making 'Cake-Pops',  these are small balls of cakes that are decorate and presented on a stick...  'Balloon-Pops' are small balloons presented on a decorated stick, so the name made perfect sense to me.

These 'Balloon-Pops' are perfect for so many occasions and Qualatex have such a fantastic range of 'mini' air-filled Microfoil balloons to make them with! They are inexpensive to make, and have a great perceived value, they are the perfect alternative to a helium filled balloon, but with a lot more impact and of course tender loving care!

'Psychedelic Daisies' - Birthday Balloon-Pops©

Design by Sue Bowler CBA

Material	Quantity
Premium MaxiCup11	1
Premium Maxi Stick 11	1
5” Latex	18
260Q	2
160Q	1
9” MicroFoil Balloon	1

With minimum materials (see above) and as little as 10 minutes to make, with a simple job cost you will see that these adorable little sellable designs are winners!

Baby Balloon-Pop's by Sue Bowler

'It's a Girl' - Baby Balloon-Pops©

This is a lovely little design for a new baby, Christening or Baby Shower! Standing less than 24" from base to top, and is free standing without the use of any additional weight or tile base, it is a perfect gift!

Premium MaxiCup11	1
Premium MaxiStick 11	1
5” Latex	18
260Q	1
160Q	1
11” Latex	1

The secret to these designs is to make sure that you keep everything very small, otherwise they can look out of proportion.

I start by cutting the Maxi Stick to 30cm/ 12", I then inserted the stick into an un-inflated 260Q to cover the stick and tie once it has been stretched over, remove any excess balloon, then insert the covered stick into the MaxiCup.

The MaxiCup is positioned at the base, I then added 2 x 5-balloon clusters to give the design stability, the first of the base clusters has been inflated to approx. 3"/7.5cm's the second cluster 2.5"/6cm.

The top clusters are even smaller! These cluster have been created using  4-balloon clusters rather than a 5-balloon cluster as it looks better and sit well at the top of the MaxiStick (I have not used a MaxiCup at the top of the stick).

The babies face is created using an 11" Qualatex Blush balloon, that has only been inflated to approx. 6". I drew on the face, keeping it very simple and added a little 160Q bow which was secured using glue dots. For added value I added a ribbon bow, which I think really finishes off a design like this.

In both of the designs featured I have not added any weight into the base as they are very light, however if you wanted to add greater stability to the design I would recommend a weight, but be careful what you use, ideally something that cannot break.

I love these little designs, they make a great gift and can be easily sold as an alternative to a helium filled balloon or even a greetings card by simply adding a small message card to the designs!

A design like this will last for several weeks, and sits perfectly on a table or desk without taking up too much space!

So mine are called Balloon-Pop's what names have you given your balloon creations?

Happy Ballooning!

Sue

www.suebowler.com

Final note:I am not saying that I am the first person to make a design using these great Cups & Sticks, in fact there are many that do, which is fantastic, all I am saying is that I have given my designs a name  :)