Old MacDonald had a Farm... NEW, Fun Farm-Themed Qualatex Balloons

I would like to start this post with a little farm barn trivia! Do you know why farm barns are always red?

The practice actually started in the late 18th century with New England farmers applying a protective varnish to barn surfaces. The varnish usually contained some mixture of linseed oil, lime, or iron oxide, which, under the sun, would then turn to the red ochre hue that we have become so familiar with.

Children absolutely adore farm animals, and creating farm theme party decor is a colourful and fun way to appeal to children of all ages! 

Earlier this month, I created a range of window displays to showcase some of the new Qualatex balloons that were launched at the Spring Fair at the NEC Birmingham. When I saw the new Birthday-Farm range I knew exactly what I wanted to make and immediately started designing a Red Barn! 

To design the barn, I used Chris Adamo's Balloon Pro.co Design Tool. If you have never used this tool I strongly recommend that you have a little play using the 7 day free trial. I absolutely love it and use it on a regular basis, it helps me to work out what style of wall that I need to make to ensure that I get the end result I am looking for. This definitely makes it very worth the minimal monthly fee! 

The barn is made using the Alternate Size Pack technique, with my balloons sized at  3" and 4". The Bran is built in columns, and then linked together using the "paperclip and elastic band" method. To give the barn greater stability, I added in two poles and bases and also secured it to the top of the window using 50lb monofilament line just in case someone decided to try and move it - you will be amazed what people will do to get a good photo! 

The window display design was designed around this new 18" Birthday Barn balloon. Look at this balloon and now look at my window display to see the similarities!

18" Birthday Barn
#26549

You will see that in my window display, I have added in other elements such as the mini Pig and Cow sculptures and some of the new 14" Retro Daisies to bring this window to life and to re-create the scene from the balloon as accurately as possible.

Here are all the other new products in this range:

28" CUTE HOLSTEIN COW #26540
14" MINI CUTE HOLSTEIN COW #27311

18" BIRTHDAY HOLSTEIN COW PATTERN
#26553

And don't forget these other great farm theme balloons! 

Holstein Cow
11" White #11633
Another bit of trivia, this is Qualatex's  No 1. selling printed balloon! 

34" Farm Tractor
#16468

30" Playful Pig #16202
14" Playful Pig #41799

32" Hilarious Horse #16210 (Limited Availability)
14" Hilarious Horse #41796

Here are a few more Farm theme ideas! 

Don’t have a cow!

This cow creation makes a big impact!

Designer name: Cam Woody, CBA, Pioneer Balloon Company, Wichita, KS, USA

Mooooove over for birthdays!

Adorable cows and pigs make for a fun birthday!

Designer name: Cam Woody, CBA, Pioneer Balloon Company, Wichita, KS, USA

If you are unsure how to make the Alternate Size Balloon Wall, check out my previous post: Balloon Wall Part 2

Creating something fun and new is always very rewarding! Though I am very familiar with creating balloon walls. this Red Barn presented new challenges for me, especially when creating the sloping roof! 

Happy Ballooning! 

Sue

www.suebowler.com

Follow me @suebowler

The Queen's Platinum Jubilee 2022 - How to make the Union Jack Flag

In two weeks time Her Majesty The Queen will become the first British Monarch to celebrate a Platinum Jubilee after 70 years of service. The UK and much of the commonwealth will be celebrating over the Spring Bank holiday weekend from the 2nd to the 5th of June! 

Some years ago, I designed a Balloon Wall to represent the Union Jack flag using the Alternate Size Pack technique. Using this technique allowed me to create a very accurate copy, and I thought that I would share this design with you today! 

Alternate Size Square Pack Garland

When making balloon walls using this technique, you can guarantee that it will be robust and attractive! It is probably the most widely used method of precision wall, and is made by alternating clusters of four balloons in two different sizes packed on to 50lb Dacron line or even thicker line. This technique produces a square shape garland.

Below is a small section of the flag (from the design) to explain how the technique works:

Using this example: each column (as shown below) consists of 13 clusters of balloons. The first and the third columns start with a large balloon cluster and the second column starts with a small balloon cluster. When pushed together these columns interlock to create a strong wall. 

Be aware, the actual flag wall - as shown in example 1, 2 and 3, is a big wall. It uses 33 clusters per Garland and 9 Garlands to create the wall. To decide on the size of balloons to use, I often build a small section of garland to give me an idea on the overall sizing.

Example - small section of the flag wall

The difference in size between the two sets is relative to the size of balloon used.

When the balloons are inflated between 2" - 4½" = use a ½" differential

When the balloons are inflated between 4½" - 7½" = use a 1" differential

When the balloons are inflated between 7½" - 11" = use a 2" differential

or

5cm - 11.5cm = use a 1.5cm differential

11.5cm - 19cm = 2.5cm differential

19cm - 28cm = 5cm differential

The garlands when built are laid side by side and interlocked, then joined together 

Practice to see which sizes work best for you. I use the paper clip and elastic band method to connect the garlands together as it gives consistency with the tension. Many people use 260Q balloons to link their walls, but be aware that if the tension created when linking the garlands together is off, the end result will be noticeably affected.

Elastic Band and Paper Clip method

The Alternate Size Square Pack Garland method produces quite a smooth design with a flat surface, it allows for good diagonal lines and triangles. However, not all balloon wall types work with different patterns!

You will notice that my design is built lengthwise (using horizontal columns rather than vertical  columns.) This gives me more accuracy within the design, and once constructed it will not make any overall design.

This wall is made up of 9 Garlands, and each garland contains 33 Clusters (see example 3 below)

Example 1
Completed Flag

Example 2
Flag shown as it will be built in downwards columns

Example 3
Flag shown as individual columns

Image 4
Balloon List

This wall was designed on Balloon Pro, which is a fabulous online balloon design tool created by Chris Adamo CBA - https://balloonpro.co. If you have never used or tried this fantastic tool I recommend that you test it out with the 7 day free trial, as you can create a lot more than balloon walls! 

Wishing you a very happy Jubilee!

Happy Ballooning! 

Sue 

www.suebowler.com

Follow me @suebowler 

Part 1 Fabulous Balloon Walls - Created with Latex Round Balloons

There are many different ways to create walls with balloons. We can use latex rounds, QuickLinks, non-rounds and foil balloons such as Qualatex Starpoints, and others too! So, we need to determine which type of wall we want to create, or more importantly, which wall best suits our or our customers needs?

So why are we proposing a balloon wall to our clients - a client would generally never ask you for a balloon wall unless they have seen something specific on Instagram or Pinterest! It is your job to sell what a wall can do for them - sell the emotion and not the product! To give you an idea of what I mean by selling the emotion here are a few examples.

• Suction power doesn’t sell vacuum cleaners; seeing the dirt it gathers does.
• Ingredients don’t sell expensive face creams; the confidence they give you does.
• And carbon footprint stats don’t sell electric cars; pride in eco-friendliness does.

Here are a few reasons why you might suggest a balloon wall to a client:

• To create their corporate logo
• To create a theme background
• To create a theme entrance
• To create a photo or stage back-drop
• To enhance a trade show or exhibition stand

I love designing and making balloon walls, and will always propose them to a client whenever possible. I have a client that now always insists that they have a balloon wall photo backdrop at all of their events! 

There are a number of different techniques that we can use to make balloon walls using latex round balloons:

• Duplet Square Pack
• Alternate Size Square Garland Pack
• Traditional 4-Balloon Garland Pack
• Organic

Duplet Square Pack

This is one of my favourite techniques. I really like that balloon walls made with this technique have a flat, smooth surface (not bumpy like balloons), straight sides, and really good definition on straight and diagonal lines. This type of wall can be made with a double-sided pattern or with a plain back; however keep in mind it is not as robust as other wall techniques.

Here are a few examples of décor using the Duplet Square-Pack Technique.

Elegant Tropical Balloon Wall and Organic Garland design by Sue Bowler, CBA

Baby 1st Birthday Balloon Wall Backdrop
Design by Sue Bowler

Zoe Adam-Jones, CBA of Jaz Trading, designed and made this
fabulous backdrop using the Duplet Square Pack Balloon technique
at the 2019 Qualatex Event in Brazil.

Watch as Chris Adamo, CBA, demonstrates the duplet square pack wall method for his mountain scene design. For more information and tips check out the great article in Balloon Images Issue 2

Alternate Size Square Pack Garland

When making balloon walls using this technique, you can guarantee that it will be robust and will always looks good! It is probably the most widely used method of precision wall. It is made by alternating clusters of four balloons in two different sizes packed on to 50lb Dacron line. This produces a square shape garland.

Alternate Clusters of four balloons in two different sizes

The garlands when built are laid side by side and interlocked, then joined together 

The difference in size between the two sets is relative to the size of balloon used.

2" - 4½" = use a ½" differential

4½" - 7½" = use a 1" differential

7½" - 11" = use a 2" differential

5cm - 11.5cm = use a 1.5cm differential

11.5cm - 19cm = 2.5cm differential

19cm - 28cm = 5cm differential

Practice to see which sizes work best for you. The garlands once built are placed side -by-side and interlocked, then connected together.

This method produces quite a smooth design with a flat surface, it allows for good diagonal lines and triangles. However, not all balloon wall types work with different patterns!

Here are some examples of balloon walls using the Alternate Size Square Garland method:

Chrome Silver & Gold with Black - Alternate Size Square Pack Balloon Wall
Design by Sue Bowler

Check out Chris Adamo's demonstration where he shows the alternate square pack method to create an ice cream truck photo op.

Ice-Cream Truck Photo Op by Chris Adamo, CBA,
of The Balloon Crew, Sydney, Australia

Ice-Cream Truck by Chris Adamo

Consistent sizing of balloons is paramount with balloon walls! Some methods are not very forgiving of badly sized balloons or inconsistent  'dupleting'  of balloons. To form the duplets, we must make sure that the balloons are tied as tightly together as possible, leaving no slack latex between the knot and the inflated part of the balloon.

Everyone will pack clusters on to line at a particular tension. It is usual to have only one person pack the garlands while others inflate and tie. This is not possible on large jobs, so you will need to practice consistent sizing and packing with your crew. 

Organic Balloon Walls

It would appear that there are many different techniques used to create Organic Style Balloon Walls. I suppose this is not surprising, as there are equally many different techniques to create Organic Garlands. I personally have used two different methods, and I will share one of the techniques that I used. We will look at other methods in Part 2.

I was contacted by a brand development agency who asked me to create a balloon and flower wall for a press event in London. 

When building a wall like this, it is important to consider how stable it needs to be. The balloon themselves are not heavy, but when you load it with lots of faux flowers, the weight increases considerably. So my first consideration was how was I going to support my balloon wall?

Thinking about what would work best, I came up with the idea of using a wire grid frame. My next task was to find a grid frame that would be suitable. After a little research, I found the perfect solution!

One of the client's criteria was that the balloons needed to be pastel tones to suit the faux flowers that they were supplying for the wall. 

Organic Balloon & Flower Wall by Sue Bowler

I loved making this wall and learned a great deal whilst building it. I was really happy with the end result, as was the client. This wall took around eight hours to build, including the construction time to build the panels. 

A huge thank you to Chris Adamo and Zoe Adam-Jones for sharing their knowledge and inspiration! 

In Part 2 of this Balloon Wall blog post, we will look at a fabulous collection of Balloon Walls made from QuickLinks™️.

Happy Ballooning! 

Sue

www.suebowler.com

Follow me @suebowler

 

Creative Valentine's Ideas - Part 1

Valentine's Day has a habit of creeping up on us very quickly, arriving very soon after Christmas and New Year. We don't seem to get the same lead time as we do for other key seasonal occasions. So if you have not already started your Valentine's campaign, now is the time to get started! 

This morning I thought that I would have a little play with Chris Adamo's fabulous Balloons Online Design Tool - I have added a link that will take you directly to the page. Remember to save or bookmark the link for the future!  I have designed many balloon walls, but this FREE program makes it so incredibly easy!

If you are wondering where this little gem of a program is hidden, look on the menu for the Quick Link Designer. Once you click on that, it will take you to the design page where it will open in the last model that you used. To change the model, click on ADD MODEL on the right-hand side of the page and it will open a drop-down menu where you will be able to select the type of wall that you want to design. I selected the Alternate Size Pack wall as it allows me to add greater detail to my design versus Duplet Square pack.

Alternate Size Pack Walls

I really like this style of balloon wall. It is robust, always looks good, and is probably the most widely used method of precision wall. It is made by alternating clusters of four balloons in two different sizes packed on to 50lb Dacron line. This produces a square garland (see example below).

The first and last garland in your wall starts and finishes with one size of balloon cluster. The next garland starts and finishes with the alternate size of balloon cluster. The example below shows the green balloon being the bigger of the two sizes.

Square Garlands

The difference in size between the two sets is relative to the size of balloon used.

 2" - 4½" = use a ½"differential

4½" - 7½" = use a 1" differential 

7½" - 11" = use a 2" differential

5cm - 11.5cm = use a 1.5cm differential

11.5cm - 19cm = 2.5cm differential

19cm - 28cm = 5cm differential

Practice and see which size works best for you. The garlands are laid side-by-side and interlocked when built, then joined together using the elastic band method* 

Square Garlands locked together

Accurate sizing of balloons is paramount with this style of balloon wall. When making the duplets, we must make sure that the balloons are tied as tightly together as possible, leaving no slack latex between the knot and the inflated part of the balloon.

Everyone will pack clusters on the line at a particular tension. It is typical to have only one person pack the garlands while others inflate and tie. This may not possible when working on large-scale jobs, so you will need to practice consistent sizing and packing with your crew.

This method produces quite a smooth design with a flat surface that allows for good diagonal lines and triangles. Not all balloon wall types work with different patterns!

The inspiration for this Valentine's wall was from the Qualatex^® "Love You Red Ribbon" Microfoil^® balloon. If you made a display using both, it would look stunning and very eye- catching - perfect for a window display! 

18" & 36" "Love You Red Ribbon" Microfoil Balloons

If you would like to have a go at making this wall, here is the design recipe. It even tells you how many balloons of each colour you will need! If you right-click on the instructions, you can save the file to your computer and open it in its original size!

Image 1 - Balloon Wall as it will look when completed.

 Image 2 - Balloon Wall in columns.

To secure the columns together, I use the paperclip and elastic band method that I was taught many years ago by Ian Herd, CBA.

This is such an important part of the wall construction. If done badly, the wall can distort and not look good. There are many people who use 260Qs to fix a wall, but for me, the elastic band and paperclip method is the best technique!

If you have never made a balloon wall before, this style of wall is a great one to start with. Don't forget, you do not need to make it huge; use 5" balloons and you will get exactly the same results, but on a smaller scale!

Over the next few weeks, I will be sharing more Valentine's design ideas to help you with your campaign! Don't forget that there is a fabulous INSPIRATION area on the Qualatex website where you can view and download BALLOON BOUQUET and DECOR ideas, like the "Embellished Heart" designed by Luc Bertrand, CBA. If you are a QBN member or CBA, you are also able to log in and download the recipe sheet and a high-resolution photograph that you could use for marketing purposes.

Once again, my sincere thanks and gratitude goes out to Chris Adamo, CBA, of Balloons Online, Sydney, Australia, who continuously gives to the balloon industry and inspires many of us each day with his incredible ballooning skills! Thank you, Chris. Your gestures are truly helping so many!

Happy Ballooning!

Sue

www.suebowler.com