Extra Special Birthday featuring a Daisy-themed Eight-Number Balloon Frame!

Who doesn't love to create special moments for their children and grandchildren?

During the pandemic, I started a tradition to create something special for my granddaughter, Alexa, each year. Despite the challenges, I was determined to make her feel loved and appreciated on her special day. For her fifth birthday, we couldn't gather indoors as a group, but we made the best of it by celebrating outside. I created a beautiful framed number "Five" which became one of my most popular posts ever! The following year, on her sixth birthday, I crafted a stunning mosaic fish for her and added a large number Six to a pedestal that I designed. Unfortunately, we were away for her seventh birthday, but this year, I have put together a wonderful number "Eight" to commemorate her special day. So the tradition continues, and now I now have another new baby granddaughter to create for. Watch this space for something special for her first birthday in November! 

The number eight frame was a pre-made frame that I bought from a UK wholesaler - Balancebest. I would normally make my own frame, but honestly, the frame was so reasonably priced it wasn't really worth the effort of making my own! 

Deciding which colours to use this year was my first challenge. My previous two birthday designs were bright and colourful, which always looked great in our garden. This year I decided to base my design around one of the new Qualatex® Microfoil™ balloons - Birthday Retro Daisies.

Birthday Retro Daisies

• Size and shape: 18" Round
• Package item #: 26563
• Flat item #: 26554

Using this balloon enabled me to pick out all the accent colours: Caribbean Blue, Yellow, Rose and Spring Lilac, would all be perfect for my design! 

If you would like to see how I created the number design view the video below.

If you would like to learn how I created the Number Five frame design, click HERE or visit https://theverybestballoonblog.blogspot.com/2020/06/how-to-make-styled-framed-number-and.html

And finally, if you would like to read my post: The Rainbow Fish inspired 6th Birthday Celebration click HERE or visit https://theverybestballoonblog.blogspot.com/2021/06/the-rainbow-fish-inspired-6th-birthday.html

The question is, what will I make for Alexa's Ninth Birthday... the pressure is on! 

Happy Ballooning! 

Sue

www.suebowler.com

Follow me@suebowler

Add Some Glamour to Your Next Event with Confetti-Filled Deco Bubbles

Give your clients something fresh with these sparkly Qualatex Deco Bubbles. These confetti-filled bubbles are the perfect addition to any glitzy and glamorous event! 

I really enjoy adding these gorgeous confetti-filled Bubbles to my designs! The design above was created for a corporate event, and the client absolutely loved them! Standing over two meters tall, these Sculptured Columns were the star of the show and so much fun to design and make! I used the 20" and 24" Deco Bubbles in the centre of the design, and the top balloon was a 3' Qualatex Diamond Clear latex balloon.

To learn how to create the confetti-filled Bubble, watch the video tutorial!

Material List

• Qualatex Deco Bubble 20" or 24"
• Metallic Confetti - I prefer 6mm x 6mm square cut (click HERE to see my UK supplier)
• Plastic Funnel
• Hi-Float
• Chopstick or similar
• 260Q balloon to tie off the Bubble 
• Pump

Here are more examples of confetti-filled Deco Bubbles:

It is clear from the photographs above that these fantastic balloons can be utilised in so many ways and for all kinds of themed events. Who doesn't love a touch of sparkle?

Happy ballooning! 

Sue

www.suebowler.com

Follow me @suebowler

Air-Filled Design idea using PremiumConwin DecoCup™ + DecoStick™

With the continually soaring cost of helium and its lack of availability, finding air-filled solutions is extremely important to the ballooning community.

Creating designs using the PremiumConwin DecoCup™ + DecoCup™ is definitely the way forward, and today, I would like to share two videos with you featuring those accessories.

It's all about the Base! 

In the first video, I will demonstrate how to create the central support for your designs. I have two methods:

1. Using a tile base with 2x DecoCups and 1x DecoCup

2. Using a sand-weight with 2x DecoCups and 1 x DecoCup

I show two different glue options to secure the DecoCups to the tile base.

If like me, you have unused Lomey Adhesive in your toolbox. 

 This works very well for sticking a DecoCup to a ceramic tile base, 

but it can take up to 24 hours to dry! I recommend using packing tape to hold the cup in place on the tile during the drying process.

Gorilla Glue works extremely well when you need to stick two items together that are made from different material. The down-side is the drying time as it can take up to 24 hours for the glue to bond successfully.

Sand-Weights - using kiln-dried sand

A sand-weight makes the perfect weight for a base, unlike a water-weight, a sand-weight can be moulded into shape and flattened and is very stable, it is also quick and inexpensive to make. 

Check out the video below to see how easy it is to make the base element for our air-filled designs.

"With Love" - air-filled Hat Box Valentine's arrangement 

In the second video, I show you how to create this relatively easy design that would be perfect for Valentine's Day or by simply changing the balloons and colours it would be suitable for any occasion!

For this design I have used:

• Hat Box
• 7" Qualatex Gold Chrome
• 5" Wild Berry
• 260Q Gold Chrome
• 260Q Wild Berry
• 260Q Rose
• 18" Love Gold #16766
• Pink Organza Ribbon
• Uglu Dashes 

Check out the video below to find out step-by-step how to make this great design.

I have been creating air-filled balloon designs for many years now, and I have come to have a preference to air-filled over helium-filled designs. I feel that an air-filled design allows for more creativity and detail, and I prefer the end results!

Here are a few more of my air-filled arrangements, some using Deco Cups and Sticks.

The Happy Birthday foil in this design is actually helium-filled, but it could easily be replaced with an air-filled version on a Deco Cup & Stick

I hope that this post has been helpful and given you a little inspiration!

Happy Ballooning!

Sue

www.Suebowler.com

Follow me @Suebowler

Step-by-Step Air-Filled Valentine's 'Love' Arrangement by Sue Bowler

'I Love You with Love' is a design that I created last year for the Qualatex Online Education video program that is available on Vimeo, called Expressions of Love! Today I am sharing one of the designs from that program.

This year, with the continually soaring cost of helium and its lack of availability, we will all be looking for exciting air-filled designs that can be recreated quickly, with much of the prep work done in advance, and this design ticks all of those boxes! 

Material List:

58271 7" Gold Chrome
99352 5" Pearl Magenta

59570 16" Northstar Magenta L Shape

59590 16" Northstar Magenta V Shape

59556 16" Northstar Magenta E Shape

16766 18" Love Gold Heart Shape Microfoil™

58283 260Q Gold Chrome

25577 260Q Wild Berry

36336 4" Metallic Gold Hearts

Check out the video below for full step-by-step instructions on how to make this design.

To view the other designs on the video visit https://vimeo.com/ondemand/qualatexlove, or if you are a Rockstar Member of Q Corner you can watch the whole video as part of your membership!

Here are some more inspiring design ideas using a similar style and techniques.

All my love to you!

This love-filled design is a little extra, perfect for a Valentine!

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

A New Kind of Love Letter…

What better way to show your love than with love-letter themed balloons?

Designer name: Eve Antonello, CBA, Pioneer Balloon Company, Wichita, KS, USA

Love is Golden

Do something a little different for your love!

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

Together Forever, and Ever

Make a statement with this design!

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

Gnome body loves you as much as I do!

Designer name: Julie Dunham, CBA, Pioneer Europe Ltd.

 

And don't forget, Qualatex has a great selection of FREE marketing materials available for you to download that will help you to promote your Valentines campaign, as well as other seasonal events! 

Facebook Cover Photos

https://us.qualatex.com/en-us/inspiration/marketing-materials/

Download beautifully crafted cover photos, created by a professional graphic designer at Pioneer, and upload it to your Facebook page.

Ready-Made Social Media Posts

https://us.qualatex.com/en-us/inspiration/marketing-materials/

Qualatex has created simple social media posts using the latest Qualatex bouquets with fun headlines within the graphic. These designs make it simple to promote products with minimal effort on your part.

Qualatex Lifestyle Images

https://pioneerballooncompany.widencollective.com/c/vozhdikn

Many of the lifestyle photos used on the Qualatex social media accounts are available for you to download and share on your social media account!

I hope you find the video and the inspiration helpful! Be sure to use the great resources available on www.Qualatex.com for all your holiday needs!

Happy Ballooning! 

Sue

www.suebowler.com

Follow me on @Suebowler

Learn how to make a Flat-Pack Christmas Tree - with an easy Step-by-Step Recipe

Balloon Christmas Tree using the Flat-Pack technique

There are so many different techniques when it comes to designing with balloons! Each technique has its own set of pros and cons, and we can use those factors to choose the best technique to suit the decor that we are creating or the location that we are creating it in.

We don't often see the Flat-Pack technique being used. This style of decor is known as Classic Balloon Decor where all the balloons are sized with precision to achieve a  perfect look!  I actually used this technique to create a Halloween design recently at a training event. The pros of using this style of decor is that it is flat, so it can be used in spaces where there is not much depth, like a shop window or a narrow room.

Here is a sideways photo of the same Christmas Tree. The tree is literally only one balloon in depth, making it very slim! 

Side view of the Christmas Tree

I have made a short video that explains how to construct a column using the Flat-Pack technique. This video will be of help to you if this technique is new to you, however, for the Christmas Tree, you will need to follow the sizing on the recipe sheet below for the balloon sizes, but follow the method shown in the video.

Here is the recipe for the tree that I made. You can change the sizing if you want to make bigger or smaller trees. For my design, I use Qualatex® Chrome™ Gold and Chrome Green and topped it with a 20" Ruby Red Microfoil™ Star.

Flat-Packed Christmas Tree Recipe by Sue Bowler

I would like to thank Lynda Webb from Bloon Away Boston in Boston, UK. Lynda attended the training session where I demonstrated the Flat-Pack technique and was so inspired with it that she started to play! I saw Lynda create a number of different designs including a variety of columns, and then she used the column technique to create tree's! I asked Linda to make some Christmas Trees for the recent BAPIA Funday - Christmas with Qualatex and they were a huge success! Lynda asked me to write this post so that we could share the recipe with others! 

Christmas Trees by Lynda Webb - Bloon Away Boston

Happy Ballooning! 

Sue

www.suebowler.com

Follow me @suebowler

How to Make a Christmas Wreath - Step-by-Step Video

 

Christmas Wreath by Sue Bowler

Karla Bell-Marsh of Blooms and Balloons in Portsmouth and I recently created these five hoops to represent the 'Five Gold Rings' as quoted  in the Christmas song The Twelve Days of Christmas at a recent industry event hosted by BAPIA (Balloon and Party Industry Alliance) and co-sponsored by Pioneer Europe, Qualatex.

The wreaths proved to be a popular sight at the event, so I thought that I would share the design with The Very Best Balloon Blog! 

I've created a step-by-step video showing you how to make the wreath. This same technique can be used with different coloured balloons to create hoop designs for multiple occasions.

Chrome Gold and Chrome Gold Christmas Wreath by 
Sue Bowler, CBA and Karla Bell-Marsh.

The wreath above was made on a larger, 1m hoop. I inflated the outer balloons to 6" and the inner balloons to 5", using the same technique on the video.

Here is a wedding hoop design that I made using the same sizing technique as above. On this occasion, I have added a 6" heart on the second cluster.

Wedding Hoop by Sue Bowler

I will demonstrate how to recreate the Taper Poinsettia in my next post! 

Happy Ballooning! 

Sue
www.suebowler.com

Follow me @suebowler

A FANtastic Centrepiece Design for New Year's Eve Celebrations!

This is such a lovely design to make. It is not too complicated, and it would make the perfect centrepiece for an elegant New Year's Eve event! Remember, designs like this are easily adapted to suit any occasion, simply choose your focal balloon and then use complimentary balloons and accessories to coordinate with your design.

I opted to use the Qualatex® 18" New Year Black & Gold Fans Microfoil balloon(#89858) as the focal point. Paper fans remain on trend and featuring this balloon gave me the ability to add fans into my design.

Material List

For the pole and base, I used a product called Lomey®, however you could also use Plexipoles™️ as an alternative. Both Lomey and Plexipoles are available from balloon wholesalers and suppliers. 

1 x 31" Lomey Clear Pedestal

1 x 9" Lomey Dish

Lomey Adhesive

#85111 - 7" Chrome™️ Gold

#85109 - 7" Chrome Silver

#43548 - 5" Onyx Black

#58283 - 260Q Chrome Gold

#58282 - 260Q Chrome Silver

#89858 - 18" New Year Black & Gold Fans

Gold/Silver Paper Fans

Uglu Dashes

To learn how to make this design, check out this video that Sue filmed with Greg Brown at BMTV recently.

Here are a few more ideas for a fabulous New Year celebration! 

I love this wall decor created by Alberto Falcone, CBA, of Balloon Lab, Europe. Alberto cleverly uses the Golden Unicorn Horn to create shooting stars! 

Smile, There's Bubbly!

The perfect holiday gift or decor piece to bring in the New Year.

Designer name: Eve Antonello, CBA, Pioneer Balloon Company, Wichita, KS, USA.

Bring in the New Year with this very elegant on-trend geometric design! Designer name: Cam Woody, CBA, Pioneer Balloon Company, Wichita, KS, USA

It is always good to get a little last minute inspiration, and if you cannot use these designs this year, you can always store the ideas away until next year, when hopefully life will have returned back to normal once again! 

Happy Ballooning! 

Sue

www.suebowler.com

Follow me @suebowler

How to Make this Festive Gnome Design by Sue Bowler

Finding quick, easy and sellable designs is always a little challenging, especially when you are building your seasonal offerings! Today, I would like to share this cute and festive gnome design that I recently created and shared with the viewers of BMTV.

Material List

1 x Merry Christmas Gnome
#19772

1 x 42" Gnome
#20055

4 x 7" Gold Chrome Latex Balloons #85111
8 x 11" Gold Chrome Latex Balloons #58271

1 x 260Q Chrome Gold
#58283

1 x 260Q Red
#43958 

You will also need:

• Balloon weight (for the overall design)
• Small balloon weight & helium (for the Merry Christmas foil balloon)
• Nylon Line and red satin ribbon
• Stretchy Balloon Tape

To find out how to make this design please watch the video below! 

Balloon inflation sizes as a reminder:

• Base and 3rd cluster inflated to 8"
• 2nd/middle cluster inflated to 3.5"

Additional Tips:

• This design is perfect for personalising with someone's name for Christmas.
• Add Hi-Float to the 260Q's to help the balloons last longer.
• Always ensure that any helium-inflated foil balloons are safely secured to a balloon weight.
• This design could be made with alternative latex balloons to create a completely different look for the box/gift base. 

Here is another quick, easy, and festive idea! When you create a design that you really love, why not make it into a gift card that you can share with your friends, family and customers!

Here is my 2021 Christmas card, made using CANVA! It is so easy to do and gives you the opportunity to create something very special and unique! 

Happy Ballooning! 

Sue

www.suebowler.com

Follow me @suebowler