Part 5. Beginners Guide to the Elements & Principles of Design - Proportion and Scale

Scale and Proportion are closely linked and both are concerned with size. 

So let's consider how important is it for us to understand proportion & scale when designing our everyday displays. 

Here is a scenario  - " I have been asked to create table arrangements for a party in a venue that I have never visited".

When we start our design process, we think about the colours that we are going to use, and if there is a theme that also take high priority, but I wonder how many of us consider proportion and scale?

For me this is now a very important part of the design process that I need to consider right from the start. 

• How big are the tables that the designs are being used on?
• What is the size and height of the room?

Without knowing and using this information very early on in our design process we could suggest, propose and cost work that is total inappropriate for the room that it is intended to be used in! Believe me, I have been there... balloons too small or too big for the height of the ceiling and the size of the room and centrepiece that are too big or too small for the tables! 

You are the expert and you can use your knowledge and skills to advise and recommend to your customers.

So lets look at proportion and scale in greater detail.

Part 4. Beginners Guide to the Elements & Principles of Design - Rhythm

As we continue our journey to having a greater understanding of the elements and principles of design,  the next principle of design that we are going to look at is RHYTHM.

Rhythm is quite simple to understand,  Rhythm means movement, which creates interest within a design, if you think of music it's like the beat, there is always an underlying beat that takes us through a song or piece of music and rhythm in design is the same.

There are four main ways of creating rhythm within a design:

Transition

Repetition

Radiation

Variation

The primary purpose of rhythm is to guide the eye to the focal area but without trapping it there.

• Transition:
Transition helps to create greater impact, similar shaped balloons can be graduated in size to add variety and therefore transition within the design, if you think about music again, the transition in music is when it changes from one key to another, so with balloons it can be when we change from one balloon size to another.

So looking at the 'Dolphin Arch' below, the transition in this design is where the balloons are decreasing/graduated in size from the base to the centre.

This design also uses repetition to create rhythm, this has been formed with the use of the 260Q curly spirals in the centre of the design.

A centrepiece design idea for Halloween

In my last blog 'Part 3 The Beginners Guide to the Elements & Principles of Design- Texture & Balance', I talk about how it can be harder to create designs that have contrasting textures as balloons  generally have a similar texture, however if we can create contrasting textures within a design it can give us a design that has greater visual impact!

So with 'texture' in mind, I set about creating a centrepiece design for Halloween.

Jack O'Lantern Qualatex Bubbles #18494 

Every centrepiece needs a strong focal point, and for my Halloween design I chose to use the 'Jack O' Lantern' 22" Bubble, there is another Bubble also 22" called 'Magical Jack' (see below) that is also perfect for this design!

I personally love these Bubbles and the vibrancy of the the colours, to me, they look like they are lit up and radiate a warm glow!

Part 3 The Beginners Guide to the Elements & Principles of Design - Texture & Balance

Texture is the final 'element' of design that we are going to look at in this series of blogs, we have already looked at Colour in Part 1 and Line in Part 2.

Texture

When working on balloon decor it is often harder to create a design that has contrasting textures as the visual texture of a balloon is the same. However if we can include other components with a different textural difference we are able to create designs with greater impact, therefore we need to look at other mediums to help us achieve this.

This is a great example of texture, this centrepiece design is based around the Peacock Accent Pattern Diamond AccentsTM Microfoil® Balloon #41227. To enhance this centrepiece design a feather boa, faux feathers and coiled metallic decorative wires have been used, all giving different visual textures that strengthen's the theme, making this a fantastic design.

This design can be found on the Qualatex website in the Wedding Business Booster along with the instructions on how to make it!

Drawing a face on a balloon.

A face can be the most important feature when creating a character, it is the first thing that we look at, it’s the focal point of a design.

A face can be simple, or with a little more detail they can show some great expressions!

Design by 游小白 - I love this design and the face, it's simple but it's perfect!

I know that many of you will be saying that you are not artistic (I can hear you), but I hope that I can give you a few pointers that will help you to have a go!

I would say that I am not a natural artist, but I am pretty good at copying, so when I am creating a character I look for idea’s and inspiration to help me.

So where do I find my inspiration? I use a variety of different sources including Google search and Pinterest using key search words to help me to find what I am looking for.

Photographs Q & A with Sue Bowler, Eleonore Verfaillie and Susan Fleming.

Photographs are a very big and important part of the balloon industry, we need them to inspire our customers, but what are the rules, especially when we are new or unfamiliar with social media etiquette.

In this blog we would like to try and answer some of the many questions regarding the use of photographs, the difference between someone taking a picture versus someone sharing a picture on social media sites and the rules regarding the use of Qualatex pictures and images.

Here is a short video clip that will hopefully answer a few of these questions.

So here are a few points to remember:

Part 2 The Beginners Guide to Elements & Principles of Design - Line

Last week I posted part 1 of this new series of beginners guides to Elements and Principles of Designs, just in case you missed it you can click HERE for a link, it's all about colour!

Today I want to look at 'LINE' and how it plays an important role within our designs. I think many of us just make our decor like an arch or column without ever considering why we do what we do, but hopefully once you start to understand a little more about 'E & P's', you will  be able to use these to maximise the impact of your work!


Line
Line is the outline of your design or arrangement- triangular, circular, curved etc. it also refers to the lines within you design. Greater impact is created by creating lines of movement with the design that you are making. Lines create paths for your eyes to follow. The direction of those lines lead to and from the focal point. 

Lines can work in different ways;

 Vertical - creates drama and impact.

 Horizontal - represents tranquility

 Diagonal - expresses uncertainty

 Curved - reflecting grace.

Lines are created by using like material normally of the same colour and sometimes graduated in size which are positioned to create rhythmic paths.

Lets look at LINE within a selection of designs: