Dolce Vita, Italian style… now that’s Amore - BACI 2015!

Designer: Barbara Biagioni CBA

This year 2015 Balloon Arts Convention Italy saw a return to Florence, the amazing home of Renaissance Art and of course balloons too, to celebrate it's 23rd year of this world renowned balloon art convention. 

With it's unique Italian style, this event was filled with a fantastic range of classes, and included the introduction of a number of new and very popular business classes.

Competitions are always a major part of BACI and this year saw the return of the Medium Sculpture category, bringing new challenges to the competitors.

Designer: Carlo Vavenotti, CBA

With the 'theme' Love, we were certainly treated to some truly stunning competition entries, with each designer interpreting the theme in very different ways!

Luc Bertrand CBA shows us how to inflate a Qualatex® Mousehead inside a Qualatex Deco Bubble and how to tie Deco Bubbles with confidence.

We all love Qualatex Deco Bubbles. But when it comes to putting a latex balloon inside one, especially shaped balloons such as hearts and the Qualatex Mouseheads, it can be a little daunting the first time that you do it!


Luc Bertrand, one of our leading industry instructors has made this great step-by-step video clip that shows you how to inflate both a Qualatex Mousehead and an 11" round balloon inside a Qualatex Deco Bubble and how to close the balloons and add a little finishing touch!

An interview with Brazilian Balloon Artist Luiz Carlos Da Costa Silva of Cenário Balões.

Last month I was very excited to make my first trip to Brasil to spend a week working with Team Pioneer Brasil at their Head Office in Jundiai. During my visit I had the opportunity to visit Cenário Balões and to meet up with owners Luiz Carlos Da Costa Silva and his wife Rosana along with their very talented team at their amazing facility in Sao Paulo!

Giant Teddy Bear by Cenário Balões

Cenário Balões was founded in 2002. Luiz was already involved in the party sector, renting out bouncy castles for children's parties and decided to include balloons as part of their service. But after attending his first basic balloon course he discovered his passion for balloons and decided to make them his main business.

Party Decor by Cenário Balões

Wedding Balloons and the great outdoors!

I will be decorating a wedding later this year. The bride has been pretty specific with her decor ideas with thanks to Pinterest! Don't get me wrong, I love Pinterest and think that it is a great source of inspiration. But I think that many of us are aware that a great deal of the shots, especially wedding designs are staged and therefore are not always as practical as they appear in the picture!

So what do you do when a bride asks you to provide large helium filled balloon bouquets that are to be positioned outside the entrance of the venue that you are decorating?
Unfortunately, unlike my bride,  I don't see beautifully arranged sets of helium filled balloons. I see a tangled mess of balloons flying horizontally!

Honesty being the best policy, I decided that it would be in both our best interest to explain all the potential problems of putting balloons outside, but also gave some great ideas and suggestions of what would work well instead.

So what are the potential problems when decorating with balloons outside?

Here are a few great suggestions and solutions from a group of industry experts from the QBN Facebook Group.

How much am I worth - how to calculate your hourly rate.

I often get asked ‘how much should I be charging for my time’?

If you were looking to become a hairdresser, lawyer, plumber or florist, I could probably tell you roughly what you could expect to earn or at least point you towards internet guides that gives this type of information. Unfortunately the job title Balloon Artist is not listed on any of these guides.

I would imagine that if you are reading this blog, you are self-employed or considering becoming self-employed. Working out what we should charge for our time is very much our own decision but having a guide to help us especially when we first start out would be helpful.

So what is our job? Knowing what our job is and entails will help us to determine what we are worth. Are we an event decorator, party planner, retailer, entertainer or all of these? Questions such as “are we qualified, have we invested in our art”, will also help to determine how much we can charge. Can someone just starting out without any experience or training expect to earn the same as someone who has many years of experience and is very well trained?

Why Colin Myles loves Qualatex® Quick Link Balloons™

'It was not so long ago Qualatex® added Quick Links to their range of products. I was excited then, but as time has gone on I am becoming more excited. Already there have been some amazing techniques developed and fantastic designs produced. 

I initially thought that Quick Links would be more suited to large scale balloon work, which of course they are tremendous for. What I did not realise was how they would be so useful, even for small designs delivery pieces.

I am possibly coming from a slightly different angle when thinking about designing with Quick Links, as over the years I have done a lot balloon weaving and also work with bubbles made from 260Q balloons. What I have come to realise is that anything that I can do with a chain of bubbles, I can translate to Quick Links!

Colin Myles Butterfly made with 260Q's

The butterfly on the above is of course made with 260Q's and the one below is with 6’’ Quick Links. This lets me play and experiment with different designs quickly and cheaply using 260Q balloons with the knowledge that I can create the same design on a much larger and more profitable scale.

An Interview with Award-Winning Artist Rachel Ellen

I don't think that anyone would be surprised to learn that I love Rachel Ellen designs. From the adorable characters, the fantastic colours that she uses, and the sheer cuteness that she brings to all her designs.

Birthday Ballerina by Sue Bowler CBA

I have created a number if designs inspired by Rachel Ellen balloons and I am happy to report back that Rachel loves them too! At Spring Fair earlier this year, I had the opportunity to interview Rachel (Ellen) Church and find out a little bit more about the artist behind the beautiful Rachel Ellen balloons and accessories.

Rachel Church