"Mother to Bee" Design by Cam Woody, CBA, Pioneer Balloon, Wichita, KS, USA.
With an ever-brightening spotlight shining on sustainability, bees have become a symbol for the devastating effects of climate change and it’s impact upon our ecosystems. Consumers’ concern for the declining bee population is a factor as to why there has been an increased popularity of our buzzy friends, and the bee theme, as well as bee-friendly products, have been on the rise.
Sweet as Honey!
Birthday bees just buzzin' by especially for you!
Designer name: Eve Antonello, CBA, Pioneer Balloon Company, Wichita, KS, USA
Qualatex has recently introduced a range of NEW Bee-themed balloons, which can be used for so many kinds of occasions! Over the past few months, I have seen some truly stunning creations using these innovative new designs.
The NEW Qualatex Bee theme balloons, click HERE for a direct link to this page.
I love the work of Hyun-Gu Park (aka Beating), of Party & Balloon Korea in Seoul, South Korea! Beatings designs are always enchanting and appear uncomplicated to the eye, though they are not necessarily simple to make! His Bee Candy Cup topper is super fun and would be perfect for a Bee-themed event!
Beatific Bumble Bee Candy Cup
You can see what all the BUZZ is about with this candy cup.
Designer name: Hyun-Gu Park (aka Beating), Party & Balloon Korea, Seoul, South Korea
Did you see the recent Qualatex Webinar featuring Federico Onida, CBA, of Balloon Express Shop in Cagliari, Italy? During the class, Federico demonstrates a range of designs for Mother's Day, however, all designs can be easily adapted to suit any occasion by simply changing the message balloons! Federico demonstrates a beautiful Bee design that has so many great techniques that you will be able to use multiple times, easily adding value to all your designs! For a direct link to the video's click HERE.
I am very excited to start working on a few of my own "Bee-utiful" designs! Watch this space, I will bee 😁 posting my creations soon!
We all have our own ways of doing things when it comes to working with balloons. We learn in different ways and develop our own technique along the way. Over the past 30 years, I have learned many great techniques and some fabulous tips and tricks that have made my life much easier and my balloon designs look even better. But as I always say, I am still learning, and I love it when I see something exciting and new!
Today, I would like to share with you a few more tips and tricks that may help you develop your own techniques!
Our first trick is from Tina Giunta of Shivoo Balloons in Melbourne, Australia. In the video below, Tina shares her own technique for making 11" confetti-filled balloons. If I am honest, I have always been very wary of making confetti balloons using 11" balloons; however Tina's amazing homemade applicator makes it so very quick and easy!
Every day, I see more and more dećor that incorporate chains of precision bubbles within the design, such as this baby design shown on the right, with the bubbles wrapped around the pole. Adding small details to a design can really increase its value, but the cost to you can be minimal.
Decor Menus - Streamline sales with a decor menu.
Decor menus are a helpful, multi-use tool allows customers to see your most popular and profitable balloon offerings in one place.
Ideal for websites, Decor Menus can also help weed out price shoppers (customers who are looking for the lowest price), leaving you more time to spend with serious clients.
More importantly, a Decor Menu can help to streamline your sales process by letting you feature the designs you want your customers to see. The visual aspect for decor menus cannot be understated. Customers can look at your menus and see the designs they want and the correct name for it. If you take the guesswork out of the buying process, customers can tell you exactly what they want to know, and they will know what they are getting.
Just because Decor Menus display standardised designs, it does not mean your creativity is limited. In fact, designs on your menu can be shown in conjunction with your project galleries and create multiple variations of decor your customers like.
A huge thank you to David Mahoney from Balloons Everyday in Dallas, Texas, USA., for sharing two of his pricing guides.
If this is something that you are unsure how to make, then you will be pleased to know that Rachel Porter, CBA, of Balloon Clip Art, of Balloon Splendor in Bothell, Washington, USA., has created many templates that you can purchase for a nominal fee from her Etsy shop. There are five different styles to choose from and many variations with each style!
Rachel also has a Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/balloonartclipart. This is a closed group, so you will need to apply to join, you just have to show evidence of your Ballooning Facebook Page or Instagram account to verify that you are an authentic balloon company.
Thank you to Tina Giunta, Q Corner, David Mahoney and Rachel Porter for sharing and contributing to this post!
I just want to start this post off by reiterating how much I gain personally from writing the Very Best Balloon Blog! This post started out in the same way as so many of my posts, where I research and put into words the topics that I feel are most interesting and beneficial to you. Researching for this post in particular has really opened my mind to the many benefits that a company can gain from having a simple tagline!
Whether or not your business name clearly states that you are in the business of balloons and balloon decor, having a tagline offers every company the opportunity to capture the attention of clients through a few simple, yet alluring words!
So what is a tagline?
A tagline is a memorable motto or phrase that’s designed to serve as a permanent expression of your company’s greater purpose and mission, or in simpler terms, a few words that truly express something about you and or what your company can do. Taglines are intended to be long-lasting, instantly recognisable with your brand and have the goal of both attracting customers & remaining top of mind with your existing audience.
As the owner of a small business, you need to look for a catchy and attractive tagline/slogan for your business.
A good slogan or tagline can help to attract immediate attention from potential customers
Just like the logo and name, it is a part of your business identity
It’s an excellent opportunity to make a powerful statement
It makes it easier for clients to remember your company’s name
Here are a few famous and memorable taglines... and there are many!
"The Very Best Balloons" - Qualatex
"Have It Your Way" - Burger King
"Because Your Worth It" - L'Oréal
So why is having a tagline important for your business?
Simply because a tagline or slogan can set you apart from your competition and make your products or service more memorable.
Keep it Simple:
Most tagline's are 3-8 words long,: make sure that you don't try to say too much!
"We Create, You Celebrate"
"Bringing Dreams to Life"
Explain your Offering:
A tagline should explain your product or service to potential customers or capture what it is that makes your business different from your competitors' businesses.
"A Fun Place Worth Remembering"
"Our Business is about Making Memories"
"We're in the Business of Making Memories"
Where do you use your tagline?
Think business cards, email signatures, your website, social media profiles, and any printed marketing material.
How do you create a tagline?
The first thing that you need to do is list all the creative words that you believe represent you, your business and what makes you stand out from your competition. Here are a few to get you started.
Stylish
Creative
Knowledgeable
Fun
Experienced
Friendly
Expert
Memories
Professional
Magical
Memorable
Reliable
It is really important to use words that are positive, upbeat, and empowering.
Now it is time to start playing with some of your words and putting them together to create your perfect tagline! I actually did this with my husband last weekend whilst walking our dog! We both threw different words into the mix that describes the business we wanted a tagline for and spent the duration of our walk creatively putting words together until we found the words that we felt best described our business and what the business can do for our customers!
Here are a few tagline ideas ideas for ballooning that I have come up with since I started writing this post!
Fun is what we do best
We build smiles
The magic of balloons!
We don’t just create balloon decor – we create memories!
Creative solutions for all your ballooning needs
This Towns (insert your town) favourite balloon company!
We love making magical memorable events
Now it's your turn! If you struggle, please feel free to use any that I have suggested or maybe add your own twist to one of them!
I have always enjoyed entering competitions! There's a lot of reasons why, but I do know that without doubt I love the challenge! Competition is definitely something I very much enjoyed doing both at the start of and throughout my balloon career, and to be honest I believe it very much helped to define me as the balloon artist that I am today!
I remember my first competition vividly! I attended a Qualatex balloon convention in Paris in 1996 - known then as the European Balloon Symposium (EBS). I decided that if I was going to travel to Paris to attend a training event, that I should push myself a little more and enter a competition or two as well! I actually entered three competitions! I had an amazing time working on a large sculpture of a desert island with a palm tree, a skeleton and a treasure chest! I also made a centrepiece and a delivery design too! Sadly, I don't have any photos of these designs, as it was pre-digital and I lost the prints. I remember having a ton of fun and laughing a lot, and it was there that I met some amazing ballooning friends, who I am still in contact with today. Most of all, I learned so much! I was under no illusion that I would win anything, but I had a feeling that it would be a good start to my ballooning journey!
One year later I went to IBAC, International Balloon Art Convention in Chicago. I entered three competitions once again, and this time I won first place in the centrepiece competition with the Happy Birthday Bear, which is shown on the left. This truly was a defining moment in my career, especially as it opened doors and led to many exciting opportunities!
I have entered many competitions over the years. Of course, I love to win. However the preparation part is equally important, and it can be very exciting! Working on a competition piece can take many months of designing, planning and practicing. Competing and the work involved has definitely helped me in my everyday designing! It has helped me to better understanding the elements and principles of design, and what makes a design appealing and attractive!
The 'Tiffany' Lamp is one of my favourite ever sculpture designs. Large sculptures have always been my nemesis! Most of my fellow competitor friends absolutely love creating large sculptures, but I personally feel overwhelmed by the sheer scale of them. However, when I made the lamp, I gave it much more time and preparation than any sculpture before, and that really paid off! I worked with an amazing team of BACI (Balloon Art Convention Italy) delegates, they are all fabulously talented, and generous with their time, and even better, they helped me to realise my dream
Federico Onida, CBA of Balloon Express Shop in Cagliari, Italy can always be found taking part in competitions at ballooning events! Federico's designs are always extremely beautiful, exciting and inspiring! I asked him why he liked to enter competitions and what was his favourite ever competition design.
Federico Onida
Federico said "I like to enter competitions because I always use my work in competition with myself.
I'll explain. Every day I prepare designs for clients, and in any one, even the simplest, I try to do my best, as if I was doing it for my mother, for my son, for a loved one, for myself.
I always tend to do my best.
My parents taught me that. Always aim to the top, first in school, then in life.
It happens, and often, that reality leads to defeats, falls, and disappointments.
But if you get it wrong and you've done your best, your result won't discourage you anyway.
It will be a new starting point, one more reason to learn and continue or start again.
I think that's why I do love to enter competitions.
The challenge must stimulate you to bring out the best in you.
The path from the dream, to the idea, to the project, to the finished sculpture allows you to discover your abilities and your limits, and discover new paths and new point of views.
The collaboration with the team, whatever your role in it, makes you grow, first as a man, and then as a professional. Whatever results you get.
A tip: your goal doesn't have to be to win.
Your goal must be to give it your all. Only in this way will you win, always!"
"My favourite sculpture has to be St. George and the Dragon. A sculpture that at the World Balloon Convention 2010, brought together all the best talents in Italy, each with their own abilities and limits. A team spirit, a desire to create something beautiful. A sculpture, a success, born of friendship, collaboration, creativity, technique, work."
Another balloon artist whose ballooning skills and designs I am always in awe of is Vadim Shushkanov, CBA of Balloon Toy, Moscow, Russia. I asked Vadim what he feels are the benefits of taking part in balloon competitions. Ha said:
"For me, there are two of the most important benefits of balloon contests. First of all, every competition is a great opportunity to create a sculpture you would hardly ever make in different circumstances. Almost all of the balloon competitions in the world relate to art, not business. With no customers with their wishes and requests, you don't need to think if somebody can buy your work and you are completely free to share your thoughts and ideas through balloons. This has to be the best option to feel like a true balloon artist.
And secondly, each competition makes you improve your professional skills. If you would like to build an impressive sculpture, you have to solve a lot of problems. You need to search and try many colour combinations, balloon techniques, methods and materials for frames or create something completely new. This sort of experience always rises your professional level and gives a huge background for using in everyday work."
Vadim with his team!
Sadly with the COVID pandemic, and the lack of face to face events worldwide, there has been very few opportunities to enter and take part in competitions in the past year. Hopefully over the coming months, life will begin to return to some sense of normalcy and ballooning events will start to take place once again! Would I recommend for you to attend an event and enter a competition? I absolutely would! Even if it's just in one category, you will gain so much from the experience, and who knows where this might lead you in the future!
There is also a fabulous gallery of photographs and videos from past BACI Events! Definitely worth a visit if you are looking for inspiration, or to simply view some of the most incredible ballooning work!
Circus by Sue Bowler I loved making this sculpture! It was vibrant, colourful and simple!
I consider myself to be extremely lucky! Not only have I entered competitions, I have also attended many events around the world where I have been asked to be a judge. This is a great honour, and I am always in awe and amazed by the creativity and techniques that are shown by the very talented competitors!
Earlier this week, I was given the honour of taking part in the Q Corner Convention as part of the Design Panel discussion group alongside Tope Abulude, Cam Woody and Aleks and Nelly Hernández.
The first question we were asked as a group was "Which of the Principles and Elements of Design is the most important to a creation and why?"
This got me to thinking... how many balloon artists actually consider the basic principles and elements of design when making their decor? Is this something that many of us naturally do, or should it be considered more frequently?
So, let me put this to you in a different way - have you ever made a design or decor that does not look right, and while you know something is not quite right, you can't quite put your finger on it? Knowing the basics can prevent this from happening!
So what are the Principles and Elements of Design?
Creating the 'perfect' design is not something that just happens, at least not for most of us anyway! There are a number of factors that can help to make a design 'perfect,' so let's take a look at what those factors are!
Principles of Design:The basic principles of design include words such as unity, proportion and scale, balance, rhythm and harmony.
Elements of Design:These are the physical make-up of the design. You can touch or see the elements of design. These include colour, line, shape and texture.
By applying the principles to the elements of design, it will bring them together into one design. How you apply these principles determines how successful a design may be!
Principles of Design
Sculptured Balloon Column By Sue Bowler
Proportion
Proportion is one of the easier design principles to understand. Simply put, it is the size of each elements in relation to one another. Proportion signals what is important in a design and what is not. In he typical design, larger elements are more important than the smaller elements.
Scale
Scale refers to the size of the overall design in relationship to its surroundings! If a design is too big in its space, it will look overpowering. Too small small, it will look insignificant.
Balance
Balance is the visual and physical stability of a design. The visual stability of a design refers to how the mechanical stability of the design, and whether or not it will easily fall. A design with symmetrical balance should have the same amount of visual weight on both sides. Designs with asymmetrical balance will not mirror the design on both sides.
Remember that darker colours will have more visual weight than lighter colours; therefore, the darker colours belong at the base of your design since they appear heavier.
Rhythm
The spaces between repeating elements can cause a sense of rhythm to form, similar to the way the space between notes in a musical composition creates a rhythm. There are five basic types of visual rhythm that designers can create: random, regular, alternating, flowing, and progressive.
Movement
Movement refers to the way the eye travels over a design. One essential element should lead the eye to the next element and so on. This is achieved through positioning; the eye naturally falls on certain areas of a design first.
Table Centrepiece Design By Sue Bowler
Unity
Unity refers to how well the elements of design work together. Visual elements should have clear relationships with each other in a design. Unity also helps ensure concepts are communicated in a clear, cohesive fashion. Designs with good unity also appear to be more organised and of higher quality than designs with poor unity.
Elements of Design
Colour
To effectively use colour in design, it is important to understand what it is and how it works. Colours are visually perceived as advancing or receding. Warm colours such as red, orange, and yellow advance, or appear closer.
Cool colours such as green, blue and violet recede or appear farther away. When making a design, the goal is to create colour harmony. The four most basic colour harmonies are monochromatic, analogous, complimentary, and triadic.
The centrepiece design shown is using a monochromatic colour harmony. A monochromatic colour harmony consists of one hue (colour) and its tints, tones and shades.
Texture
Texture relates to the surface quality of each component of a design. Contrasting or opposite textures should be used (e.g. rough and smooth, shiny and matte) to create impact within a design. While balloons themselves have limited textural differences, there are many other ways to create texture within your designs. The texture of latex balloons is smooth and soft, but by adding elements such as tulle, ribbon, fabric, flowers, or feathers, you can create contrasting texture and a greater visual impact.
The design shown has a number of varying textures, such as shiny confetti inside the Deco Bubble and the addition of greenery and flowers within the design - all of these elements adds texture to the design.
Space
Space is the open area, or void around each element of a design. Space allows each element to stand apart so it can be seen and appreciated while still giving the impression of unity. Without space, the eye can have difficulty finding the focal area or rhythm of a design. There are two types of space: positive and negative space. Positive space refers to the shape of an object or the area that is being utilised by balloons and other decorative elements. Negative space is the empty space surrounding the design components.
Line
A line is the described path in a design that the eye should clearly follow. The line provides the framework or outline of an arrangement, as well as a visual path to follow.
A design can have one line or a combination of lines with one being dominant.
Lines can be:
Vertical - creating drama
Horizontal - representing tranquility
Diagonal - expressing uncertainty
Curved - reflecting grace
Form
Form refers to the shape of each element in a design. Form can be divided into three separate categories.
Round: A round composition is one of the most common shapes. It is designed to be viewed from all sides. Round designs are often used for centrepieces on circular tables.
Triangle: Triangular designs are usually viewed from only one side, so they are often used as a focal design on a pedestal or banqueting table.
Oblong: Oblong shapes are low, long and horizontal and usually symmetrically balanced. This style of design is especially suitable for a rectangular space.
And finally, Harmony
Harmony is the physical compatibility of the elements within your design. In other words, it is how the Design Elements (form, line, space, texture, and colour) relate to one another in an agreeable way. Creating harmony within a design also helps bring about unity. Every element within a design should coordinate and complement each other. Harmony. is created when all the Elements of Design are applied successfully!
So in conclusion, to make the perfect design you need to consider and apply the Principles and Elements of design and if for any reason you are unhappy about a design that you have made think about why and what you can or could have done to make it better!
I will be 100% honest, it took me quite some time to fully understand and have the ability to apply the principles of elements of design to my own work, and I can promise that I do not always get it right! But having an understanding can really help you to master design and become an even better balloon artist!
Thank you for reading this post and I hope that it has helped!
Keeping your customers informed and giving them information on how they can enjoy their balloons responsibly is essential for all in the balloon industry, especially customers and balloon professionals. Sharing this information can be done in several ways:
Care Cards
A care card highlights the importance of enjoying balloons responsibly to best protect the environment. These are perfect add-on to give to your clients with their balloon purchase. Cards such as these highlight the following messages:
DON'T LET GO
Please don't release helium-filled balloons outdoors - helium balloons should always be secured to a weight. Always dispose of balloons responsibly.
Balloons are a much-loved product that brings joy and helps us celebrate the special moments in life.
As a responsible balloon business, we want to protect our environment from any unnecessary litter. We have therefore made the decision not to support the release of any balloons into the environment. We encourage our customers to support this position and not undertake or endorse balloon releases of any kind.
INFLATE SAFELY
To remove the risk of injury, always use a balloon pump and NEVER inhale helium.
SUPERVISE CHILDREN UNDER 8
Uninflated or burst balloons can present a choking hazard - please supervise small children at all times.
BE LATEX ALLERGY AWARE
Balloons made of natural rubber latex may cause a reaction in those with latex allergies. Look out for symptoms and seek help if required.
ALWAYS DISPOSE OF BALLOONS RESPONSIBLY
Remember when you've finished with a balloon, simply snip the end of the balloons with scissors before placing in a suitable bin.
Pioneer Europe, in conjunction with the European Balloon and Party Council (EBPC), has developed a collection of environmental marketing materials that we can use freely within our businesses to educate consumers to enjoy balloons responsibly, promoting the message: "Don't let go."
There are five downloadable flyers that you can use:
Posters - these can be displayed in your shops and stores.
Leaflets - Gives even more information than the Care Card
Carecards - see above
Weight Labels - Weight Stickers will stick on the underside of many commonly used balloon weights.
These are available in 24 different languages. Click on the appropriate language and it will take you directly to the link.
Having a variety of posts is important for any business, and sharing environmental posts especially will be a very positive thing to do. It will act as a regular reminder to your customers and followers that you take environmental issues seriously!
Once again, there are some great pre-made posts that are available from www.qualatex.com, which can be found in the SUSTAINABILITY section on the website.
Here are a few examples of the types of posts that are available.
Have you ever seen a social media post from EU Partysafe? I would expect not, as unless you know about them, you probably won't be following them... start following them today! EU Partysafe is a consumer-facing page run by the European Balloon & Party Council, a Non-Governmental Organisation that represents all the key players in the balloon & party industry. Their aim is to raise awareness & educate consumers on balloon and party-related products.
Here are a few examples of posts that EUPartysafe shares, and you could do something similar or even better! Sharing their posts on your business page clearly reinforces the message and will potentially guide your customers to their website, which gives even more consumer information on balloons and the environment as well as other information relating to party products.
EU Party Safe posts are succinct, and always feature important facts paired with an eye-catching photo. Free photo stock can be found on the Qualatex website in the Marketing Material in the Inspiration tab. CANVA has some great photo stock, some of which is free. Using an eye-catching, and appropriate photo will help to attract attention to your posts and hopefully their important messages too!
Did you know
Latex balloons are plant-based
In fact, they are made from the sap of rubber trees, NOT from plastic as is sometimes reported
Always re-use before you recycle
Remember:
foil balloons are not biodegradable;
flatten and store your foil balloons when possible;
re-use your foil balloons. You may be surprised how good they will look!
Here are a few more important websites that will help you to source balloon-related environmental information and messages that you can use.
Let us all enjoy the magic of balloons for many more years to come, but we need your help to make this possible! Please help us to promote the responsible use of balloons!
A huge thank you to EBPC for allowing me to share material from their Facebook page.
