5 Day Facebook Challenge - a little bit of ballooning history from Treb Heining!

I wonder how many of my Facebook friends were asked to participate in the 5 Day Facebook Challenge?

Along with many other ballon artists I also received a nomination by one of my Facebook friends to post one of my designs everyday for 5 days and to challenge another balloon artist to do the same on every one of those 5 days! My initial reaction when I received this request was to question why, however, it became apparent very quickly that this was a fantastic opportunity to see some incredible balloon decor and in some instances some magical stories that accompanied them.

Snowmen in the Snow by Sue Bowler CBA

For me selecting which pictures to post became my own personal challenge, how do you decide which 5 designs reflect you and your 'ballooning' personality? I chose a selection of pictures that held a special memory or had a story linked to it... like the snowmen that I made on a day when we were literally snowed in to our home... no escaping for a few days! These little snowmen stayed in our garden for 3 weeks, at some point they were completely covered in snow, but even when the snow melted they had survived their ordeal!

The reason I decided to write this blog was because one artists 5 day challenge really stood out for me, don't get me wrong, I have loved each and every picture that I have seen posted by other artists, but this artist has shared a little bit of ballooning history too! 

The problem with Facebook is that a post has a very short shelf life and after a few days or even hours they can disappear never to be seen again! So, with the permission of Treb Heining I have reposted his 5 days of picture posting along with some of his very magical stories!

So here it is, Treb Heining's 5 Day Challenge!

Okay Cam Woody - I accept your challenge and since I am a huge fan of his work, I challenge Luc Bretrand to do the same.
To start - I have posted one of our early projects here. Thought it would be interesting for everyone to see what equipment we used when we first got started.
The first photo shows a table with all the equipment we used to create balloon decor in 1979.  

It includes: Belle Gold blower, helium valve, dacron line, finger tape, ear protector, dykes and paper clips. Add balloons and skill and you get what you see in the photos. Total cost for this equipment in 1979 = $160.00

The project I am featuring took place in 1979 for the University of Southern California (USC) Homecoming. I had just started my business and really didn't know what I was doing but did know how to produce balloons quickly. Worked with a crew of 4 or 5 people and turned this out in under three hours. I remember that when we started, it was still dark - in the early AM - but had to be done by 9 AM. This area was where they held the "President's Party" and this display caused quite a stir. Balloon columns/arches were brand new and this type of work had not been seen by very many people. Needless to say, this is how our word-of-mouth business started and our association with USC lasted for more than a decade.
Basically just four big arches all connected - going from the ground to the upper balcony of the school library and then connecting again from there. 

- Couple of additional photos of other USC Homecoming displays -

Second day of challenge...

Cinderella re-release party at Warner Brothers lot - 1987

This was back in the days when Disney was re-releasing their old movies into movie theaters and would have elaborate parties - invitation only - for their "A" list of stars and celebs.
We got a call late in the afternoon to decorate this 200' X 200' tent the following day. A scramble to get product, crew etc. on top of the fact it was raining like crazy.
This still is one of my favorite pictures of very simple classic balloon decor - of course Cinderella's coach makes all the difference...

Day three of my challenge
Neiman Marcus Fashion Show - Caesar's Palace Pool - Las Vegas 1981

They use to have an annual Gran Prix auto race (1980/81) in the parking lot adjacent to Caesar's Palace. The first year (1980) we were hired to provide a series of arches that were marched around the track for the opening parade.

On the second year (1981) we planned the same effect but did an American flag pattern with the plan that it would be unfurled in front of the crowd during the national anthem. Unfortunately, it turned out to be one of those blistering hot days in Vegas and the balloons looked great at the beginning of the parade but not so good at the end. (you can see the heat starting to takes its toll in the photo) 

In addition to the flag effect, Caesar's had contracted us to build an effect for that nights party that was held in the pool area and featured a fashion show put on by Neiman Marcus.
I have included the artist rendering we did for this effect which consisted of a series of seven arches that would provide a "ceiling" for the entire area.
I often used artist renderings to sell our work - especially in the early days - as people just didn't understand what I was talking about when it came to balloon decor/effects.

To make it extra special, we ran a series of C9 chaser lights through the columns so that the balloons not only lit up but also "moved" when you hit the chaser button.
This was the first time lighting had been added to balloon columns - kind of a high profile event to try something of this caliber.  

So to be clear - we started very early in the morning to build the balloon flag effect for the parade - marched this effect around the track in temps approaching 100 degrees - brief lunch break and then built the lighted effect.  

The lighted column effect was created with 14" helium filled balloons. We inflated everything in the main ballroom of Caesar's and waited until very late in the afternoon to take each column/arch out to the pool area.
When we ran the chaser lights through the columns in the ballroom, the weight of the lights equalized the lift from the helium and it was only when we added the five foot balloons that there was the necessary lift to arrive at the final photo you see.  

Looking at the final photo and recounting all the details makes me tired all over again. To remember that we also created an enormous effect that morning before even tackling this evening effect is a testament to how prolific our crew was even though we were barely into our second year of running BalloonArt By Treb, Inc.  (each of our crew members could produce 1000 balloons per hour)
For those in the industry who have been around long enough and tell you that we started it all - this is one of the reasons why. These kind of days/events were common for us. Using thousands of balloons on a job was not the exception but rather the rule of the kind of work we did.
I post the photo again of all the equipment we used to complete our work to remind everyone that we sized all balloons by eye and ear as well as venturing down roads that had no maps let alone a compass to measure sanity. 

(realize too that I am not following the rules to challenge someone else each day but am hoping by posting these thoughts, it will challenge all to build big and use the power of balloons to create success in your business)

Day four of my challenge

200th Anniversary of the U.S. Constitution Opening Ceremony - Philadelphia, PA 1987

There are times when Classic Balloon Décor is used for just that - décor and then there are times when it is also great for effects and spectacles. This is a story highlighting the latter.

In 1987, BalloonArt By Treb was called on to develop ideas for the 200th Anniversary of the US Constitution in Philadelphia. It was decided to create a large American flag made out of balloons. We had done many American flags over the years, but because of the nature of this event, I wanted to make this one special. 

My idea was to completely cover the front of Independence Hall with an American flag and the shows one of the renderings we did to sell the idea. 

As if this were not challenging enough, the event producers wanted the flag to "appear" during the special song, "We The People", being performed by Andrea Mcardle for the finale.

The final plan was to build 40 columns of balloons - each 70 feet tall. The columns were to be "hidden" in the park area behind Independence Hall and then marched out and lined up as the song "We The People" was being performed. This gave us a 3 to 5 minute window to get all the columns in place and lined up before the song ended.

The concerns that the city had were if the balloons would damage Independence Hall in any way and what would happen if it were a windy day. I assured them the balloons would be safe and that the wind would not be a problem. (along with tying balloons fast - I was always good at selling)

Our balloon crew from CA consisted of 12 people and we enlisted the help of a local high school band to provide us with the necessary bodies (75) to transport the balloon columns.

The day before the event, we brought the group down to Independence Hall  where we had one column built for demonstration purposes. The plan was explained to everyone and we let each team member work with the finished column to show them exactly what to do the next day. This went very well and the only thing that remained was to inflate 40 - seventy foot balloon columns and have a meeting with God to discuss the wind deal.

We used 14" balloons done in clusters of five. The inflation went smoothly and we positioned the park benches to serve as anchors on each end of the 40 columns

Park benches serving as balloon arch anchors!

(Forgot to mention that there was also a 10,000 - 9" -balloon release included in the effect - partially shown here )

As the music for the finale started, two columns at a time were sent through the openings to the right of Independence Hall and marched into place behind the stage of dignitaries which included VP George Bush, Thurgood Marshall, Chief Justice Warren Burger and James Earl Jones to name a few. (this created a series of "issues" in talking with the Secret Service to allow so many of us in that close proximity to the VP of the U.S.)

The important thing was to get all the columns out quickly and our system that was rehearsed the previous day went without a hitch. Once all the columns were in place, I immediately started the fine tuning process - starting at the left end of the flag and working my way to the right - having the crew people raise or lower their columns so that the flag would look as perfect as possible. 

Why the rush to get it perfect? Because at the end of the song "We The People", the band immediately went into "Stars and Stripes Forever" and the entire flag was to be released - column by column - into the sky during the final strain of that song. 

"yes we did crazy things back then"

All in all, a pretty successful day. I arrived very weary to the Philadelphia train station the next day on my way to another event in New York. At the newsstand I noticed the front page of the USA Today newspaper: there was our flag. Over the years, the photo of this flag has been used extensively by the Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, appeared on the cover of college text books and even was granted a full page in Life magazine. 

It is a true testament to the power of balloons. For those of us lucky enough to be in this wonderful business and know what this takes to produce, I believe it represents the very freedom and determination that created the document for which it proudly honors.

Day five of my challenge

The young Mr Heining

Disneyland's 30th anniversary balloon candle effect - Anaheim, CA 1985

Thought it would be good to finish this challenge by showing an event we did on the same streets that started me on my path to a career in balloons so many years ago - 1969.

During the 30th year celebration of the starting of Disneyland, we were fortunate to work on many wonderful events in and around the Park including a One Million balloon release and a publicity shot that was used extensively throughout that year.  

One Million Balloon Release by Treb Heining

The actual birthday of the Park - July 17th - was the date of what turned out to be one of best and most challenging effects we ever did and a testament to the quality and durability of Qualatex balloons.

(no commercial here but just had to mention this)

The idea was simple: create 30 birthday candles out of balloons - each measuring 75 feet long. Each "candle" would be lighted using C7 lights run along the interior of the column of balloons and would be supported by a 10 foot - helium filled - yellow vinyl inflatable.

Easy enough and hardly worth losing any sleep over. But the Entertainment Art director - Clare Graham - was always pushing the boundaries - and our capabilities - in the hopes of creating a better show for the Disneyland guests. Clare requested that all of the "candles" be rigged in the horizontal position over Main Street to form a canopy of balloons. When the actual 30th anniversary party started at midnight - during the playing of "When you wish upon a star" - each "candle" would be released - one at a time - to float to its vertical position.

Just to make matters a little more challenging - this whole effect had to be rigged during the day while the Park was open with guests passing along below. Oh - and the month of July in California is known to be on the hot side - easily 90 degrees +

We started by air inflating all the "candles" in a rehearsal hall that was located in the back off-stage area of the Park approximately one quarter mile from Main Street. This inflation took place on July 16th.

The following day - our crew arrived about 8AM and went over each candle - re-packing and replacing any balloons that had gone down. At the same time we had another branch of our crew starting to inflate the 30 - 10 foot vinyl inflatables. 

We were very experienced at using this type of inflatable as we had used 50 of them previously during the closing ceremony of the Olympic games in Los Angeles as well as other balloon effects we had done. 

But something was different about this batch of product we received. Seems that the pods that are attached to the sides of the inflatables were failing - a bad batch of glue - causing the pods to slowly peel and fall off one at a time. Left unchecked - each inflatable would simply fly away. We solved this problem by quickly purchasing some epoxy - two different forms of glue - that when mixed together, held the pods in place on the inflatables. (or so we hoped)

While the inflatable crew worked on their portion of the job, it became time to move the 30 balloon "candles" to the back of Main Street and start the installation of the balloon candle canopy. This was accomplished by having four crew members position themselves between two candles and then walk the candles along the back roads of Disneyland to the staging area behind Main Street. 

It was a very hot day and I must say that those of you who know me and my desire to always have perfection when it comes to balloons, this was a very difficult part of the day. I had to "let go" of some of that perfection in terms of the spiral pattern and balloon replacement as once the columns were rigged across Main Street, we had no way of touching them up. 

The system we established to get the columns over Main Street included one crew member on each side being on headset so that we could communicate with both sides of the street and then to our crew on each side. The columns were carefully pulled over Main Street much to the delight of the guests down below. 

75' Balloon Candles 

'Candles' being rigged

Once we had all 30 columns in place, we installed the 10 foot inflatables - 15 on each side of the street. (seems that our gluing system was holding)

Finally - it came time for Disneyland's 30th birthday party to start. We had 30 crew members - 15 on each side of Main Street - each holding one of the 10 foot inflatables. When the song - "When You Wish Upon a Star" - started, one column at a time - working towards the Castle - was released.

Once all the "candles" were in the vertical position, the lights were turned on and the crowd down below went wild. 

For those of you who have seen the three photos from this event, (flat over Main Street - columns moving - final columns lighted), you now know the whole story. The glue we used did indeed hold and this effect stayed up throughout the entire next day for the birthday celebration.

You can imagine how tired our core BalloonArt By Treb crew was (we had scheduled staggered blocks of people to help move and trip the effect) but I know many of you out there also know the incredible feeling that comes from doing something that pushes your own boundaries to the max. 

I booked a room that night at the Disneyland Hotel that had a view towards Main Street. Around 1:30 AM, once all had been taken care of at the Park, I made it back to the room, went to the window and gazed at 30 lighted birthday candles towering majestically over Main Street and wept.

Thank you to Cam for issuing this challenge and thank you to all or taking the time to read, look and send such nice comments and thoughts.

I believe in the importance of dreaming

I believe in the benefits of working hard and discipline

I believe in the power of balloons

 Wow, what can I say, what a truly magical journey! A huge thank you to Treb Heining for sharing some incredible stories and photographs and to Cam Woody for selecting Treb to be one of her 5 day challengers!

'Treb Heining is the man responsible for invented the balloon garland and who first popularized professional balloon decor in the late 1970s. His vision launched a national phenomenon, and his basic design became the cornerstone of Classic Balloon Decor.' 

Happy Ballooning everyone, I hope that you have been inspired as much as I have!

Sue
www.suebowler.com 

'Taper Star' an air-filled balloon design perfect for Christmas decor!

This is a great design that is perfect for Christmas, but to be honest just change the colours and it would suit other occasions too!

The great thing about this design is that it is all air-filled and will last for many weeks, therefore it would be ideal to decorate shopping malls, car showrooms and of course parties too!

It's a very simple design and you can make a variety of different versions simply by changing the Qualatex Taper balloon sizes. To give this design some scale, each Taper Star is the same height as me, so about 1.6m or just about 5' 6"!

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:

Air-Filled Funky Monkey Step-by-Step Design

Taking less than 10 minutes to make, this is a great design for retail, delivery and decor too! Standing over 3ft tall (1m) this monkey is perfect for a variety of occasions by simply adding additional balloons which we will look at after we have learnt to make this 'cheeky chappy'.

Funky Monkey Balloon Sculpture by Sue Bowler CBA

Part 1 Beginners Guide to the Elements and Principles of Design - Colour

Elements & Principles of Design

Creating the 'perfect' design is not something that just happens, well not for most of us anyway!  There are a number of factors that make it a perfect design, so lets take a look at what those factors are?

Elements of Design:

These are parts that make up the design, you can either touch or see the elements of design. These include colour, line, shape and texture.

Principles of Design: 

The basic principles of design include unity, proportion and scale, balance, rhythm and harmony.

By applying the principles to the elements of design brings them together into one design. How you apply these principles determines how successful a design may be!

Pricing for Profit!

Last week I saw a beautiful Christening cake which was being proudly shown off by the lady who had ordered it for her Granddaughters Christening that weekend. Standing next to the cake was the very talented young lady who made it. I asked her if cake making was her profession as she was obviously very talented, she replied, "no, I only do this as a hobby as I don't think anyone will pay what the cakes are really worth, I only just cover my costs, but I really love making cakes so I don't mind".

I wonder how many people working in our industry feel the same, that they cannot charge the true value for their work?

When I started my home based business over 20 years ago I had no idea how to cost my work, like the lovely cake maker, I loved what I did! I enjoyed the challenge of learning new skills and being able to put them into practise, every penny that I charged was used to buy my next batch of balloons, helium and accessories, there was never any left over for me!

My turning point was when I joined the Qualatex Balloon Network and worked through the business section of the course... it really did teach me how to cost my work!

I wrote a blog almost a year ago called: 'How Much Should I Charge For That', so I don't want to repeat everything that I wrote then, however, after doing some research recently I found a great online workshop that for me was pretty inspirational!
The 'How Much Should I Charge for That', blog shows you how to use the Job Cost form in detail, if you have not read that blog you might find it worth reading after you have read through this one!

The workshop is featured on Etsy and is called Etsy Success: The Art of Pricing for Profit, hosted by Megan Auman and Tara Gentile.

How to make a 'Puffed Heart' using Qualatex Quick Link Balloons.

Wedding days are filled with love, romance and happiness and what greater symbol of love than a heart!

As many of you know working with the Qualatex Quick Links was a whole new world for me as well as a huge learning curve but an exciting journey, one that I am enjoying very much! I posted my first Quick Link blog last October  'How to make a simple Quick Link Heart for the uninitiated Quick Link users' , this shows how to create 2-dimentional hearts that are perfect for hanging as backdrops at a wedding and other suitable occasions.

When I found out that I was teaching at the 2014 World Balloon Convention earlier this year I decided that I would make it my mission to learn how to create a 3-dimentional 'Puffed Heart' for my Wedding Excellence class and was very happy with the results! Of course hearts are not just for weddings and can be used for many different events such as Valentines, Engagements and Anniversaries!

The heart shown below was created using 12" Quick Links in Rose & Goldenrod and for the connectors I used Caribbean Blue this created a triadic colour harmony, and it looked great!

This heart is quick and easy to make, it took me less than 30 minutes from start to finish using a Precision Air Inflator.

We're all dreaming of that perfect room to create in... Part 2

Last week I posted part one of this blog and it would appear by the number of views that the blog has received already that this is a hot topic for many of us! Sometimes we need a little inspiration to help us, not only with our day to day balloon designs and decor but also with how to be creative with our storage systems too!

Last week I asked members of the QBN (Qualatex Balloon Network) Facebook Group if they would kindly share how they set up their working and storage area's and any tips that they might have, I was overwhelmed  by the number of responses that I received and felt that they should all be included.

Jenny Murphy of Red Balloon shares her top tips:
My local sweetshop was a huge help, they supplied me with empty haribo boxes! All my balloons are stored in these. For my most popular balloons we keep them in a pick and mix stand closest to the workstation so they are always at hand. The balloon boxes are stored on IKEA shelving according to size, brand and occasion. 
For our wire, poles etc we have large brackets on the wall at different heights. This has made life so much easier to organise and work with. 

Yvonne Hodgskin, of Loony Balloony.

"I have a small study that I use to work from in my home and space is at a premium! 

I bought 3 x Single wardrobe carcasses from IKEA and put wire drawers in one (for ribbons, weights and fabrics), plastic drawers in the middle one (4 for modelling balloons and 4 for foils / bubbles) and the last one just has shelves.  

We're all dreaming of that perfect room to create in...

For many balloon business's creating the perfect working space can be problematic usually due to the fact that space is the limiting factor, I know that to be very much the situation for me and I can only dream that one day I will have a purpose built Balloon Studio/Workroom (I hope my husband reads this). But for now I have worked hard to create an efficient working space, one that allows me to store away (tidily) all the items that I might need to create something new and exciting without having to hunt high and low to find everything... but that was not without a little inspiration from a friend!
Recently I visited Alberto Falcone and had the opportunity to work in his 'Balloon L.A.B', and although not a huge space it was the perfect working space with everything neatly organised for maximum efficiency and ease. My 2 favourite features in Alberto's LAB was his equipment set-up and his storage area's plus the fact that he also has a permanent photo area set up and ready to use!

Conwin Dual Split Second Sizer 

Having the right equipment set up and always ready to use is for me very important and Alberto had the perfect solution! Alberto works with a Conwin Dual Split Second Sizer that is connected via a Quick Switch adapter to both helium and *nitrogen, making it quick and simple to work with any balloons with a mere flick of a switch he can work with either gases.

Helium/Nitrogen Quick Switch

Lisa Swiger shares her Quick Link top tips and a 'Beeauitiful' Bee Sculpture design with step by step instructions.

Lisa Swiger CBA

Lisa Swiger CBA of Blooming Balloons, North Carolina, USA is one of our Quick Link experts and she has very kindly offered to share some of her top tips with the 'Very Best Balloon Blog'!
Lisa's Quick Link Tips:
* Tie as tightly as possible. This gives better structure to your sculptures. * If using with helium, hi-float works great! I recommend tying off the link tip before hi-floating so that extra hi-float doesn't stay inside the tip, wasting hi-float and weighing down the tie points. * I always trim tips and tails. This gives a cleaner look and when using helium, improves float time. * When doing air-filled, I only inflate to about 9 inches. This makes it easier to do 3D sculptures because the balloons are spongier and can be handled more. * I usually twist the balloon chains around each other, vs. using 5" duplets to lock them together. This is just a personal preference. I like the stability of have the sculpture stand without 5" balloons holding it together. I add the 5" duplets at the end to finish the piece. * When I do use 4 balloon clusters or duplets to hold QL chains together, I always twist them around each other to lock them. I've seem people just place them in without locking and the sculpture comes undone! * When I build with chains, I usually have a 5" connector at each end to start and finish the row, instead of just tying the chain in. * When building something round (like an apple or a hot air balloon) that needs to hold its shape, I'll use 5" on the outside, but 11" for the inside to give extra structure inside and hold it out better.

Lisa's Lovely Quick Link Bee Sculpture

Bee Sculpture created by Lisa Swiger CBA

Part 2. The AeroPole™ System - some great tips from balloon expert David Taylor CBA

Dave Taylor - Mad Balloons, Sydney, Australia

This arch was created using 16” balloons and was commissioned by a local radio station, this arch used the complete 7 pole arch kit.

The AEROPOLE system is designed predominantly for large, often outdoor events.  Don't try and squish it into a small entry.  A four pole arch does put considerable stress on the poles, so don't do anything smaller.

When you have finished installing the AEROPOLE make sure you go and explain the system to your client.  Tell them that the system is brand new and is designed to be flexible, and give it a shake so they can see.  If you don't explain it you will likely get a panicked call from your client soon after exclaiming that your arch is "collapsing!"  If you think about it, they are used to seeing rigid frame arches, so how do they know about this new system unless you tell them.  Also they will be highly impressed that you have all the 'state of the art' equipment and technology.

Creating Air-Filled Arches and Columns using the AeroPole System™

Classic Decor is the foundation of balloon decorating and the art of balloon decorating started with  Garlands, Arches, Swags and Columns. It was actually Treb Heining (co inventor of the AeroPole System™) who pioneered the balloon decorating industry, using balloons for the first time on mass in the late 70's to transform large spaces using Classic Decor to decorate parties, corporate events and election campaigns! 

Photograph courtesy of Balloons & Party

Last week I had the opportunity to work with the new AeroPole System™ during a Classic Balloon Decor class that I was teaching in the UK and was very pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to use! 

World Cup Balloon Decor Inspiration

Wow, World Cup fever is everywhere! I don't think that you can go anywhere in England without seeing the St George flag and football paraphernalia!

Last month we invited members of our Qualatex Balloon Network (QBN) Facebook group to share their World Cup balloon design idea's, here is a short video that shows their great work!

Thank you to the following Balloon Artists & Balloon Companies who shared their pictures and designs.

Luc Bertrand CBA, WAW Balloons, Belgium.

Mike & Sara Harris, For Every Occasion, Rhyl, Wales.

Agnes Debremaeker, 't KADOSKE, Belgium.

Yves Germain CBA, Matouvu Henin Beautmont, France.

Pim Santhuizen CBA- De Ballonnerie, Netherlands.

Steven De Maesschalck CBA, Kleine Balloonnetjes, Belgium.

Jill Shortreed CBA, Charleston Balloon Company, New Jersey, USA.

Party Land Espana - Spain.

Cam Woody CBA, Pioneer Balloon Company, Wichita, USA.

Sunny Twist n Deco - France.

Sue Bowler CBA, Buckinghamshire, England.

Gallus Plus - Croatia.

Wishing everyone's teams great success in the World Cup, but remember there can only be one winner... who will that be??

Happy Ballooning!
Sue
www.suebowler.com