Sue's Wedding Album!

As the most important day of the bride and grooms life it is essential that as a professional event decorator we are able to design a wedding day to remember!

Elegant Entrance Decor - designed and created by Sue Bowler CBA

I have been designing and creating wedding decor for many years. When I exhibited at my first wedding fair I made some very silly errors. Rather than working with an elegant and fairly neutral colour palette to create my display decor, I overwhelmed my potential clients with every balloon colour that Qualatex offered, which as you can imagine did not make for a very pretty display!

If you would like any tips on how to prepare for Wedding Fairs I have written 3 blogs on the subject:

Zany Zebra Party Animal - a quick and easy design that is perfect for children and children's parties!

I love to create something that takes me only a matter of a few minutes to make! 

This adorable Zebra took me less than 5 minutes and by using the Premium Balloon Accessories Candy Bouquet weight at the base we can truly add value to our design. 

Simply fill the weight with sweets and candy and we have now created the perfect gift or party favour!

Zany Zebra Party Animal - design created by Sue Bowler CBA

Have you ever wondered what it is like to take part in a competition? Part 3 continues our fantastic journey with more great personal stories and a little insight as to what a 'twister' can gain from attending WBC!

I am very excited to introduce my next two contributors Bram Parola from Belgium and Jill Shortreed from South Carolina, USA.

We're going to start with Bram Parola, Bram's competition experience was very different from our other contributors,  his adventure did not take place in the competition room, in fact he had not planned to compete at WBC until he entered the Jam Room!

 Bram Parola - Ballonplooien.net

Bram Parola

Have you ever wondered what it is like to take part in a competition? Part 2 continues our journey with more great personal stories and experiences from WBC 2014

Competitions are a quintessential element of any balloon convention, the opportunity to see balloon artistry at it's very best! 

For delegates & Instructors attending, the public visiting and those who see the photographs posted on Facebook and in Balloon Images magazine, we are in awe of what we see! Balloons that come to life and take on the form of an amazing sculpture, beautiful dresses and hats, inspiring centrepieces and deliveries and columns unlike you have ever seen before, there is no end to the creativity and exciting techniques demonstrated.

For those who enter the competitions, they have had months of planning and preparation and in many cases they have also worked hard to secure a team of willing balloon artists who's help is invaluable to assist the designer/s to build their vision!

Mike & Sara Harris have very kindly shared their WBC 2014 competition journey...

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

Sara & Mike Harris

At WBC 2014 we entered the Large Sculpture Competition and the Balloon Column Competition.

We were persuaded (or rather Mike was!) by Michelle Comerford from Pioneer Europe during an alcohol infused conversation at BACI 2013!!  I was then informed on his return what ‘we’ had agreed to do!!

Part 1. Have you ever wondered what it's like to take part in a competition? Here's what some of our WBC competitors say...

Have you ever thought about entering an industry competition but for one reason or another decided not to?

As both a past competitor and occasional judge I am extremely passionate about competitions, I believe that everyone in the balloon industry benefit greatly from the skills, creativity & diversity demonstrated by those who take part in each of the categories!

So what does it take to enter a competition? 

On my return from the World Balloon Convention, I asked if anyone who had taken part in any of the competitions would be happy to share their experience with The Very Best Balloon Blog and I was overwhelmed by the response that I received! 

Teri Stokes - Happy Heart, Kingwood, Texas

Teri Stokes with her winning medal and award! Congratulations to Teri!

No Bake Cupcakes! A fun and easy display that will certainly get your customers talking!

Recently I created a display of balloon 'cupcakes' to add into a window display that I designed for Qualatex at this years Spring Fair.

Hello Kitty Display created by
Sue Bowler CBA

The aim of the display was to attract attention to the display and the new Qualatex balloons being featured, but it also stimulated many conversations with potential customers looking at the displays... how much better to open a conversation with "they're really fun, and calorie free"! Rather than with the usual "can I help you" opening line!

With Mothers Day and Easter fast approaching, it's time to get creative and make some exciting and fun displays to promote these great events!

To make the cupcakes is really very easy and with beautiful cake cases and cardboard display stands you can re-create this lovely display in just a few minutes!

Easy Step by Step on how to create a 5-Balloon Cluster Garland...

I know that when I first started making garlands especially when using 5-balloon clusters I use to get into a bit of a pickle, trying to hold down the balloons, keep the balloons flat and getting the garland tight enough, so that it did not just fall apart or pop out of shape!

So, here is a very easy step by step clip that will show you how you can do it and take away all the stress!

How to create your own Facebook cover photo using PicMonkey Photo Editor

Creating a good image for our business is vital to social media success! 

Our Facebook page is our showroom, window or portfolio and is not a market place like ebay!

Creating the right image can be achieved through your cover photo! I created the above cover photo yesterday to see what reaction it got and I was very impressed at how many positive comments I received!

What's your favourite number... fantastic sellable designs for all ages!

Birthdays, Anniversaries and other milestone and memorable dates are the perfect opportunity to create something just a little bit different and unique!

I am sure that many of you remember the wonderful 2012 design that Luc Bertrand CBA, WAW Balloons, shared with the balloon community to celebrate the new year! 

Boost your sales by combining gifts and Qualatex® balloons.

Combining gifts and Qualatex^® balloons was my challenge for the 2014 Spring Fair Stage demonstrations! It was a great opportunity for me to look at different ways to incorporate balloons with everyday items that are sold in gift stores.

We started by selecting a variety of gift products such as candles in a presentation glass container, a lovely gift for Mothers Day or Birthdays, we also found cute children's mug, an item that many gift stores sell, and a decorative boxed glass that was perfect for a milestone birthday!

So here was my challenge, how could I create something that incorporated the gift within my design to create a whole piece rather than just adding a bunch of balloons?

'Your store window is your face'... some great window display advice from Doctor Bob BALLOONS UNLIMITED

You should never underestimate the power of a great display, whether a store window or exhibition!

Doctor Bob - BALLOONS UNLIMITED

Last Christmas many of us were completely wowed by the Christmas window display that was created by Bob Armstrong CBA and his team at Dr Bob BALLOONS UNLIMITED in BARRY, WALES.

Christmas Window display
by Doctor Bob BALLOONS UNLIMITE
The window was filled with a magical selection of balloons, everything from a Tin Solder, Christmas tree's, Elves, snowmen and of course Santa Claus! I can imagine small children with their parents peering through to see all the beautiful displays... a true winter wonderland of excitement!

But these displays are not merely to create a display, each and every item on display is something that can be purchased by their customers, what a fantastic way to show off your skills!

An opportunity to take a 5 minute tour around the Qualatex Stand at the 2014 Spring Fair.

I cannot exactly remember how many years I have been part of the Qualatex Spring Fair crew, but it is quite a few now and I have enjoyed each and every one of them!

www.SPRINGFAIR.com

For a number of years I have been invited to create the designs for the window displays, which is a huge honour for me as well as a massive challenge... what can I make to show off the new range of Qualatex balloons at their Very Best? I was pretty lucky this year as most of the theme's were totally 'up my street', very feminine, I even think that my Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle was a pretty version!

Inside Out and Upside Down... the versatility of a Qualatex Geo Blossom!

'Love Stack' - A great design for Valentines
Created by Sue Bowler CBA

Here is my newest design idea for Valentines Day, I have named it 'Love Stack' (designs are easier to sell when you name them). The name Love Stack is a play on that very famous song 'Love Shack' (baby love shack) by the B52's - you'll be humming that all day now...

It uses Qualatex Geo Blossoms in a different way (which I know some of you do this already), but this is my first time for a while and I have enjoyed re-visiting this technique!

So for those of you who have not used the inside-out method here's how simple it is!

Geo Blossom Flower Assortment

He's from France, his design style is awesome and he's teaching at the World Balloon Convention...it is my pleasure to introduce Monsieur Jose Luthman!

Design Created
By Jose Luthman CBA

Many of you will already know Jose (pronounced Jo-ze), especially balloon artists from around  Europe as he has been an instructor in France, for a number of years, teaching at a variety of different balloon events including ABC (Sunny Twist) and Qualatex Events around France, at the Qualatex Event in Oxford in 2012 and at BACI last year! I am sure that you will have seen a selection of his work in Balloon Images Magazine or posted in the Qualatex Facebook Group?

Stylish, elegant and creative are probably the best words that I can find to describe Jose's balloon 'art', maybe it is true that the French really do have that 'chic' edge when it comes to design?

This will be Jose's first time teaching at the World Balloon Convention (WBC) so I took this opportunity to ask Jose a few questions about his forthcoming experience!

Yes it's time to get ready for Valentines 2014!

'Monkey Love' - Design by Sue Bowler CBA

I wonder why most people leave buying their Valentines Day gifts to the last minute? Maybe it's just human nature or because people are still in a post Christmas recovery mode or maybe it's because they have no idea what they should buy?

Valentines day is a strangely funny celebration as it means different things to different people...maybe a person has been in a long term relationship and the word 'love' is a familiar saying, however, there are those who's relationships are nowhere near using that word (LOVE) and they certainly don't want to send or give anything that is remotely soppy!

I love you Script Modern # 29133

Happy New Year...and welcome to 2014!

I hope that you had a very productive 'ballooning' Christmas and New Years eve, and even managed to fit in and enjoy some family time over the holiday period! 

Looking at the Qualatex Facebook Groups it appears that many of you were busy creating some awesome Christmas and New Years decor, which is fantastic, congratulations to you all!

Before I start working on a heap of 2014 projects (which is always very exciting), I would like to take a quick look back Christmas 2013!

Starpoint & Taper Wall - by Sue Bowler CBA

I personally had a very busy time leading up to Christmas working with my husband John. As many of you will know, BAPIA -- the Balloon and Party Industry Alliance, took on the fantastic task of organising balloon decor for Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital annual Christmas parties, held for all the sick children and their families. 
In 2 days the GOSH team and their many volunteers hosted 4 parties with over 2000 children and adults attending, along with a whole host of well known UK celebrities... so a great opportunity to show balloons at their very best!