Do you carry around some sort of "emergency pack" of balloons in some always-accessible (or nearly so) place? A baggie in your jacket pocket? Some little stash in your car? So that you can always whip something off on the spur of the moment?

If so, do you base your assortment on a particular selection of figures you depend on to impress in a short amount of time?

Just wondering out loud here!

Josh

Hey Josh

I rarely carry balloons with me all the time, only if I know I am going to need them, I do have photo's of my work on my phone if anyone asks but otherwise I never carry balloons around with me.

If I know I will need them (like if I am off to a jam or I have been asked to entertain) then I take my whole balloon kit with me which is either in a large toolbox on wheels or it fits into a smallish suitcase.

Rob

Interesting, Magirob! I wonder if my desire to have balloons with me at all times (even if it's just a small cache) is because I'm still building my business and I want to be able to leave a sample with, say, an interested restaurant owner or booker. Maybe once I become more established, and more confident, I'll be good with just having photos or leaving a card.

Why not have a small plastic bag with a picture of a model and the balloons in it to make the said model,
you could carry 4/5 bags with enough balloons in each bag. Might be an idea?

What about a pump?

I think the reason I don't carry balloons with me stems from my magic background, I have always been irritated by the whole idea that a magician should always have a trick handy to show someone. I was in a bank once getting a cheque made up for the Blackpool magic convention (there were 13 of us going so it was a lot of money) anyway, the woman behind the glass said "oh, your a magician, show me a trick" and I said "no, I don't have anything", she complained that a magician should ALWAYS carry a trick and that she was most disappointed, I asked her if she likes to sit at home and count money or do other bank related work for free? "no why on earth would I do that at home?" was her reply. So I said, "if your not willing to do your job during your time off then why should I be expected to do mine during my free time?.

Its harsh I know but if people want to see me perform then I can be booked via my agent or website. There are times I do have balloons, at jams and also if I am going to see a client I will take a sample with me but other than that I rarely have balloons.

Don't get me wrong, I do love making balloons and I would love to make balloons at any occasion at all events whenever and wherever but I do feel that some things should be rationed, If I were to do it all the time then surely people would get bored, "oh here is Rob with those balloons again, yawn", isn't it better to leave people wanting more?

Rob (yes im a miserable sod)

I have to slightly agree with Rob on this one. I don't carry balloons with me unless they are required on the job that I'm going to (with the exception of jams). There are 2 main reasons for this :- The first being that I can't mouth inflate (Therefore I would also have to carry a pump with me too). The second is that when I'm not working, I don't really like to work if that makes sense.
I do know of people who always carry balloons, but even so these are predominately for them to practice with rather than just hand out.

I agree with rob to.
I have a studio / shop at my home.
Sometimes I just want to be free  

I carry my balloons like this, thanks for the picture Graham  

There is something I have always had in the back of my mind ever since I started doing magic and balloons and it is on the subject of over saturation.

Many of my family and friends around me are not balloon artists or magicians, they don't share my crazy passion for twisting balloons,   If I was to break out the magic or balloons at every occasion then surely they would get bored very quickly, Its always better to leave people wanting more, they all know I make balloons and do magic, if they want to see something then they know they can ask however I don't want to over saturate them with balloons and magic all the time, I want to keep the friends I have, not lose them, I hope that makes sense.

Rob