Recently, Buster Balloon 'shared' this Facebook post. It contains advice given to magician Brian Brushwood from Teller of 'Pen and Teller' fame. I feel it applies to anyone forging a career in the entertainment industry. Here's the link:-

http://shwood.squarespace.com/news/2009 ... areer.html

Hi Team!

I'm looking for balloon jewellery ideas for a high class jewellers fashion. Any ideas would be most welcome.

This year I've noticed a real dip in the corporate market for balloon related entertainment. The private bookings seem to be coming in thick and fast... But often last minute. I'm getting one or two bookings from shopping centres but the main volume of work for me is coming from Nurseries and Play Centres and repeat work from regular clients.

Where do other artists find the demand is coming from? And have you noticed a change in the trend for Christmas work this year? If so, why do you think that is? Also, I'd be very interested to know about work trends through out the year. I'm not suggesting you give a way details of specific employers. Let's just keep the discussion general.

For example, I find that Christmas is usually my busiest period with private parties and corporate bookings from city clients, nurseries and shopping centres. Summer is my next busiest period with bookings coming from school fun days and work from the holiday industry and again shopping centre programs. Then half terms and holidays (in fact any time that kids are off school). During the week I pick up other gigs from event companies looking for balloon twisters for evening adult events like 'Generation Games' and as break-out sessions for conferences.

I welcome your thoughts.

Check this link out. This would be amazing at parties! Imagine the birthday girl sucking on this before the parents come to pick up there kids and then thanking everyone for a great party.


http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=c41_1323242445

I'm almost certain this question has been posed before, but it's such a good one that I thought I'd ask it again.

Does anyone use balloons in their show in a unusual way? Anything other than blowing it up, twisting or sculpting it and handing it out?

I do a lot of clowning with balloons, stretching and snapping it against my hand, tying it to my fingers and chopping it in half. I use needle through balloon in my routines, use a balloon target magic routine and even climb inside one.

Over to you...

My 4 year old son goes to a lot of parties. It seems every weekend I head off to entertain at my parties and he goes off to be entertained at his. Occasionally we end up at the same party... Which is nice. However, of late I've noticed a change in trend. It used to be almost every invitation he brought home was an invite to a venue, hall or community centre where a children's entertainer (good, bad or indifferent - and there are an increasing number of bad or indifferent entertainers out there but that's a different subject) would engage the young participants in a two hour party package (with a break for tea). That is what I do. These days, however he is bringing home invitations for 'soft play' parties, sports parties, (both options often come with bored looking 18 year olds doing an awful job at trying to entertain with very limited skill or understanding of their audience) animal parties or 'parents doing it themselves' parties. I mean there always used to be a bit of this kind of thing but of late, it seems to be very common place.

Does anyone else notice this trend change?
What has brought it on?
Is there anything us professionals can do about it?
Should I stop worrying?

Your thoughts.

Hi Balloon Chat People

Can you help? In Ken Stillman's balloon twisting tutorials on his website (which is brilliant by the way) http://click.balloonmaster.com/ he talks a lot about the use of betallitex balloons. I managed to find a uk site which sells foil betallic balloons http://www.oaktreeuk.co.uk but I am struggling to find a site which sells latex betallitex balloons in the UK. Can anyone help?

I recently ran a 'balloon hat challenge' for a corporate client. I had them all working on tables to make the biggest and wakiest Easter bonnets they could create. There was a real buzz in the room and everybody started chatting to each other and getting stuck in. It just goes to show that balloons can be a great 'ice-breaker' even for a bunch of very conservative suited types.

Has anyone else used balloons as an 'ice-breaker' in a conference or as part of a team building event? If so; what did you do?

Hi All!

I've been working on some 3ft, free standing animal balloon models for a show i'm doing.

This is a prototype Monkey. What do you think?

Hi All


Is it just me or are you also experiencing an influx of last minute bookings. All my clients seem to have held their cards really close to their chests and booked with little time to prep for their events.

I'm juggling jobs and allocating staff like it's going out of fashion. I'm sure I was more prepared than this last year.

Is it just me?

May be I just forget from one year to the next how frantic Christmas can be.

See you all at Wednesay 1st December 2010 Balloon Jam in Bishops Stortford. That's assuming I don't have to deal with any last minute emergences!

A colleague and I where working at Family Fun Day in Luton a week ago. There was a football competition taking place but disaster! The trophy hadn't turned up. Lucky we had out trusty balloon bags with us. Five minutes of twisting later and a half descent trophy with footballer inside was made. We received extra brownie points and the mayor awarded our trophy to the winning team.

Which made me think about the question of what balloon things have you done to rescue a situation and get yourself extra brownie points from the client?

Okay. This duck looks it's caught raibease. Not exactly what I had planned.

Hope you like this balloon snake design.

Very easy Spider.

This is a really easy face and body. I'd love to find out more about 'balloon characturism' as I keep being asked to do it.

The inspiration for this bunch of flowers came from the front cover of the 'Qualatex Entertainer Collection' brochure.

There's a buzz in the air about this one!

It's a 'self-raising' flower or perhaps a 'plane' flower.

So simple and goes down a storm with the little girls!

As an entertainer is it a better use of my time learning to entertain with balloons (stretching them and snapping them against my fingers then reacting with a giant yelp, inflating them and letting them shoot off the end of my pump whilst my attention is elsewhere, inflating them and letting them slowly deflate 'accidently on purpose' whilst I explain to the audience what i'm going to do next and my favourite snapping a balloon in half and holding what looks like two inflated balloons and then hand them to an audience member and letting them go before they are grasped and allowing them to shoot off into the air) or should i study the craft of balloon modelling, learning all the twists, knots, pinches and getting to grips with weaving and other such crafts in order to create really fabulous balloon sculptures only to find that every boy i ever entertain only really wants a sword and every girl is content with a flower?

Pro's and con's of both approaches would be greatly appreciated or please let me know if you have a strong view either way.

Introducing my three day trainning program which will teach entertainers and anybody who works with children all sorts of skills and psycology taken from my experience of working in this field. The session will culminate in a live performance in front of an audience of children and detailed notes will accompany the program. I will only train a small number of people at each session to ensure that i can give everyone plenty of attention. I am working on a first come, first serve basis.
 
I am also lecturing at Kidology in Wolverhampton in September so please come along.
 
Please view the following links for further information : -

Video link: http://www.madhousekids.com/workshopvideo.htm
Flyer link: http://www.madhousekids.com/workshop_a4_poster.pdf
 
Price: £80.00 for a full three day workshop.
Dates: Wednesday 19th, Thursady 20th and Friday 21st May 2010
Address: The Bowls Pavillion, Wardown Park, Old Bedford Road, Luton, LU2 7HA
Phone to book your place: Dov Citron on 07985 535472

I'd love to get a professional opinion from you lovely people on my new balloon show performed in front of a live audience at The Ashley Centre in Epsom over Easter.

Link here:  http://www.madhousekids.com/balloonjamvideo.htm

I would love your thoughts. This show is very much in development and your criticisms however strong they are would be very handy.