At the David Grist Memorial Lecture, Dennis showed us have to make a brilliant rabbit. I went to a wedding this evening and decided to make it using 350s instead of 260s. It took more balloons but I thought it looked great. It got so many positive comments tonight.

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FUN 321s PDF COLLECTION BY TONYA MCNEILL - PRICE $25

I am a massive fan of Tonya's work. All those I have reviewed so far offer exceptional value for money and a number of quality designs. I was very interested to see a collection of 321 designs having bought a batch of undipped 321s to play with. This collection of PDFs is more than just a collection of designs. What is useful is to discover the ingenious ways Tonya has used such an odd shaped balloon. It will be interesting to see if the undipped 321s remain a stock item with Qualatex. I really do hope so as we are only just discovering the potential of 321s.

ANGELFISH

An interesting design using 321Qs to construct the fins and the body. Tonya decorated her design with black stripes but I decided to leave mine in plain white. The fish will stand on its own by resting on it's from fins. This is probably a good design as part of a balloon display and with a little imagination other types of fish could be made using other colours. As with all these designs inflating the tip of the 321Qs can be challenging but it only takes a short while to get used to it. I am not sure if I would make this balloon in isolation and it is certainly not suitable for line work.

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ARMADILLO

When I first saw the photo of this design in the PDF I really thought it wouldn't be that good. I made the commitment to make every balloon which I did and I was actually quite pleased with this balloon. It grew on me and I now like it. However I am unlikely to make it ever again and the artwork is required for maximum effect.

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Hi All,

Following on from my previous balloon reviews, I have decided to try to write my reviews on-line rather than upload a separate PDF. This does mean that the reviews will not be instant and will be built up on multiple posts but it may be more fun to see them expand over a period of a few days.

BALLOON MAGIC MAGAZINE ISSUE 61 - PRICE $7

I have often seen Balloon Magic Magazine advertised and with the exception of a few early issues I have never really paid much attention. I decided to take the plunge and order a big batch from the USA after seeing Patrick's Little Blue Man posted on-line. Each magazine is around $7 but they are near impossible to purchase in the UK without a subscription. So let's see what models were inside....

MERMAID - DON CALDWELL

A lovely mermaid design by Don Caldwell in his usual cartoonie style. Very chunky and cute. My lime green heart would look better slightly off-centre as she looks like she is sitting bolt upright. Fairly simple to make but time consuming and not suitable for line work.

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CRAB BRACELET - DON CALDWELL

An amazing crab or lobster which can be worn as a bracelet or be a standalone model. The use of a red 350Q for the main body makes it nice and chunky. This is a first class model and is really impressive. An easy model and a crowd pleaser.

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Dear All,

What can be done to increase the use of this forum? It puzzles me that despite the many members only a handful post anything here. It is the same people making the effort time and time again and to me it seems that most people 'take' from the site and offer very little in return.

This forum has a wealth of information readily available for members to access and is one of the best, if not the best, free sites on the internet for all aspects of balloon modelling.

It is very frustrating posting something and seeing a high level of readers but no-one posting a response. I'm not looking for thanks or an ego boost but in the past I have spent many hours writing posts only for my contribution to be the only one on the thread.

Take my week in the interview forum. I made a massive effort to write more than one or two line answers in the bid to be enjoyable, informative and entertaining and I only got one or two responses. The competition where I supplied prizes had just a handful of entries (thanks for those who did) and the seven or so DVD reviews in which I made all of the models just to show you them again only had a few replies. The number of people reading these doesn't justify the lack of posts.

Looking back over balloonchat history there are many well known names who have posted here only to disappear again. Why is this??

Can we all have a think about what we can do to make this a more stimulating place to be ?!?

What stops you from posting?

Cheers Darren

I have taken a dinosaur design of Bonnie's and simply added a base which I think makes for a quick and easy display piece. I hope you like it...

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At the McDonalds in Lakeside Shopping Centre I have to give them credit for trying to raise money for charity by selling balloon models but also for providing me with some excellent entertainment whilst I stuffed my face.

The funniest thing for me was watching the guy turning a 260q into a heart shape.... I have listed the instructions below as I feel this is a top tip worth sharing with you...

1. Remove a 260q pink from the bag and proceed to use as a chest expander to warm up the balloon.
2. Inflate the balloon using a standard hand pump, carefully separate a McDonalds napkin and proceed to rub the inflated balloon up and down. (why? I really don't know but perhaps it generates enough static so it can be stuck on the plastic wall behind him for display purposes)
3. Join the ends of the balloon together to make a circle.
4. Whilst holding the balloon with one hand, use your teeth to find the end of the roll of sellotape.
5. Pull the centre of the balloon down to ressemble a heart whilst your colleague wraps Sellotape around the centre, not one or twice, but about ten times.
6. Use your teeth to cut the tape, and to everyone's amazement you have a heart.
7. Inflate up a single balloon and tie the heart on top. Don't worry about adding any pinch twists to keep it in place as you can use a special handling technique when giving to the child before they realise. (one hand on the heart, one hand on the stem, holding of straight)
8. For extra fun, watch the child's face as they skip away out the restaurant exit and their heart flops to one side.

Ha ha

A few weeks ago I needed some black hearts to make a cockatoo. I don't often use black hearts so went to my own balloon cellar and pulled out a new bag. Upon opening the bag I discovered that the balloons were stuck together in clumps and had a distinct vinegar smell. After inflating the balloon appeared very thin compared to other colours and the air would leak out of the knot as I twisted the lobes. In simple terms they were useless so I threw them in the bin and ordered a new pack.

Next pack arrived yesterday. Whilst not quite as bad as my first pack, the balloons were still stuck together in clumps. After inflation the latex skin was very thin and even after triple knotting the tail the air came out when twisting a lobe. In frustration I popped about ten of them trying to make my model and consider the bag useless.

So my question to everyone... Am i just unlucky here or a qualatex onyx black balloons rubbish? I have no problems with the other colours.

There is something about onyx black as even the 260q smell and feel different but at least I can use them.

I would welcome your thoughts. Are sempertex black hearts better quality?

I'm left still without my cockatoo :-(

Following receipt of a new batch of balloons from Graham today I thought I would make a few new balloons. I also finally received my 18" key lime rounds so Saturday night could be Ken Stillman's turtle!

Don Caldwell's Pixie Backpack which I found in his T'Jam 07 lecture notes... Not sure the face worked out too well and the proportions are a bit funny...

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I really like this Lobster. Another one of Don's designs from Balloon Magic #61

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A quick fairly design from Rebecca Kanar's new DVD

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This is Tonya's second volume of adjustable hats. Given my enthusiasm for the first volume I expected this collection to disappoint me. I have to say it didn't and with five of the designs being fantastic, it is really worth the investment.  Tonya clearly spends a lot of time creating her PDF instructions. Plenty of photos, balloon measurements and supporting text. I really  love Tonya's work and encourage you all to support her so she can continue to create some more brilliant designs.

Visit http://www.balloonjam.com/tonya/ to order your copy

Sorry for the delay in posting my latest review....

You may not agree with my comments but it is only my opinion at the end of the day!

I finally managed to find a few spare hours to make a spaceman from Shirley Ray's PDF instructions. This is not the same as the Buzz Lightyear from her DVD. It has a similar design and stands taller with a lovely backpack. Available as PDF from her website at £12.

I hope you like it...

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Does anyone use anything to extend the life and protect the shine on delivery pieces? I have used balloon shine in the past but find it a pain to wipe on. Is there a spray of any kind?

I went out with my friend this week to a local restaurant. We had our usual balloon jam over a couple of beers and decorated some of the staff. This led to free drinks all night, plenty of publicity and two bookings! So if you are wondering how best to promote yourself then go out, have fun and see what happens...

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Has anyone found a place to buy plastic headbands in bulk? If so would you mind sharing the details??

Thanks

Dear All,

I would like to run a competition for all members which actually has a prize!

I do a lot of work for Colchester United Football Club who have a team mascot called Eddie The Eagle. I am looking for someone to create the best Eddie balloon model that looks as much as possible like the actual mascot that I can use for an event later in the year. To win the prize all you need to do is to post a photo of your best design. The winner will then be selected by me and in order to claim your prize you must email me or post instructions on-line on how to make the balloon. I don't need detailed and professionally written instructions but enough to enable me to make it as well.

The first prize will be £50 credit to spend in Graham's store.
The second prize will be £15 credit
The third prize will be £10 credit

Please bear in mind I have the right NOT to pick a first prize if there are no decent entries or you all decide to make a single balloon parrot and draw eyes on it, althought their will be £15 and £10 prizes regardless.

I'm stumping up the cash for a useable balloon.... anyone up for the challenge??

This competition is in no way connected to Graham or this forum and I will accept full responsibility for it's running.

CLOSING DATE FOR ENTRIES - 11TH MAY 2011

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I have always been impressed with Patrick's designs when I stumble across photos of them on various websites and so I was very excited to see Patrick's first (I think) DVD release. I must say this first collection didn't disappoint. The DVD production quality is excellent. Patrick is a fine teacher and carefully explains each step. There is something here for everyone in terms of ballooning skills with a few designs being at the advanced level. I really hope Patrick produces volume 2 comprising of some more of his advanced models.  

The price of $40 is reasonable value for money and  is available from http://www.tmyers.com

Please find a link to my latest review - if you find this helpful then please let me know. I don't mind creating them if you find them useful.

Here is the entire collection all made by me in one evening... i think they look good :-)

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Here is my third review. Something different this time and perhaps not a DVD some of you may know about....

Enjoy...

Please find my second balloon review. I know Tonya visits these forums but let me say my review is inpartial and honest....... If you found my review helpful please let me know and I will write some more. Equally if you want me to review your own ebook/DVD let me know!

Who said it is only children who can have fun with balloons! David Brenion's backpacks went down a storm in the office today...

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