· 6 years ago · Apr 07, 2019, 09:14 AM
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8Date: Sun, 26 Mar 1995 19:05:44 -0600
9From: Mark Balzer <mabg9646@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu>
10Message-Id: <199503270105.AA03626@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu>
11To: balloon@cvs.rochester.edu
12Subject: Hello (balloon) world & FAQ update?
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19
20
21
22Hello Balloonatics!
23
24 I've just recently joined your mailing list. My name is Mark and
25when I'm not out making balloons or ballroom/latin/nite-club dancing,
26I'm a PhD student in mechanical engineering at the University of Illinois.
27I've been sculpting balloons for about 4 years now. In Fall of '90 I
28bought "One Balloon Zoo" at a local magic store, and then got hooked.
29I rarely run into any balloon artists where I am, so I have learned most
30everything from books. You could say that I am a student of Dewey's,
31because I got all his pamphlets and mastered all his fancy tricks and
32beautiful animals early on. I did a library search and got a bunch of
33books through inter-library loan to acquire more skills. I'm pretty
34advanced and can make many, many different animals (even a bunch of
35vegetables - you should see my balloon pumpkin!), though I enjoy making
36complex, realistic looking things the best. I've got a few animals of
37my own which I've never seen anyone else do, and they include a penguin
38that actually looks like a penguin, a pair of ballroom dancers, and the
39best looking fishes you have ever seen! I'll post them when I get the
40chance. Oh, and the Hardy book is very good too (Hello Marvin!).
41 I am really glad that I found this list, because I have already
42learned so much from you guys. From your excellent descriptions and
43ascii art, I can now:
44-blow up balloons backwards (I found that if you pinch the balloon nipple
45between thumb and index finger, and also between ring and pinky fingers,
46then separate these pairs of pinched fingers, you can stretch the balloon
47a little when you put that first puff in without anyone really noticing -
48this helps with the initial inflation),
49-flash inflate - what an AWESOME method this is - thanks Jim!
50-make a fabulous choo-choo train (Larry - if you ear twist the very first
51bubble, then hold it in your hand for 30 sec while squeezing it flat, the
52heat and squeeze cause it to turn into a realistic looking "cow catcher"
53which is made better by a few radial lines drawn with a marker... and I
54draw a headlight too - like a pound sign (#) in a circle)
55-learned about T. Meyers Inc. - What an impressive catalog they have!
56-I've ordered Great Balloons by Merlin through inter-library loan (thanks
57for your review Larry),
58-plus many, many little tips.
59 I have yet to print out/try some of the animals described in the
60archived messages, but I will soon as soon as I get some more ballooons.
61
62Hey Larry - do you have a brother (an old neighbor of mine) in
63Glen Ridge, NJ?
64
65Hey did any of you see the movie The Mask where the main character makes
66his balloon animals? If you haven't seen it, rent it on video and watch
67the balloon animal part in slow motion as his black balloon morphs into
68a Thompson submachine gun with 50 round drum magazine and a pistol grip
69forearm. Now that's a VERY cool trick!
70There is a Steve Martin movie where he makes balloon animals, but I
71can't remember which one (maybe more than one? I believe balloons played
72a big role in Steve Martin's early comedy acts.) If you know of any
73movies with balloon animals in them, please post them to the list and
74I'll add them to the FAQ.
75
76 Here's a litle story I want to share: I was making animals in a bar
77last month and I ran into this one fellow who looked like he did _way_ too
78many drugs in the '60's... well anyway, he was a balloon artist, and the
79guy was amazingly FAST!!!! He borrowed a purple and a clear balloon, made
80a purple baby (what Larry calls a meatball) and stuck it in the clear
81balloon, then made a dog out of the clear balloon, and a rather well
82endowed male dog from the rest of the purple balloon :-) Literally 45
83seconds after his first puff, this guy was holding up two animals and
84announced "Here's a pregnant dog... and here's the one that did it!"
85 A bunch of friends and I are Sunday night regulars at this place,
86and I often make balloon animals for the band members to take home to
87their kids (on condition that they sing a song mentioning each
88animal/thing I make in return :-). Larry's train was a big hit with
89them, and in return they treated us to Johnny Cash's old hit "I hear
90that train a'commin', it's rolling 'round the bend..."
91 Last week one of the band members gave me the best compliment ever
92when he told me of a conversation he had with his son in a mall where
93they saw a guy making balloons. When the dad asked his son if he wanted
94one, the son replied "No, those aren't anywhere near as good as the ones
95you bring home." It just made me feel warm and fuzzy all over :-) :-)
96 I really enjoy doing requests for people, and often bring my balloons
97with me when I have to go to social gatherings where I don't know many
98people - they are a real ice breaker - everyone's your friend if you can
99make balloon animals :-) :-)
100
101Well anyway, I downloaded all the past messages, and in the course of
102several nights I read through them all, deleting the chaff, uh, I mean
103talc, and keeping the er, uh, latex... so to say. So I ended up with
104this 250k file and felt bad that I learned all this neat stuff without
105giving anything in return... so I did a little cut and paste work and
106updated your FAQ for you. It still needs some work, but it's a start.
107Hope you guys can use it. I'll be talking to ya soon!
108
109
110Mark
111
112Oh, wait - I do have one request - How are those T. Meyers workshops?
113When and where and how much $ are they? Is there a schedule? Any near IL?
114
115Also, please post any good and bad review of balloon books/pamphlets that
116you may have. The T. Meyers catalog lists so many... and I'm just a poor
117student!
118
119
120****************************UPDATED FAQ 3/26/95**************************
121
122
123This document provides general information about the balloon sculpting
124mailing list, along with some frequently asked questions about the list.
125
126This is an unmoderated list. Anyone is welcome to join. At the current
127time this is a rather small list. Due to the small number of people on
128the list, it is not unusual for it to be quiet for long periods of time.
129Please, don't let that stop you from asking questions or bringing up
130ideas when you first join the list. The list consists of people at many
131levels, so there is likely to be someone that can answer your questions
132or benefit from your suggestions. You may wish to introduce yourself to
133the list to let us all know what level you're at and any other
134interesting facts there are to know about you.
135
136This introduction is not in any way complete. I used to say that I
137planned on finishing it some time, but the fact is that maintaining this
138document properly would be an ongoing task that I really don't have the
139time for. (When I have free time I'd rather draw up pictures of new
140balloon creations than work more on this document.) Stuff discussed in
141recent months has not made it in here. This should at least be enough to
142get you started and give you a feel for the list.
143
144The following information was compiled mostly from old mail by Wayne
145Lampel (waynel@microsoft.com). Some additions and a few changes were
146made by Larry Moss (moss@cvs.rochester.edu). Updated by M. Balzer 3/26/95.
147
148****************************
149
150General info about the list:
151
152address for the list: balloon@cvs.rochester.edu
153address for questions/problems related to the list (including
154 subscribing/unsubscribing): balloon-request@cvs.rochester.edu
155address for comments regarding this document should go to
156 moss@cvs.rochester.edu.
157all mail to the list is archived and available for ftp on
158 cvs.rochester.edu in pub/balloon.
159the archive is also available on WWW at:
160 http://www.dcs.hull.ac.uk/Hull/dcs/people/bp/balloons.html
161 and
162 file://ent.rochester.edu/pub/balloon/balloon.html
163 (the html page on ent.rochester.edu will be the one kept most
164 up to date. This should go into effect soon.)
165
166There will soon be a list of balloon sculptors on the net (and others,
167perhaps) with contact information that will be available from the above
168archive. Among other things this should allow you to locate other
169balloon sculptors in your area. while more pictures of balloon work are
170becoming avilable on teh archive, it's always easiest to share ideas when
171you can actually see someone making a sculpture. Collection of this
172information is not automated at this time, so if you'd like to be on this
173list send information about yourself to moss@cvs.rochester.edu. (Feel
174free to leave off anything that you dont' feel comfortable sharing. It
175woudl be nice if you would at least send your name so we can keep track
176of who's on the list, but even that's up to you.)
177
178What we want:
179 Full name, postal address, phone (day, evening, or both), e-mail
180address, URL (if you have one and know what it is), any other relevant
181information that will fit in a few short lines.
182
183*****************************
184Buying balloons
185*****************************
186
187 WARNING!!!
188 DO NOT GIVE BALLOONS TO YOUNG CHILDREN!!!
189 CHILDREN MAY SUFFOCATE IF THEY SWALLOW THEM!!!
190
191The most talked about source of balloons on this list in the U.S. is
192
193 T. Meyers Magic.
194 1509 Parker Bend
195 Austin, Texas 78734
196 (512) 263-9742
197 (800) 648-6221 for orders
198
199They seem to have just about the best prices and most complete collection
200of balloons and balloon related materials. They are also extremely
201helpful and nice people to deal with. If you have a serious interest in
202balloons, you will probably enjoy just being on their mailing list.
203 If you don't have one of their catalogs, do yourself a favor and call
204them for a free catalog. It will probably come with a free copy
205of their news letter "True Inflations".
206
207If you want to buy in wholesale quantities call
208
209 Pioneer Balloon
210 555 N. Woodlawn
211 Wichita, Kansas
212 67208-3682
213
214 316.685.2266 is their main number
215 800.999.5644 is the number to call to get a dealer referral.
216
217They're the folks that make the best balloons around. They should be
218able to send you to a distributor in your area.
219
220
221In Europe:
222
223Pioneer Ltd (0279) 501 090 ask for Debbie or Rozane and they will tell
224you the nearest distributor. Pioneer is situated at Bishop's Stortford
225near London.
226
227
228*****************************
229Books
230*****************************
231
232As you might well imagine, there are many differing opinions on the many
233balloon books available. Here are a few blurbs posted by various people.
234
235
236Aaron Hsu-Flanders, Balloon Animals
237 More Balloon Animals
238 Balloon Cartoons
239 Balloon Hats & Accessories
240 These books are full of pictures for every bubble and bend that needs
241 to be made to create some really nice looking balloon sculptures.
242 I have seen many books on balloon animals and I think these are the
243 best so far.
244
245Aaron Hsu-Flanders, Balloon Animals
246 More Balloon Animals
247 Balloon Cartoons
248 Balloon Hats & Accessories
249 Each sculpture seems to build on previous sculptures. So why
250 does he feel it's necessary to show detailed pictures of every
251 step of every figure? While a lot of the material is good and
252 helpful, it seems that a lot of pages are filled with duplicated
253 information. If you strip out a lot of the repeated stuff you
254 jsut end up with another pamphlet sized book. Now, that said,
255 there is good stuff in them, so I really shouldnt' be putting
256 them down, I just wish he had cut out some of the unneeded stuff
257 and put all the material in his various books together into a
258 real nice collection. My personal peeve with him is his dinosaur
259 on p63 of More Balloon Animals. It needs an ear twist at the base
260 of the tail to properly orient the tail, but instead of using one,
261 sneaky Aaron holds the animal in a special way which orients the
262 tail for the picture, realizing that it will never look that way
263 without his hand there. Nevertheless, there are some good tricks
264 to be learned from this series which can be found at most libraries
265 and book stores.
266
267Don Burda, Homer's Rubber Bubbles
268 This book contains pretty good descriptions of some of the basic
269 sculptures. It contains 86 pages with about 45 sculptures. There
270 are several drawings for each figure in various stages of completion.
271
272Marvin Hardy, Balloon Magic, 1987 The book is about $14. It's almost 200
273 pages of instructions and photographs. It covers a very large
274 variety of sculptures (65 figures total) from the basic four-
275 legged animal to more advanced things like a motorcycle with a
276 kickstand. I find photographs of balloons harder to follow than
277 drawings, but I know many people prefer it the other way.
278 Anyway, if you're looking for a general collection of 1-balloon
279 animals, I suggest getting a look at this book. Many of the
280 things in it are fairly standard, but I found enough ideas in it
281 that were new to me to justify buying it. The only real problem
282 I have with it is that it's hard bound. It certainly makes the
283 book stronger and likely to last longer, but I think I'd prefer a
284 spiral binding so I could leave the book open as I learn
285 something new.
286
287
288Ralph Dewey, lots of titles His books are really only pamphlets and
289 rather expensive for their size, but he has some of the most
290 creative sculptures I've ever seen. If you can afford a few of
291 them, they're rea worth having. What I said about Aaron
292 Hsu-Flanders holds here too. I wish Dewey would put together a
293 large collection of all his stuff. I have a few of his books
294 already, but I'd buy a large collection of his stuff in an
295 instant if it became available.
296
297The books I highly recommend ( available from T. Meyers) are:
298Cartoon Balloon #1,2,&3 by Capt. Visual.
299Awesome Balloons By Flash, by Ken Stillman.
300These are not for mass ballooning. They are GREAT for the birthday child, or
301for restaurant work - they are major tip getters. These books have the little
302mermaid, Daffy Duck, Tweety Bird, Roger Rabbit, Pluto, Opus, The Blue Genie,
303etc. Once you learn these forms you can take off on your own and create the
304coyote, roadrunner, awesome reindeer, Odie, Clifford, etc.
305
306Great Balloons - The Complete Book of Balloon Sculpting
307written by Jean Merlin
308published by Kaufman and Greenberg
309written in 1986, revised in 1993, translated to English in 1994
310Full size, hard cover, perfect bound, 120 pages
311about $35
312
313 Aside from having no page numbers, which makes it slightly
314challenging to find the stuff in the rather complete table of contents,
315_Great_Balloons_ is actually the best book on balloon sculpting I've seen.
316Before now, most of the books available on balloon modeling were only
317slightly larger than pamphlets, contained shoddy drawings, and per useful
318bit of information, were far more expensive than this one. There is very
319little text throughout the book. The reader is expected to follow a
320series of numbered pictures. Some pages contain multiple models. It
321wasn't always obvious when glancing back at one of these pages which step
3223 I should be looking at. This was never more than a momentary problem,
323The pictures are clear and, based on what I've done so far, fairly
324accurate. The book starts with the
325simple stuff that everyone learns to do in the beginning, but quickly
326progresses to stuff that I imagine would only be of interest to
327experienced sculptors. Most balloon sculptors are perfectly happy with
328simple creations. Merlin tends toward realistic looking figures. He
329says that he doesn't care what it takes to make an animal look
330realistic. He'll draw on them or use stickers to create faces. He'll
331use the proper colors whenever possible, and he'll use as many balloons
332as he feels necessary.
333 What little text exists is written with a magician in mind, with a tone
334that almost says, "no one twists balloons without intending to use them as
335a selling point in an act, so here's how to do it." The hobbiest isn't
336even considered. With that in mind, if you are a performer you're likely
337to get more out of it than a non performer. I thought one of the best
338sections in the book was the discussion of using multiple balloons of
339different sizes and shapes to create things that can be seen on stage and
340yet simple enough to not bore an audience while the twisting is done.
341I counted 83 figures in the book. Most are based on a few basic categories
342of animals, ie the dog and related figures, the basic bird and figures
343related to that. Thankfully, when a sculpture is only a few steps off
344from one that was already described, the instructions refer to the
345earlier pages. There are quite a few variations on basic shapes that I
346had never seen or thought of before. I found the selection of things
347placed in the book to be very good.
348 In addition to examples of balloon modeling, the book offers some advice
349on storing balloons, safety, tying knots, the use of varying colors while
350sculpting, and even building foot switches to control your sound system.
351I thought some of that would have been better left out, most notably the
352section on using colors. He states as fact that certain colors will
353break when making certain figures. I've found the manufacturer of the
354balloons to be a much more important thing to consider than the color of
355the balloon.
356 Overall, I highly recommend the book to serious balloon twisters. But if
357you're just getting started or you like just fooling around with balloons
358occasionally this probably isn't the book for you.
359
360Jimmy Davis - One Balloon Zoo, 1966 - Basic animals presented with clear
361explanations and excellent pictures. A couple of pages of general advice
362and banter
363
364George Schindler - Basic Balloon Sculpture, 1983 - Beginning instruction
365in simple animals - 2 good pages of face/eye/detail ideas for highlighting
366your animals with markers, nice balloon-fruit-in-a-basket idea. Bibliography.
367
368Kay Watts, Balloon Sculpture.- This is a lousy book except for page 8 where
369they give 16 sets of eyes/faces for marking up your animals and a few lines
370to use when your balloon pops. Bibliography.
371
372Bruce Fife - Dr. Dropo's Balloon Sculpturing for Beginners. Beginner book
373with hilarious text - Fun to read with nice illustrations and literally
374a joke every few paragraphs.
375
376T. Meyers workshops are also great places to learn about balloon sculpting.
377
378
379*****************************
380Some sculptures in messages
381*****************************
382Title - (Author, Subject, Date, Time)
383
384Airplane - (Larry Moss, airplane, 09/18/92, 14:43:45)
385Bat - (Larry Moss, bat, 10/05/92, 21:33:48)
386Bear - (James Batten, Re: Freezing balloons to preserve them, 02/04/92,
38709:43:22)
388Bike - (Larry Moss, bike and car, 1/20/94 15:46:02)
389Bird in a gilded cage - (Larry Moss, Bird in a gilded cage (text),
39001/08/93, 22:37:02)
391Brontosaurus - (Larry Moss, Re: Storage - and show, 3/7/94)
392Butterfly - (James Batten, the butterfly, 06/02/92, 09:09:17)
393Car - (Larry Moss, bike and car, 1/20/94 15:46:02)
394Christmas Tree - (Larry Moss, Trees and other holiday gooddies, 12/22/92
39514:09:27)
396Christmas Tree - (Larry Moss, holiday sculptures (Christmas tree), 12/7/94
39713:51:30)
398Daffy Duck - (Larry Moss, Daffy Duck 8/29/94 11:45:46)
399Dinosaur, T-rex - (Chris Pugmire, space man, 11/08/93, 15:53:00)
400Dreydel - (Larry Moss, Trees and other holiday gooddies, 12/22/92
40114:09:27)
402Dreydel - (Larry Moss, dreydel 11/28/94 11:23:08)
403Flower, multi-balloon - (James Batten, the flower, 02/06/92, 13:59:32)
404Goofy - (Larry Moss, goofy, 04/29/92, 18:01:18)
405Groucho Marx - (Larry Moss, balloon caricatures, Groucho Marx and
406balloon news 2/5/94 )
407Hat, monkey - (James Batten, hats, 06/01/92, 11:41:50)
408Hat, parrot, shark - (Todd A Neufeld, Buffett Balloons 6/11/94 23:29:14)
409Kangaroo - (Larry Moss, kangaroo, 02/06/92, 18:37:28)
410Lady Bug Bracelet - (Raymond Bowers, Introduction, 9/15/94 14:46:00)
411Lion - (Aaron Fasel, Re: Baby Simba Balloon11/1/94 12:45:38)
412Motorcycle - (Larry Moss, Re: Motorcycle Balloon - Help!, 9/27/93
41317:46:09)
414Octopus - (Larry Moss, Juggling convention, ostrich, octopus, 07/27/92,
41522:44:13)
416Ostrich - (Larry Moss, Juggling convention, ostrich, octopus, 07/27/92,
41722:44:13)
418Power Ranger - (Clyde & Arlene Powers, Retry Power Ranger 1/30//95 23:10:04 )
419Rabbit - (Jim Batten, Re: caricatures 2/6/94 22:12:21 )
420Rabbit - (Steve Hattan, Sculptures, 4/25/94 16:27:02 )
421Reindeer - (Larry Moss, reindeer , 12/15/92, 22:27:52)
422Rhino - (Larry Moss, pins, rhinos, pops 10/2094 18:15:23)
423Santa - (Larry Moss, Santa, 12/15/92, 22:28:50)
424Scorpion - (Larry Moss, 9/7/94 15:38:20 )
425Snoopy on a motorcycle - (Larry Moss, Re: Motorcycle Balloon - Help!,
42609/27/93, 17:46:09)
427Snowman - (James Batten, snowman, 06/09/92, 11:31:24)
428Spaceman - (Chris Pugmire, space man, 11/08/93, 15:53:00)
429Spaceman, additional info - (Larry Moss, Re: space man., 11/08/93, 17:04:00)
430Starship Enterprise - (Larry Moss, enterprise and triceratops,
43102/13/92, 16:24:50)
432Stegasaurus - (Larry Moss, Re: Storage - and show, 3/7/94)
433Sword - (James Batten, Re: Freezing balloons to preserve them,
43402/04/92, 09:43:22)
435Tiger - (Jim Batten, Re: busking, summer tip, seals, 6/11/94)
436Train - (Larry Moss, choo choo train, 05/17/92, 14:23:15)
437Triceratops - (Ian Osborne, Tricerotops, 1/17/95 22:19:52 )
438William Tell routine - (Larry Moss, NABA and routines again, 06/12/92,
43922:29:24)
440Witch's hat - (Larry Moss, Re: Halloween Balloons, 10/03/92, 17:43:48)
441Woman with baby - (Chris Pugmire, space man, 11/08/93, 15:53:00)
442X-rated balloons - (J.J. Smith, adult models, 2/17/95)
443
444*****************************
445Terms and Techniques
446*****************************
447
448Balloon types
449-------------
450130
451250D
452260Q
453260A
454260E
455280D
456Q made by Qualatex.
457A-E made by Ashland? A's are the thinnest. E's the thickest.
458
459Rather than describing each type of balloon, here's a quick explanation.
460Long skinny balloons are identified by a two part number. The first
461digit is the diameter of a fully inflated balloon (in inches). The next
462two digits refer to the lenght of the balloon fully inflated (also in
463inches). A 260 is two inches wide and 60 inches long when fully
464inflated. Well, this is what it should be, but in actuality you'll
465notice a large variation in this. Even within the same package you'll
466find that differnet colors inflate to different sizes. A letter
467usually follows the number on these balloons. It differs according to
468the manufacturer of the balloons. Some manufacturers use this as to
469describe how think the balloon is (as an indicator of strength and
470difficulty to blow up).
471130' and 280's are available from T. Meyers. Tilly, makes both.
472There have been some differences of opinion on these:
473"Tilly 130 balloons: These are great! Teeny tiny little balloon animals!"
474"The 130's aren't the sort of balloon I expect to use a lot. They're not
475easy to blow up, but it can be done without pain."
476"I got some Tilly 130's this weekend. I REALLY like the 130s. I have not
477had any trouble blowing them up."
478"The Tilly are not Qualatex quality. You can feel the difference."
479"I like the "feel" of the Tilly rubber, too."
480Twisting them takes absolutely no effort. You can almost treat them
481as short pieces of rope. They're great for adding details to larger
482sculptures. Possibilities are blindfolds on ninja turtles, small flowers
483on hats, lassos in a cowboy's hand. I also like using them on costumes
484when I make them. Jewelery is a nice touch.
485
486Heart
487These inflate into the shape of a heart. Very handy for some types of
488sculptures. Qualatex makes two sizes, but I dont' remember what they are.
489
490Round
491Your standard "party" balloons. They are identified by a single number
492that refers to their diameter. I don't use these enough to know more
493about the different kinds.
494
495GEO (donuts)
496Made by Qualatex. Inflate to look like donuts.
497
498Spinner - <description here>
499Airship - <description here>
500
501Bee Body
502These balloons are small and roundish with a narrow point on them that
503forms sort of a stinger.
504
505
506QUALATEX
507========
508Most of us are probably familiar with Qualatex balloons. The company
509which makes them is Pioneer Balloon. It turns out that they do not
510sell to the public, nor to anyone who has less than about $1,000 to spend.
511Instead, they refer you to a qualified dealer. In addition to making
512and selling quality balloons, they have a support network for balloon
513designers. Alas, they mean caterers and those other round-balloon
514people.
515
516 Pioneer Balloon
517 555 N. Woodlawn
518 Wichita, Kansas
519 67208-3682
520
521 316.685.2266 is their main number, I believe
522 800.999.5644 is the number to call to get a dealer referral.
523
524My Qualatex distributor would be Lippman Co. in Portland, OR. Their
525prices, per gross, are:
526
527 260Q assorted colors $5.75
528 260Q one color only 5.75 <= no difference for all one color!
529 260Q jewel tone 6.25
530
531No bulk discounts.
532
533
534TILLY
535=====
536Tilly balloons are the work of TILCO International, supposedly the
537oldest balloon company. They, also, don't really sell direct. Call
538for a distributor near you! My *distributor* is Windy Balloon Company,
539and they sent me a price list with the TILCO International name on it.
540The Tilco catalog is focused on round balloons, and it was
541only through careful inspection that I found some twisting balloons.
542They must make more than I found, because T.Meyers sells a wider
543variety than is shown in the Tilco catalog!
544
545 Windy Balloon Corp.
546 106 West Gardena Blvd
547 Gardena, CA 90248
548
549 800.421.1980 for orders
550 310.532.5328 Fax
551
552Tilco prices, per gross:
553
554 260T $5.50
555 360T 6.50
556
557No mention of bulk discounts.
558
559
560SUPERIOR
561========
562"Manufacturing Since 1957." The superior catalog actually has the
563twisty balloons prominently displayed! They also have magician's
564clear balloons for $6.07 a dozen. The "Knobby" balloon is a
565"Superior Specialty" - I don't know what it is, exactly, but it
566sounds like fun.
567
568 Superior Balloon Company
569 20923 John R. Road
570 Hazel Park, MI 48030
571
572 800.323.0405 Orders Only
573 810.543.2234 Phone
574 810.543.1593 Fax
575
576These balloons come in an assortment, or your choice of nifty colors.
577Superior Prices, per gross:
578
579 220S $2.65
580 260S 5.26
581 321S Bee Body 6.10
582 330S 5.50
583 340S Knobby 8.41
584 615S Doll (?) 5.61
585
586
587PRESTIGE
588========
589Prestige Balloons are made by somebody or 'nother... the catalog I
590have has the name of the Windy Balloon Corporation. Prestige is
591a round-balloon company at heart. Their price list mentions only
592the lowly 260, and no others. The do have bulk discounts, though!
593
594 See TILLY, above, for the Windy information.
595
596Prices per gross:
597
598 260P @ 1 gross $5.76
599 @ 9 gross? ("split case") 4.80
600 @ 18 gross? ("full case") 4.00
601
602They also have a new size that you
603may find interesting: 360s. If you like airships but don't find them
604long enough, these should do it for you. I talked to Jim at T. Meyers
605Magic when I ordered the stuff. He said he likes the Prestige balloons.
606For the last week or so I've been playing with Prestige balloons
607Here's the good news:
608--------------------
609They're slightly longer than 260Qs. This makes them great to use for
610hats. Recently I've been finding that the qualatex balloons haven't been
611long enough for some of what I want to do with them. I don't know if
612this is because of a change in the balloons or a change in what I'm
613doing. Whatever teh reason, I like the extra couple of inches I get with
614the 260Ps.
615They're more consistent throughout the package. All the qualatex
616packages I've had in recent months consisted of black balloons that were
617hard to blow up, clear balloons that were very thin and blew up thicker
618than the others, etc. Each color seemed to feel different to twist.
619That doesn't seem to be a problem with prestige.
620They inflate straighter.
621They sqeak a lot less.
622They're a bit cheaper.
623360s are a great size that qualatex doesn't make. I haven't come up with
624anything that really needs to be made with a 360. But they're fun to
625work with.
626The bad news:
627------------
628They're harder to blow up by mouth.
629The powder inside them clumps in the cold.
630I think I've been popping more of the prestiges when making complex stuff.
631Since I like the feel of them better I haven't decided if it's my fault or
632the balloons' fault that they're popping.
633
634
635T.Meyers
636========
637T.Meyers has the best selection that I have found.
638T.Meyers sells balloons, balloon twisting books, and a smattering of
639magical props. They are your friends. They have a wide array of
640pumps and pump supplies, balloon aprons, some stickers, and so forth.
641Get their catalog, it is fun.
642
643 T.Meyers Magic Inc.
644 1509 Parker Bend
645 Austin, TX 78734
646
647 512.263.2375 for Information
648 800.648.6221 Orders only
649
650Prices, from Price list #94, as of 8/1/94, per gross:
651
652 Qualatex
653 --------
654 260Q @ 1g assorted colors $6.00
655 @ 10g 5.40
656 @ 48g 4.95
657
658 @ 1g single color $7.00
659 @ 10g 6.30
660 @ 48g 5.95
661
662 321Q Bee Body @ 1g $6.25
663 @10g 5.60
664
665 Prestige
666 --------
667 260P @ 1g $5.90
668 @ 10g 5.30
669
670 360P @ 1g $8.50
671 @ 10g 8.00
672
673 Tilly
674 -----
675 320T @ 1g assorted colors $6.00
676 @ 10g 5.40
677
678 @ 1g single color $6.00
679 5.40
680
681 130T @ 1g $5.75
682 @ 10g 6.25
683
684 245T @ 1g $5.75
685 @ 10g 5.25
686
687 260T @ 1g $5.75
688 @ 10g 5.25
689
690 280T @ 1g $6.50
691 @ 10g 6.00
692
693 340T @ 1g $10.00
694 @ 10g 9.00
695
696 344T @ 1g $9.70
697 @ 10g 8.75
698
699 Superior
700 --------
701 312S @ 1g $3.50
702 @ 10g 3.15
703
704 315S @ 1g $4.50
705 @ 10g 4.05
706
707 330S @ 1g $7.25
708 @ 10g 6.75
709
710 418S @ 1g $6.25
711 @ 10g 5.75
712
713 524S @ 1g $9.70
714 @ 10g 8.75
715
716T.Meyers also has needle-through balloon balloons, yo-yo balloons
717(YoBalls), rocket balloons (great fun!), and flying saucer balloons.
718
719
720U.S. Balloon, in Brooklyn,NY
721=============================
722Their prices are good, but you need a tax id to buy from them.
723They only sell wholesale.
724
725Prices of 260Qs from US Balloon:
726Asst $5.19 qty: 3gr
727 $4.70 qty: 36gr
728
729solid colors
730jewel $5.89 qty: 3gr
731 $5.34 qty: 36gr
732other $5.19 qty: 3gr
733 $4.70 qty: 36gr
734
735
736Chazpro Family Fun Shop
737=======================
738They sell mostly magic, but they do sell balloons too.
739They do mail order,
740
741 Chazpro
742 603 E. 13
743 Eugene, OR 97402
744
745 503.345.0032
746
747Their prices, from memory, are:
748
749 260Q @ 1g $5.75
750 @ 10g 5.25
751
752As far as I can tell, the only other company around that sells balloons
753worth looking into is Gayla. I was given a bunch of them to try out.
754The colors were great, the balloons weren't bad, and the price was better
755than Qualatex, but they still weren't as good as Qualatex. I actually
756would have given them another try but the folks I buy balloons from said
757they were having too many problems with them and stopped carrying them.
758
759
760Does stretching the balloon help?
761---------------------------------
762
763In my opinion, no. All that stretching them really does is weaken them
764in some areas. This is useful if you want to fill it a little
765differently, like with a bulge in the middle, but that's about it. The
766more they are stretched or weakened, the sooner they'll pop.
767
768Blowing up a balloon
769--------------------
770There are balloon pumps that make this somewhat easier. If you're
771interest in balloon sculpting is just as a hobby, a pump can be a great
772asset, however I strongly urge anyone who plans to use balloons in an act
773to learn to blow them up with their mouths. It looks much more impressive
774than using a pump and means one less item to carry to shows. That
775doesn't mean that if you're twisting balloons for an audience you should
776avoid pumps. If you're inflating more than a few balloons a pump can be
777a very handy tool.
778
779When you first get started you will probably be tempted to stretch the
780balloon. You may find that it helps some, but more likely, you'll just
781change the shape of the balloon and possibly weaken it enough to pop when
782you start twisting. The best way to fill the balloon is with one large
783breath without pausing. The fewer breaths it takes to inflate the
784balloon, the smoother the balloon will look and the easier it will be to
785work with. Unfortunately most people can't do that. Hold the nozzle of
786the balloon in your mouth and pinch the balloon about one inch away from
787the nozzle.
788
789Blow into this small section of the balloon and try to form a bubble.
790While blowing, stretch the section of balloon you are holding a small
791amount. It's much easier to fill the rest of the balloon if you have a
792small bubble to get you started. After forming this small bubble, pinch
793the nozzle closed so no air comes out, and take a deep breath. Now, if
794possible, with one breath, fill the balloon. Use stomach muscles and not
795cheek muscles. Puffing up your cheeks and blowing from your head will
796only succeed in making you dizzy and possibly hurting your eyes and
797ears.
798
799The idea is to blow through the small opening you form with your mouth
800around the balloon. One common mistake is to blow hard while letting the
801cheeks fill with air. Doing so will only build pressure in your mouth.
802Also, remember to breath through your nose. Blowing into the balloon
803isn't a good reason to forget about breathing, and hyperventilating isn't
804the best way to be reminded.
805
806If you find that it hurts to blow up the balloon you are probably blowing
807too hard. Relax and blow a bit softer. If you really can't get the hang
808of it now, use a pump and try to blow it up with your mouth later. It
809isn't worth hurting yourself. The fun part is twisting anyway.
810
811It does take some practice to get it down so you don't pass out.
812The most important point is that you push the air out of your lungs
813with your diaphragm, through your mouth and into the balloon. Your
814cheeks should never puff out; if they do, they will surely be sore!
815If you feel like you're blowing too hard, you are. Relax. It
816takes a lot less effort than you realize. Sometimes just blowing more
817gently is all it will take to fill the balloon.
818
819Not blowing into the balloon is the most commond mistake, blowing
820very hard will tend to close the balloon opening and result in your
821cheeks exploding before the baloon goes up. It's learning how to
822focus your breath into the balloon that will suddenly make it easy.
823
824A hint I found for blowing up balloons easier is to:
825 1. Pull on the balloon slightly
826 2. Start blowing, not too hard, but firmly
827 3. Slowly release the pull on the balloon - at some point a
828 bubble will appear, and the rest is easy!
829
830That said, the best way is to work up. If you can find some
831Ashland 2-60As, they're relatively easy to inflate. About
8321/3 to 1/2 of the people who try can blow them up in their
833first session; most of the rest can master it the next day.
834Practice with them a while. You can blow good balloons and
835have fun, but they'll pop more easily than heavier balloons.
836Once you're comfortable with them (e.g., can blow them up
837in one breath), then try getting some Ashland 2-60Es or
838Quaalatex 2-60Qs. They're heavier and will take more abuse
839while twisting, but are harder to blow up.
840
841If you blow them up by mouth, you earn a certain amount of respect from
842fellow adults when THEY try to inflate one.
843There is only one issue of concern for those who receive balloons from
844people who inflate the balloons by mouth and that is germs.
845While they are impressed that you can inflate the balloons, they also
846are not happy to see their child sucking on the balloon in the same
847place you just had you mouth! In fact I know of one balloon worker
848who was inflating by mouth and got sued. One kid who received an animal
849later came down with pneumonia.
850
851Blowing up a balloon backwards
852------------------------------
853(Filling it up at the tail (nipple) and ending at the nozzle.)
854This is useful for a sculpture like an elephant where you want a long thin
855trunk and a thin tail or if you're going to be making a lot of twists and
856you need room for the balloon to expand on each end. There are several
857ways you can do it.
8581. Stretch the balloon as much as you can while inflating. That is hold
859the nipple of the balloon in an outstretched hand whiel blowing into the
860nozzle. This is sort of difficult to get the hang of and it's a lot
861harder to get air into the balloon.
8622. Stretch only the nipple end of the balloon a little before inflating.
863By stretching one spot on teh balloon you're weakening it at that point.
864That spot will naturally get inflated first since the air will be
865stretching some latex that's already been stretched. Once a bubble is
866started it will continue to fill from that spot.
8673. Wrap your fingers loosely around the balloon leaving only the tail
868free.
869A combination of 2 and 3 allows you to get the most control over how
870the balloon gets filled.
871
872
873The Flash Inflate method:
874-------------------------
875 Last week while on a business trip I met up with a bunch of magicians for
876dinner and we all decided to make balloons for the waitress since it was her
877last night. I thought I saw someone blow a balloon real fast and asked him
878about it. He of course denied it, but knew of the technique. Seems it was
879developed in Japan since they don't like to stick things into their mouths.
880While trying to explain it to the rest of the group I attempted to demonstrate.
881ONE SMALL PUFF and the entire balloon was inflated. To say it was fast is a bad
882understatement.. It was as close to magic as ballooning can get. It was just
883there!
884 One warning, this did hurt my cheeks the first few times when learning.
885I have a hard time controlling how much I inflate so I limit this to making
886monkeys and swords.
887 Whatcha do is.. stretch the balloon REAL good, then litteraly use both hands
888to pull the mouth of the balloon open. It doesn't spread all that far, but
889you have to stretch it open as far as it will go. Now you have to pretend like
890you are going to play the trumpet (or blow a pea shooter), purse your lips and
891use the tip of your tongue to plug it. Build up pressure behind the tongue
892then snap the tongue back so the pressure can escape. (of course you have
893to be holding the mouth of the balloon to your mouth at this particular time)
894If it works you don't see the balloon inflate... it just IS inflated. It makes
895a neet wooshing sound.. adds to the over all effect.
896 One gotcha I found is it only works on never before inflated balloons. I've
897tried inflating balloons, letting the air out and trying again just for practice
898but it just won't inflate properly the second time.
899
900Balloon Pumps
901-------------
902Pumps allow you to keep talking while the balloons are being inflated.
903
904The Qualatex AirInflator - $4 from T. Myers Magic. It fills a 260 in
905about 4-5 strokes, since it works on both the in & out motions. It is
906about 2.25" in diameter and about 13" long, so it is easy to carry and
907you can tuck under your arm or between my knees, or drop it to the ground
908if you need to while you twist. I am very happy with it.
909HOWEVER, it has a weak point where the "head" attatches to the
910"body". The head is removable from the pump shaft; it is held in by a
911few small tabs of plastic wheich broke after a few months of fairly
912light use. I used a large dose of Duco Plastic Weld and attatched it
913permamently, and it is holding up fine so far.
914
915T. Myers Magic sells several different pumps starting from the little
916TINY blue squeeze pump (many, many squeezes needed), to the pumps which
917inflate on both push AND pull of handle, though it still takes a few strokes,
918(but is good if you are walking around) all the way up to their 'Pump 1'.
919
920Euro Pump: For $6 I thought I'd give it a try. It's small, and easy
921to pack. It does appear to be built of tougher stuff than the other
922double-action pumps I've seen.
923
924Pump O - this is what I use and I really like it. The materials used on
925this aren't as strong as Pump 1, but otherwise they should be about the
926same. If you've used the old version of this I can only say this is
927better. I got mine about a year ago. I think it was only a short time
928before that they improved it. A fair amount of my performing income is
929from balloons and I haven't found the need to upgrade to a "Rolls Royce"
930yet. $65.
931
932Pump 1 - called "the Rolls Royce of balloon pumps" in the catalog. It's
933priced that way too. $138. It will probably last you the rest of your
934life and then some. Will fill a 280 in a single stroke. It's probably about
9353 feet tall and 6 inches in diameter. Not a small thing to lug around.
936that inflates on either stroke, up or down, and will completely
937fill a 260 in less than one full stroke. Good if you are going to be
938stationary such as at a mall where you are set up to have people come
939to you. It is also large enough that you can pull the sections apart
940and stuff a large supply of balloons inside for compact travel.
941
942The last one mentioned was the Pogo Pump, now called Pogo 2. Pogo 1 had
943to be discontinued due to problems getting parts. $60.
944
945Compressed air
946--------------
947Get an old Electrolux cleaner, clean the guts out of it, place a funnel
948on the exhaust end of it and place the mouth of the balloon over the funnel.
949This will blow them up readily. Unfortunately, power is not available
950everywhere you perform. (but you can inflate the balloons before the show.)
951Also, a tank of compressed air with a regulator works great.
952
953Helium
954------
955Balloons and helium are not
956good bed partners, period. Helium is a tiny, monoatomic molecule.
957In a short space of time, through osmosis, the helium will leave the
958balloon and then the balloon will stop floating and go for ground zero.
959Depending on the thickness of the balloon all, this might last anywhere
960from 45 minutes or several hours. Mylar constructed balloons are more
961stable as far as remaining up in the air for a period of time. There
962is a liquid on the market that you can squirt into the balloon prior to
963inflating with Helium, and the balloon will last up to a week rather
964than the traditional 16 hours. Check with your local balloon delivery
965shop for what they are using, since there is more than one brand available.
966
967
968Is blowing baloons up damaging to your health?
969----------------------------------------------
970I don't think it's a problem at all for the lungs, but it can be a problem
971for the eyes and ears if you're not careful. If you blow too hard (the
972most obvious sign is puffing up your cheeks) you build pressure inside
973your head. That pressure can do serious damage to your eyes and can at
974least cause temporary pain in your ears (I don't know how serious that
975can be for your ears). You also don't want to forget to breathe with
976your nose while blowing - the talc inside the balloons IS bad for you.
977
978Balloon care
979------------
980Does freezing the balloons really preserve them?
981 It seems to have worked well for my balloons. Mine are > 5 years old,
982 kept for almost all of that time in a freezer. They seem just fine.
983 I do not thaw and refreeze them much though - that may make a lot of
984 difference. They are also 260Es (double dipped) rather than 260As
985 (single dipped), which might make a lot of difference, too.
986
987 A coat pocket seems likely to flex them a lot while they are cold.
988 This is definitely bad for them.
989 Ziplock bags are pretty good for storing balloons.
990
991If you take a work apron ( the kind that only
992tie around the waist ) and double the bottom up you get a large pocket by
993sewing the edges up. You can also run a few extra rows of stitches on up to
994create extra pockets..
995I bought 2 canvas "nail" aprons at a hardware store $2 a piece and cut
996the straps off of one and sewed it on to the bottom of the other.
997Each apron came normally with two wide pockets. I sewed a new seam up the
998middle of each and got 8 pockets about 3 inches wide. I worked great.
999Stuffed each different color into a pocket. I had 10 colors but I found
1000that the colors were not evenly distributed in the bag (lot's of purples,
1001not many blacks) so I combined some balloons where it would be easy to
1002identify them (black with white, green with lt. blue).
1003
1004History of Balloons
1005-------------------
1006There seems to be more information around about the history of
1007balloon sculpting than about the balloon itself. Balloon sculpting
1008has only been around for a few decades so there are still plenty of
1009people around that remember its evolution.
1010
1011Here's the little bit that I do know. At least I consider it to be the
1012real evolution of the balloon. Some others may disagree since what we
1013currently think of as a balloon is the latex or mylar varieties and this
1014is, well, a bit different. You can find mention in fairly old books of
1015toys made out of water filled animal bladders. Bladders apparently expand
1016quite a bit (I haven't tried.) Unfortunately I can't give you names of
1017these books since that's about all I've been told by the various
1018librarians I talked to. I went looking for references like this, but
1019these weren't in history books and I have no idea where to start. As far
1020as more modern books, there is a reference to a ball of this type in one
1021of the Little House on the Prairie books. I think it was "Little House
1022in the Big Woods". It's near the beginning of it. If you really want to
1023do the research I suggest you look through literature written during the
1024Renaissance in Europe. An old issue of True Inflations said something
1025about latex balloons at, I believe, a worlds fair. Merlin has found
1026references indicating that balloon sculpting dates back at least as far
1027as the Aztecs.
1028
1029
1030Types of twists
1031===============
1032
1033Apple twist
1034-----------
1035This can be done with any balloon, but if you do it with a small, round
1036balloon you can actually form something that looks like an apple. This
1037can be great for a William Tell routine. I'll try to describe it on a
1038small balloon first. Blow up the balloon part way and tie it off. Push
1039the nozzle end into the balloon with one finger until it is inside the
1040tail of the balloon. With the other hand grab the tail far enough in to
1041grab the nozzle also and give it a few twists. this should stay on it's
1042own. You should now have something that basically forms the shape of an
1043apple with a stem sticking up.
1044
1045This twist has a lot of uses aside from just making apples. In any long
1046thin balloon you can push the nozzle in and form a bubble with the nozzle
1047being further into the balloon than the twist. When you release this it
1048should stay in the balloon without any other locking twists.
1049
1050Basic pinch and twist
1051---------------------
1052
1053forming an animal amounts to making bubbles of various sizes and then
1054twisting them together in different combinations. Forming a bubble is as
1055simple as pinching the balloon and twisting so that the pinched area
1056stays pinched without your fingers. Well, this is almost true. The
1057balloon will untwist unless some kind of locking twist is used to secure
1058it.
1059 ______________ ____
1060 -(______________)(____)
1061 ^
1062 |
1063 pinch and twist
1064
1065locking twists and the basic four-legged animal - If three bubbles are
1066made using the method described above, the second two can be twisted and
1067locked together. The hardest part of this is learning to use all of your
1068fingers to hold bubbles that you've made until they get "locked".
1069 ______________ ____ ____ ____
1070 --(______________)(____)(____)(____)=
1071 1 a 2 b 3 c
1072
1073In the above picture, the numbers refer to the twists, the letters refer
1074to the bubbles. To secure all of these bubbles, fold the balloon at
1075twist 2 so that 'a' and 'b' sit alongside each other. Now form another
1076twist combining 1 and 2. This is already the basic head of an animal.
1077'a' and 'b' are ears. 'c' is a nose.
1078
1079This same process can be repeated two more times to complete a basic dog
1080(or whatever you wish to call it). That is, immediately below the head
1081make three more bubbles and twist the second two together. This forms a
1082neck and two legs. Now, the same way, form a body and two more legs.
1083All of the twists in the balloon look like the figure below.
1084 ___ ___ ____ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___
1085 --()(___)(___)(____)(___)(___)()(___)(___)(___)=
1086 tail leg leg body leg leg ^ ear ear nose
1087 |
1088 neck
1089
1090 ())__
1091 \ ____ (__)
1092 ()(____)()
1093 ()) ())
1094
1095Bird body
1096---------
1097Any figure that has wings or arms needs those wings and arms to sit
1098alongside the body. To form this we will make three bubbles and do the
1099locking twist above, but make the second two significantly longer than
1100the first. This will be a head and wings. Make another bubble roughly
1101the same size as one of the wings and push only that bubble completely
1102through the wings.
1103 ________ ______ ______ ______ _
1104 --(________)(______)(______)(______)(_)=
1105 1 body 2 wing 3 wing 4
1106
1107The wings should be twisted together. When the body gets pushed through
1108them, 1 and 4 will be locked together even though there is no twist
1109between them.
1110 _
1111 _(_)_
1112 / ^ \
1113 | w|b|w |
1114 | i|o|i |
1115 | n|d|n |
1116 | g|y|g |
1117 \__V__/
1118 ^
1119 | |
1120
1121Curly tails
1122-----------
1123That's where you curl the balloon around your finger and then inflate
1124(or inflate again like I do cause it's hard work otherwise).
1125
1126Ear twist
1127---------
1128That is, take a bubble and twist the two ends of it together.
1129
1130before: __ ____ __ after: ___
1131 __)(____)(__ ( v ) <-- formed with single bubble
1132 / ^ \
1133
1134Or, described another way,
1135
1136( )( )( )( )-------
1137 ^ ^
1138 a b
1139
1140form a bubble and then twist its own ends together. ie: points 'a' and 'b'
1141are twisted together 'folding' over the bubble inside. The size of the bubble
1142determines what the use is for.
1143Often, as when making a bear or cat, a one inch bubble is used, by having the
1144edge that looks like the ear canal poining forward on the head it looks like
1145a cat, pointing to the sides of the head it looks more like a bear. At least
1146that's what they say. I always make them point forward, it looks more charming
1147to me that way.
1148
1149Meatball <is this the official name?>
1150--------
1151Otherwise known as "putting an object or bubble inside a balloon"
1152
1153I call the bubble inside the balloon a meatball.
1154You can put an object inside the balloon the same way you put the bubble
1155in. Instead of twisting the bubble, just push the object you want to use
1156into the end of the balloon. Grab the object through the balloon as you
1157do with the meatball. Then break the object free inside and tie the new
1158end of the balloon. A bubble inside the balloon doesn't always roll very
1159well. The ball is heavy enough that it rolls through the whole pretzel
1160shaped balloon very easily. I also like leaving tips inside of balloon
1161figures when I'm in a restaurant.
1162
1163I push it as deep as I can into the 260 and then rip off the top and
1164immediately grab the new 'nipple' and tie it. Sometimes it's really
1165hard to rip off the top and I am forced to use my teeth.
1166
1167-----------------
1168 \ --
1169most of balloon )(__) - small bubble
1170_________________/
1171
1172push the small bubble into the big one with your index finger.
1173
1174-----------------
1175 -- __) ____________
1176 (__)__<- (_________ \_______
1177_________________) (___ your hand
1178 (___ ________
1179 (____/
1180
1181 pinch here
1182
1183 |
1184 V
1185------------------
1186 --xx __)__________
1187 (__)x(___________
1188__________________)
1189
1190 ^
1191 |
1192 and here
1193
1194Now there is a bubble and your finger inside the large bubble. There is
1195a second layer of latex around the small bubble. the outer layer is
1196still connected to the big bubble. with your free hand, pinch the big
1197bubble where the little one is inside of it and hold that bubble in place.
1198With the finger nail inside the balloon, break that outer layer. (The
1199outer layer to be broaken is marked by x's in the above picture).
1200Breaking it just takes a bit of practice. If you stretch the balloon
1201that you want to break, by working the bubble further inside the long
1202bubble with your other hand you should weaken it enough to help break it.
1203
1204While still pinching the large bubble, work the little one free. Your
1205finger will still be inside of the balloon.
1206
1207 pinch here
1208
1209 |
1210 V
1211----------\
1212 __ ----__________
1213 (__) (___________
1214__________/---------
1215
1216 ^
1217 |
1218 and here
1219
1220since you're pinching the balloon, air shouldn't escape while you get
1221your finger out. Now just tie the balloon from the end where your finger
1222came out of.
1223
1224If you want to put a ball inside, it's the same thing, except that you
1225don't start with a small bubble. You would just insert the ball where
1226the small bubble was placed inside.
1227
1228A hint for tearing off a meatball inside a balloon, which I
1229discovered by watching Richard Levine here in Eugene:
1230 1. Make the bubble
1231 2. Poke it deep into the balloon with one finger
1232 3. Pull that finger out fast - the balloon will often pop
1233 due to friction, and the "meatball" is free!
1234 4. If (3) fails, tear the end off with a *fast* motion,
1235 which is easier than slow.
1236 5. Failing (4)... use scissors. Latex makes crummy dental
1237 floss!
1238
1239A trick for making bubbles inside a balloon for peas in a pod/caterpillar
1240and also for making apple twists is to: *lick your finger* before pushing
1241the bubble in. This makes it MUCH easier to get your finger out without
1242pulling the bubble out, losing a lot of air, or whatever. Of course, you
1243can have as much fun with this as you like hamming it up.
1244
1245
1246Hook Twist
1247----------
1248This is the "hook twist" that Dewey describes. He uses it for a lot of
1249neat animals: dogs, snakes, squirrels, frogs, etc. This twist is basically
1250a variation on the apple twist. Instead of pushing the nozzle into the
1251balloon only about an inch, push it in as far as you can reach with one
1252finger. If you bend the balloon a bit you can reach further along the
1253wall of the balloon. Now grab the nozzle through the wall of the balloon
1254and twist the way you would make an apple twist. Then carefully work
1255your finger out of the balloon. I use the thumb and middle finger of teh
1256same hand that has the index finger insdie the balloon. These two
1257fingers kind of push the sides of the bubble back a bit while I retract
1258my index finger. If you can do an apple twist you already know how to
1259take your finger out. It's just a bit harder now since there's more
1260finger inside the balloon. Practice making apple twists of increasing
1261size. I suppose a bit of powder on your finger couldn't hurt to reduce
1262friction, but I've never tried it. When you take your finger out of the
1263balloon, the bit of balloon inside the bubbel that goes from teh nozzle
1264to the end of the bubble will go straight from the twist to the end of
1265the bubble. If the bubble is bent (or hooked) as described above, that
1266inner piece of balloon will hold it in that position.
1267
1268 _ __
1269 | V \
1270 -------------\ /-------/ / B |
1271 \ / ______ _/ |
1272 )( A /
1273 / \ /
1274 -------------/ \-----------/
1275
1276The line going from point A to B in the above picture should actually be
1277straight, but with ascii characters I don't see an easy way of showing
1278that. The key to getting that shape is really to get the nozzle further
1279into the balloon than your finger could reach if the balloon was kept
1280straight. I scrunch up the bubble to really reach in there far. Note
1281that no matter how far you reach in, the same length of balloon will be
1282inside since you're only putting inside the ballon what covers your
1283finger, so the further you can get the nozzle in, the greater the hook in
1284the bubble.
1285
1286
1287Pop twist
1288---------
1289It is often desirable to get more limbs on an animal than there are ends
1290of the balloon. The basic dog works out ok, but legs need to be grouped
1291in twos. The pop twist will allow two legs or arms to be separated.
1292Twist two medium bubbles, three small bubbles, then another medium
1293bubble. Do a lock twist with the medium bubbles so nothing untwists.
1294 __
1295 ( ) <-
1296 // \\ <- Three medium bubbles
1297 (a) (b)
1298 (c) <- 3 small bubbles
1299
1300Ear twist bubbles a and b. Twist them about 5 times each (completely
1301around). Now pop c. The air should not come out of any of the other
1302bubbles.
1303
1304
1305Toes
1306----
1307I'm not sure what anyone else calls this one so for now I'll call it a toe
1308twist since that's what I like using it for. Make an ear twist, with only
1309a little air in it. The softer the better. Twist the bubble in half
1310now to form two toes.
1311
1312 twist along this line
1313 |
1314 v
1315 ___
1316 ( v )
1317 / ^ \
1318
1319 ^
1320 |
1321
1322
1323********************************
1324What to say when a balloon pops
1325********************************
1326
1327
1328When a balloon goes BANG say
1329"May you rest in pieces!"
1330"I sure got a bang out of that!"
1331"That was a weasel. It went pop."
1332"I told you I was going to BLOW it up!"
1333"Sssh, don't tell anyone how I did that!"
1334"Sorry son, the dog was rabid, had to put it down" (from movie The Mask)
1335"Don't worry, I'll make sure that the Doctor puts him back together again."
1336Q - What do you call a balloon dinosaur with a hole in it?
1337A - extinct.
1338When I do shows I usually have a gun in my pocket... the kind with the
1339little flag that pops out that says "bang" on it. When a balloon pops
1340I grab the gun quickly and fire at it and say triumphantly, "got it".
1341Hold you hands to your chest saying, "He GOT me!"
1342I also snapped an empty balloon into my face as I was attempting to blow it
1343up. I would grab my nose and make a horrible face and a shocked face at
1344the same time. Always got a good laugh.
1345When blowing up the balloon, I would comment somewhere that "You have to be
1346careful with these things...they have a hole in one end!"
1347Which reminds me of another bit I have used.... The balloon inflated, and
1348held at the mouth end, and have everyone do the "lift-off" countdown.
1349Great laugh getter. I did this in our church service once and it worked
1350great. Everyone had been waiting to do that for years, and I was the one!!
1351
1352
1353*****************************
1354Notation
1355*****************************
1356
1357
1358Standard ascii methods for describing balloon creations.
1359
1360First and foremost you must identify in words how much of the balloon
1361should be filled; i.e. Blow up the balloon leaving an X inch long
1362uninflated nipple.
1363
1364*****************************
1365
1366Legend for method 1:
1367
1368() - One/half inch bubble (need we go smaller?)
1369(=) - One inch bubble
1370(=-) - One and one half inch bubble
1371(==) - Two inch bubble, etc. For long bubles, use (L=) where L is
1372 the Length of the bubble in inches. ie. (30=) for a 30" bubble.
1373[] - Same as other bubbles, but bent in the middle
1374xn - Twist connection (where n = the number of the connection)
1375O - Pop bubble
1376(@) - Apple twist
1377(!) - Pop twist
1378
1379If I designed it right, this should be the classic dog with a 1 1/2 inch
1380nose, 2 ears bent in the middle, and connected to the back of the nose.
1381A 1 inch neck follows, then two more one inch bent legs connected to the
1382neck. 3 inches of middle and two 1 inch bent legs connected to the middle
1383followed by a 2 inch tail.
1384
1385(=-)x1[=]x1[=]x1(=)x2[=]x2[=]x2(===)x3[=]x3[=]x3(==)
1386
1387a pop-twist used to generate two legs & paws:
1388
1389... (==)x1[=]x1(=)!x2[=]x2(==) ...
1390
1391
1392a tulip becomes: (==)@
1393
1394
1395If more than one balloon is used we can group the twists in a
1396single balloon with '{' and '}'. We can still use xN to designate twists
1397as long as N continues to increment with twists in teh new balloons.
1398Taht way a previous xN can be used to show where the new balloon gets
1399connected.
1400
1401this would be two balloons twisted together:
1402 {(===)x1(===)}{(===)x1(===)}
1403
1404*****************************
1405
1406Legend for method 2:
1407
1408(x) - x inch long bubble
1409(xA) - apple twist
1410(xET) - ear-twist
1411(*) - pop-twist
1412(xAL) - for arm loop as in a standing bear... would also serve
1413as a leg loop.. the two are the same, and are nothing more than LARGE
1414ear twists any way.
1415
1416(.5),( 1 ),( 1.5 ),( 2 ), etc for the different sizes.. [spaces are
1417optional within the paren's, but might give a better sense of size].
1418
1419the X's and numbers I found to be confusing between the bubbles. Not all
1420bubble ends are twisted around one another. the paws of the basic dog for
1421example are just the two ends of bubbles, no locking twists. So, how about
1422a captital letter at each point thats to be locked together. the basic
1423dog now looks like.
1424
1425 ( 1.5 )A( 1 )A( 1 )A(.5)B( 2 )( 2 )B( 3 )C( 2 )( 2 )C( tail )
1426
1427or.. (1.5)A(1)A(1)A(.5)B(2)(2)B(3)C(2)(2)C(tail)
1428
1429 Special bubbles could have abreviations for them.. ie: ear-twist is ET..
1430a half inch eartwist could be (.5ET) If you want to pop the bubble between
1431two ear-twists us *.. size doesn't matter for this, but you have to realize
1432that each ear-twist must be twisted around 5 or 6 times before pop the center
1433bubble... notation.. (.5ET)(*)(.5ET)
1434
1435 A bubble made by pushing the finger in, then twisting
1436off is the apple twist.. its what I use to make the nose for a bunny.
1437So (1A) for one inch apple.
1438
1439 The bird body.... It's three balloons, with one pushed through.
1440
1441(1)A( 2 )B( 2 )A( 2 )B( rest of the balloon)
1442
1443 Now the bunny head.
1444
1445(1A)A(1.5)B(1.5)A(1.5P)B(2)B(2)B(1)A(off to the legs)
1446nose |head with cheeks| ears |neck| rest of the bunny
1447
1448 Please note, the nose is a (1A) with the A inside to show an apple
1449twist. This might work better with a half inch bubble.
1450
1451*****************************
1452
1453Legend for method 3:
1454
1455 Knot: .
1456
1457 Uninflated balloon: ... length proportional to the following.
1458 _
1459 Bubbles: (_) this is the smallest bubble 0.5"
1460 __
1461 (__) this is 1". add an underscore above and below for each 0.5"
1462
1463 This makes the size of bubble linearly proportional to the
1464 real size.
1465
1466 Putting the no. inside the bubble is fine too. But I think
1467 it is not important. The impression of the proportion is
1468 enough. Measure a bubble that your think is 2" and see how
1469 long it actually is... you'll be surprised. When you have
1470 associated the screen image with the actual bubble, then it
1471 is very easy to tell.
1472
1473 Order: diagrams are read from left to right, top to bottom. There
1474 is no confusion which bubble is made first, which is second,
1475 third etc.
1476
1477 Twists: lines like this \_______/ are drawn to indicate connections:
1478 ___ __ __
1479 .(___)(__)(__) nose and ears of a classic dog.
1480 \______/
1481
1482 __ ___ ___
1483 .(__)(___)(___) mickey mouse nose and ears.
1484 \___/\___/ the bubbles are folded in the middle as
1485 clearly indicated.
1486
1487 whether the twist lines are above or below is unimportant.
1488
1489 Tugs: Similar to the above. When a bubble x is tugged between
1490 two bubbles y and z, y and z must be twisted together
1491 already. So, a line is drawn with one end from the middle
1492 of x, the other end connected to the middle of the twist
1493 line of y and z. The positions of the ends of the line
1494 indicate whether the whole bubble x is rolled behind y and
1495 z or just a portion. The starting place is marked by a
1496 slash, the ending by a vertical bar.
1497
1498 y z
1499 __ ________ ________
1500 .(__)(________)(________)
1501 \__________________/
1502 ____|
1503 ____/___ _______________________
1504 (________)(_______________________)...
1505 x
1506
1507 The above is a swan. The whole bubble x is rolled behind
1508 y and z. Sometimes I'd like to roll only half of x
1509 behind y and z, like this:
1510
1511 y z
1512 __ ________ ________
1513 .(__)(________)(________)
1514 \__________________/
1515 __|
1516 ______/_ _______________________
1517 (________)(_______________________)...
1518 x
1519
1520 The profile of the above swan will be like this:
1521 __
1522 ( ).. (this diagram is, of course, not
1523 \ \ part of my formalism. It is just
1524 \ \ an insert to illustrate my point)
1525 \ \
1526 __ \ \
1527 __ (__-_\_\
1528 (__)(________)
1529 -_)
1530
1531 When a bubble is inserted between two bubbles:
1532
1533 A frech poodle head:
1534 ____ ____ ____ __
1535 .(____)(____)(____)(__)
1536 \ \__________/
1537 \_________|
1538
1539 Labels: feel free to add labels and other descriptive words:
1540
1541 A classic dog will be:
1542
1543 nose ears neck legs body legs tail
1544 ___ __ __ __ __ __ ______ __ __ ____
1545 .(___)(__)(__)(__)(__)(__)(______)(__)(__)(____)....
1546 \______/ \______/ \______/
1547
1548 More visual aids:
1549
1550 It is nice to start a new line after every twist line.
1551 ___ __ __
1552 .(___)(__)(__) nose & ears
1553 \______/ CLASSIC DOG again.
1554 __ __ __ this may be more visual.
1555 (__)(__)(__) neck & legs
1556 \______/
1557 ______ __ __
1558 (______)(__)(__) body & legs
1559 \______/
1560 ____
1561 (____).... tail
1562
1563
1564 tail 3-part body
1565 __ ________ ________ More visual SWAN
1566 .(__)(________)(________)
1567 \__________________/ bend this bubble until it
1568 _______| looks like a swan neck.
1569 ______/_ _______________________
1570 (________)(_______________________)...
1571 neck
1572
1573 ____________________
1574 ______/______ ____ ____ \ SNOOPY
1575 .(_____________)(____)(____) |
1576 \__________/ | wrap around and tug half-way
1577 |______/
1578 __ ____ ____
1579 (__)(____)(____)
1580 \__________/
1581 \__ (notice the direction here
1582 _____|____ is signficant, that's why
1583 ____ /____ ____\ a vertical bar is used)
1584 (____)(____)(____)
1585
1586 Start: Start by describing how much air to inflate. This is a complete
1587example.
1588
1589 TEDDY BEAR
1590
1591 start with 6" of uninflated balloon.
1592
1593 ear ear
1594 nose __ __
1595 ____ ____ /__\ ____ /__\ ____
1596 .(____)(____)(__)(____)(__)(____)
1597 \ \________________________/
1598 \________________|
1599 __ ___ ___
1600 (__)(___)(___) neck and arms
1601 \___/\___/
1602 __ ___ ___
1603 (__)(___)(___) body and legs
1604 \___/\___/
1605 _
1606 (_). tail
1607
1608*****************************
1609
1610Legend for method 4:
1611
1612n A number representing a length in some standard unit. inches?
1613 n, not surrounded by anything is a bit of uninflated or deflated
1614 balloon.
1615(n) A bubble of length n.
1616X A letter [A-Za-z] representing a twist. This can be anywhere except
1617 inside a bubble. Actually I suppose this can be defined as a letter
1618 or nothing so that we can say X is always between bubbles.
1619[n] A bubble that's been folded in half or an ear twist.
1620 n can be followed by optional modifiers when inside a bubble:
1621@ Apple twist.
1622! This bubble gets popped. Hmm, n doesn't need to be present in this
1623 case.
1624
1625*****************************END OF BALLOON FAQ**************************