Slow day at the Saturday market

Went to my usual farmers market on Saturday for some balloon twisting and it was another slow day. But it wasn't too bad, as I was in a better spot and had more interaction with people passing by.

The first balloon I made that day was for a baby. Probably about 3-4 months old. She's such a gorgeous little one! Her parents had set up an iced tea stall diagonally opposite where I was and she was being held by another stallholder who knew them. They asked for a balloon for the little one and I made her this happy little bracelet. Mum came over later that morning with a cup of iced tea and thanked me for the balloon saying that her daughter would not go to sleep with the balloon on he wrist! She did fall asleep eventually when mum took the balloon away. :)

Then there was this mum who came to ask for a balloon car for her 2.5y.o. son. She had bags of groceries in her hands and balancing two plates of food. I suggested that she rest her arms and leave her groceries on the ground while she waits. She did, but left to buy more stuff! I was nearly finished when she came back and offered to hold on to her balloon while she puts stuff into her car. She gave me a totally unexpected answer, "I can do this, I work at Ikea!" Now, what kind of training do they give at Ikea that transforms one into an octopus? I thought that was hilarious that she associated her ability to hold things to her working at Ikea.

Being a slow day, I thought I'll try my hands at something bigger and one that I've not tried before. Looked up the internet for other balloon pictures and here it is, a balloon bicycle with ideas from many balloon twisters!

Made up a quick superman while having nothing to do. 2 balloons and a scrap for the head. The bottom one had changes made to the head, changing it to a 5" round. I think I need to steer away from the red and blue superhero. Spiderman is red and blue and so is Superman....

Hopefully traffic will be better next time. :)

Birthday favours for friends

Had the pleasure of making 29 frog bracelets for a 5y.o.'s birthday for his friends and teachers. It was supposed to be 25 of them, but I always make a few extras just in case of popping or new friends, or well, someone's little sibling wanted one too. The teachers had rainbow headbands instead of frogs.

I had much fun with this lot of gifts. Took me about 4 hours and was aching all over, but I had a lot of fun. Not many people will think churning out the same sculpture as fun, but I made it so, timing myself with each sculpture. The first hour was the longest, with each frog taking 8-10 mins to complete. By the 2nd hour, I could make each one within 7mins. The third hour was the toughest, feeling like a failure because of the lengthy time it takes to make one. But by the fourth hour, I was churning them out at 5-6 mins flat! Woo-hoo!

I think that's where the fun part comes about - knowing that the first two hours of ploughing along is worth it.

It's the same with all other techniques and skills. It takes practice. And, this is what I tell fascinated folks who ask me how I am able to do what I do. Practice. Lots of it.

These 25 frogs made my day. I was proud of myself and proud of them.

Delivered them and was very glad to see the birthday boy's face light up at the big bag of balloons for his friends!

So, anytime you want something different for your birthday favours, drop me an email at balloonaholic@gmail.com and we'll work something out. :)

Frog bracelets. Took a sample photo. Just imagine that there were 29 of them. Slight modification from ChiTwist's frog tutorial on youtube.

Rainbow headbands for the teachers.

MOPS - Mothers on the March

Once a year in April, the mother's group that I attend has a fundraising walk. It's a nation-wide fundraising effort to raise the awareness of Mothers of Preschoolers (MOPS). If you have a preschooler yourself, check us out on the national website, MOPS Australia. If you're from other countries type in MOPS+Country name in the search engines and see if there's a group nearby.

It is chartered by churches and is Christian based. Before you turn away and think that it's another one of those Bible-selling programmes, it's not. It does contain Christiany stuff like prayer and talks about Bible teachings, but the most important thing is that it's all about mothering. For two hours, mothers spend time alone with other mothers, have a cuppa, craft, listen to a topic related to us and enjoy healthy discussion - all without the interruption of a little person. How good is that?! Children get looked after by carers who go through police checks and comply to strict childcare regulations.

So anyway, I went walking with 28 other people, male and female, babies to mummies and daddies and a dog.

Made some balloons for the children. Well, this is a balloon blog, isn't it? :) Actually, I was debating between helium filled round balloons and twisted balloons. I can't get past my conscience of using round balloons. So I made some. Doesn't cost our group anything and I get to practice. :) Win-win.

Here's some of the photos of what I made that day. Mostly hats and bracelets using designs that I already knew.