First market for 2014

It's been a long hibernation from balloons! It's been so hot, I really didn't want to waste my time and balloons. We had a few terribly hot days, with a max of 43 degrees. I'm thankful that there're no fire in my area!

Anyways, it's back to Kuraby Market this weekend and my eldest daughter wanted to come along. She had fun on the jumping castle. Bought her a day pass so she could go on it anytime she wanted.

Some photos from the morning :

 Koala headband

Happy man hat

Dragon. The boy told me what he wanted and I made it according to his instructions. Interesting time we had together! Red head, orange horns and wings, blue body. I must admit that I am not too pleased with it, but it seemed to fit what he wanted and he was excited to fly it around!

 Flower decoration on my gazebo.

Another flower decoration on the gazebo.The original creator for this kind of flowers, called, Flowy, is an extremely talented balloon twister and instructor, Antonio Rodriguez. I've been meaning to try it and I'm glad I did! It is so much fun to add features to the flowers! You can purchase Anotnio's Flowy DVD instructions here. This is not an affiliated link, I just wanted to share the fun of making this balloon.

Market day challenges!

Interesting start to the market today. Arrived at location only to find that I was not on the list! The staff on site had to find a spot to accommodate me. That's market life for you. :) Especially for casual leases like me, it's easy to miss our booking.

Nevertheless, it was a wonderful morning. I was set up beside a coffee truck and in the fruits and vegetables section.

Had two boys challenged me to a dragon and guess what, I just made one a couple of days ago! I just simplified it for them. They sat in front of me, under the sun and watched while I made it up. They asked questions and told me about their amazing balloon inflating skills with the round balloons. This was what I came up with for them and stuck it onto a balloon stick for them to fly it around. It lasted for about 1.5hrs before the legs got pulled apart by one of their siblings.

Had a little girl wanting a balloon and the grandma said that they would wait for grandpa to come and ask for permission. The little girl got a horse and I was asked a question I never thought anyone would ask. Grandma asked where the money goes to and I was taken aback for a minute before replying that it comes to me. After they had left, I reckon I should have said that it goes to feeding my family and paying bills. Next time. :)

Made myself a poppy flower headband. It was for Remembrance Day on Monday.

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.

Another week at the market

I had another great morning at Kuraby Market yesterday. Started with a cool morning and warmed up as the day went by, but not so hot that we can't breathe. :)

It is our Ekka week here, where farmers bring in their cattle to the showgrounds for display. There are many more things to do at the Ekka showgrounds, but I won't touch on that. Anyway, I made myself a sheep for this week and it sat happily on my head, greeting the children as they come along. Used the design from ChiTwist on youtube.

I was fascinated by the fact that people were willing to wait in line for a balloon and how well-behaved they are! There were a few children who were on their own and wanted a balloon, but I always asked if their parents were around and I would like mum or dad to be present to confirm and pay for the balloons. Some parents were seated at the dining area and they'd give a nod or a wave when their children point out to them.

Had a few interesting children who wanted interesting balloons. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to pull out my phone to take photos.

So there was this girl who wanted Rose from Despicable Me. I can’t make it so I suggested a ballerina, to which she wanted to have blue clothes and red hair. I then suggested Ariel from The Little Mermaid and she was happy to receive one. The next girl wanted a mermaid too. But she wanted one with pink skin and purple tail. I was uncomfortable as I made it, but she was excited to receive it the way she wanted it!

Minions from Despicable Me was the greatest hit! Made about 12 that morning and everyone just stood there patiently waiting for theirs! Gave one to a church mate who took it walking around the market for publicity! :)

Very happy to see friends stop by for a chat that morning. Really helped to calm my nerves! Had a friend from church come and help and I learnt a few techniques and designs from him. There’s always something new to learn!

I look forward to the next one in September and hope to bring smiles to all who stop by!

Headband and huge flower!

Spent about 2 hours last night doing up these gifts for two special people today. It wouldn't have cost me so much time if I had the sense to plan ahead what I wanted. Nevertheless, it was a wonderful 2 hours of exploring and learning and coming up with such cute and beautiful pieces! The designs were from various balloon artists and other than photos from Balloony Glen and Sylvia Ang on Facebook, I can't remember where else I see this flower.

The headband was for a birthday girl who will turn 5 in two days. Brought it to church with us to give it to her and her younger brother was more fascinated by it! LOL!

The huge flower was for a Christmas party. Not exactly for the party, but the one who hired my to twist balloons. I make it a point to make something special for the person who pays me and this time decided on this. It's quite a popular flower design in Singapore. Mainly used with yellow 260Qs for the petals and black for the middle or a huge round for the middle.

I was nearly out of yellow and decided on orange. My daughter gladly modelled them for me. :)