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Nothing packs as much colour into a large area for as little money as balloons. Did you know that a fully-inflated 11" balloon has nearly 3 square feet of surface area? That's a lot of colour.

So naturally, every festive occasion or party calls for balloons. But when it's just a low-key shindig for a handful of friends, or even a family get-together on the Fourth of July, you don't need to call a professional decorator. If you're like me, decorating a party with balloons can be the most fun part of the occasion! (And cleaning up afterwards can be even more fun, if you're so inclined...)

Here's a quick guide to the materials and techniques you can use for do-it-yourself balloon decor. These will just be the basics: what you do with your balloons is limited only to your imagination!

Types of Decorations[]

Balloon décor falls into lots of categories, from most elaborate to easiest.

  1. Helium decoration. These types are often best left to professionals, but helium tanks are fairly widely available to rent if you're willing to pay deposits. Resist the urge to buy the inexpensive "Balloon Time" helium cylinders available at department stores, unless you're only planning on a dozen or two helium balloons. These tanks have a very small capacity. Under the umbrella of helium decoration are several options.
    1. Helium sculpture. This includes such things as balloon arches, tunnels, canopies, and freestanding columns. Some of these, particularly arches and columns, are fairly easy to do yourself at home. Canopies and more elaborate designs take practice.
    2. Helium bouquets. The most common type of helium decoration, there is in fact such a thing as a messy bouquet, and there are a wide variety of things you can do with bouquets. These are dirt easy to do yourself, if you get the helium.
    3. Helium ceiling. The easiest type of helium decoration, this consists of helium balloons, with ribbons optional, inflated in such quantity as to cover a ceiling. It makes for a dramatic effect, and makes it easy for guests to take balloons with them.
  2. Air decoration. The most accessible and cheapest decorations there are on the market today, air-filled balloons are a staple. But too often people just tape a balloon here and there and call it "festive." We know better. Here are some ways of using balloons wisely.
    1. Balloon drops. Should this be classified as a decoration, or an activity? No New Year's Eve or presidential convention would be complete without balloons showering down on people. Unfortunately, most venues just have ceilings too low to make drops practical, and nets are often frustrating to deal with. But why should professionals have all the fun?
    2. Round sculpture. The air-filled equivalents of helium arches and columns work perfectly well. Hang an air-filled balloon arch on the wall for a professional look, or a shorter arch can be attached to the ceiling to hang freely as a column.
    3. Twisty sculpture. 260, or twisty, balloons are most often used for sculpting animal shapes, but they can be used for decoration as well. They can be blown up into spiral shapes and combined for a neat centrepiece, or combined with other round balloons for other unique design ideas. Twisting animal shapes is difficult for beginners, but these balloons have many other uses that are easier to implement.
    4. Round clusters. Clustering is the best way to make even small balloons seem bigger and have more visual impact. Clusters can affix to walls or ceilings, or stand on tables and floors; they can also be stylized to resemble flowers, etc.


More information at the original wiki owner's website - https://members.tripod.com/the_common_loon/decor.html

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