Balloons For Hen Nights

What is balloon printing?

Balloon printing is quite simply the process of putting some kind of graphic onto the surface of a balloon. Balloon printing businesses have been around for a long while, but modern printing techniques and new equipment are helping to increase the scope of what sort of balloons can be printed on, and what logos can be applied.

Balloons can have multi-coloured patterns printed onto their surfaces, and this can be increased by using clever designs and making use of the colour of the balloon itself. It is likewise possible to print onto both sides of a balloon, so no matter where people are standing in relation to the balloon they ought to be able to see the printed images. Printing can be put on to both latex and foil balloons.

This post hopes to spotlight just a few of the possible uses of personalised, branded balloons.

Advantages

Balloons are great because they are not an overly pricey thing to get hold of. Even the more elaborate balloons do not have to cost the Earth, and when you do a comparison of prices with many of the alternate options you can quickly see the financial benefits of printed balloons.

One of the more interesting things about using printed balloons at any kind of event is the great flexibility they offer. Today’s balloon technology allows such a broad range of shapes, sizes and shades that you can really let your creativenessrun wild and let your imaginative side to take over. There are some limits, but most people are amazed at what can be achieved with just balloons.

This versatility gets even greater when you start using balloons together to create balloon strings or sculptures. You can mix different coloured balloons to good effect and create bold designs, or use different shapes and styles of balloons to create eye-catching exhibits. The possibilities are not quite endless, but they are very numerous nonetheless.

Another great benefit of utilizing balloons is that they are incredibly lightweight. This makes them very easy to move around and to sculpt into various sculptures. You will not need to hire moving men or forklift trucks to get them to where you want them to be! The other great advantage is that if you are going to inflate them on location, many hundreds of balloons will fit into a handbag. This means they can be used to spruce up even the most remote of locations.

If you are struggling to find inspiration for your own balloon design, view a balloon website for ideas and facts about balloon printing methods.

For social events

Having a set of your own, customised, printed balloons for a social event always adds an extra factor of fun and interest to what you are doing. Whether the event you are attending is a reasonably formal affair, such as a grand dinner party, or a quite informal occasion, such as a stag or hen party, you will find that printed balloons can really make the night be noticeable.

Wedding parties

Wedding parties are the perfect occasion for usingprinted balloons to add charm to your location. They are both formal and informal events at the same moment, with a serious intent but also a focus on having fun and enjoying the day. This is when the versatility of balloon printing comes into its own.

During the wedding meal, photo-taking or any other formal announcements, you can use various smart balloons printed to match your surroundings. Then when the partyreally begins you can use a collection of fun balloons with a personalised wedding message.

Stag & hen nights

Stag and hen parties are usually fun occasions, and more often than not they will entail some form of dressing up or decoration. So why not use printed balloons as a way of “jazzing up” your evening and really making your party stand out from the crowd. Here are just a few ideas.

L-plate balloons. One of the most recognisable components of a hen party is the bride to be donning driving L-plates on their outfit. It is a classic touch that always makes the lucky lady stand out from her party of hens. But there is no reason to restrict yourself to decorating outfits. Why not print an L-plate on a good sized balloon and attach it to the bride to be.

Nickname balloons. Groups of males out on stag nights will frequently have their photos and nicknames used by their friends printed onto a t-shirt or top. But again, why stop at the clothing? You can print faces, nicknames, or just about any other funny facts onto personalised balloons and give them out to members of your stag party.

Decorating functions

Printed balloons at events do not have to be hugely conspicuous or gaudy. In fact, you will discover that there are several ways that you can organise printed balloons to create very stylish effects. At many formal occasions, such as award ceremonies or grand birthday parties, balloons can become an interesting piece of furniture rather than an outlandish statement.

The great flexibility that comes with employing balloons at events means that they can be both promotional and ornamental. You might use a printed pattern on the balloons and then gather lots of them together to give the impression of dynamic wallpaper! On the other hand you could use the surface area of the balloons to print your company branding or information you want to get across to your guests.

Do not forget to include helium gas cylinders whilst choosing balloons for your event.

For corporate events

Although many of us relate memories of balloons with birthday parties when we were youngsters, printed balloons can also be used in a more adult environment. The use of printed balloons can actually be very beneficial in the business world.

Exhibitions

Anybody who has had a stand at a corporate exhibition will know just how very much competition there is for space and quite how hard everybody attempts to bring potential customers in their direction. If you employ the standard strategies of marketing to your exhibition display you will discover that you need to spend plenty of time, and often lots of money, to really stand out.

Advertising potential

If you are making use of helium filled balloons to help advertise your companythen you will be instantly at an advantage. As we all know, helium filled balloons are lighter than the air around them and will float upwards. With the appropriate amount of string linked to the balloon you will be placing your corporate identity in a space over and above the reach of regular advertising. If your competitors are not doing the same, you will have that room to yourself.

Just like printing your logo or corporate message on carrier bags or other packaging, printing onto balloons provides a mobile marketing space that you don’t have to transport around yourself. Each time you hand out a printed balloon to a visitor at the exhibition, you are effectually giving out a promotional item for your business that will be relocatingaround.

Another great benefit of using printed balloons as a corporate advertising application is the price tag. No matter what state the overall economy may be in, firms are continually looking for the most cost-effective means to promote themselves, and printed balloons are undoubtedly one of these methods. For a relativelylow price you can get hold of a good quantity of balloons, all printed with your customised message. They are a very affordable advertising space.

It is important to note that employing a 100 percent balloon-based treatment as your marketing strategy won’t always bring the results you are looking for. It is a great deal better to use printed balloons as one part of your advertising plan.

It is convenient to find a local company for printing and B-Loony Chesham provide excellent products over a range of balloon designs and sizes.

Balloon printing options

There are two primary kinds of balloon that can be printed on; latex balloons and also foil balloons.

Latex balloons are the most typical type of balloon. They are the teardrop shaped balloons that are slightly rubbery in texture. They nowadays come in a broad range of colour options, and you can actually get balloons that are semi-transparent or have a metallic finish. All latex balloons can be printed on but it is well worth bearing in mind the base colour of the balloon when producing a design.

Foil balloons are in fact made from mylar, and rather than being formed of one single piece of material they are more commonly made by sealing two individual pieces together. This hemming process allows for a wide range of different designs, including stars and hearts.

The environmental impact

Balloons are a consumable item, and as such people are often concerned about the effect they have upon the environment. The good news is that balloons are actually quite an environmentally friendly product and using them will not have a harmful effect on the planet.

Latex balloons are made of a substance called natural rubber latex (NRL) which is gathered from trees in tropical locations. The trees are simply tapped for their rubber rather than chopped down, and the cultivation of rubber tree plantations actually helps to avoid rainforest deforestation.
They are also biodegradable and can even be used on the compost heap! Latex balloons will decompose at different rates depending on the conditions they are left in, although testing has shown that they will usually decompose completely within 6 months. This is the same period of time as oak leaves need to decompose.

Get your own printed balloons

I hope this article will have pointed out a few of the situations that printed balloons are well suited to, and perhaps you are already thinking about an upcoming event where balloons would make a great party piece. Whether it is a personal or work-based function, they are certainly worth considering.

If you would like to find out more about obtaining your own customised printed balloons, there are many businesses that are now providing balloon printing as a service. By searching on-line you will be able to locate a balloon printing company that can help you out. Once you have witnessed how well balloons help to set off your party you will want to use them over and over!

The World of Balloons

Introduction to Balloons

The word ‘Balloons’ conjures up images in your mind of simple balloons you inflate for kid’s parties, or balloons that fly off on their own, or the special balloons for key events like the ones produced for the wedding of Charles and Diana? There are so many different types of balloons on the market that you can get almost anything for any event you need. Balloons are a bright, bouncy item that can be used for many different purposes, including kid’s or adult parties, product launches for advertising or promotional events.

When you think about it, a balloon is quite an odd item. It is something that expands when filled with air or some other type of gas, such as Helium or hydrogen and is very fragile so that it can easily burst. The very first balloons would have been made with non-flexible material but modern balloons have great elasticity because they are made of Latex and can be filled up to create much larger sizes than earlier ones.

Balloons Throughout History

The first known balloons were very simple in that they were made out of the bowels of cats. The Aztec Indians in Central and Southern America carefully cleaned out the cat gut, turned it inside out and stitched it with special vegetable thread that stuck to itself when dried in the sun creating an almost airtight seal. The balloons were shaped into model animals and then filled with air to be burnt on the top of the Aztec pyramid as an offering to the sun god. This is the first recorded history of balloon modelling. Early balloons were made of animal guts and were turned into play things for the local community.

The first public showing of a balloon was at the Portuguese Court in Lisbon in 1809 by a Portuguese priest, Bartolomeu de Gusmao, and was most likely to be made from an animal bladder that stretched when filled with air. The modern rubber balloon was invented in eighteen twenty four by Michael Faraday the renowned English chemist and physicist who invented, amongst other many other things, the Faraday cage and he also made huge contributions to the fields electromagnetism and electrochemistry. The balloons Faraday used were filled with hydrogen for his science experiments with Hydrogen, but the more familiar Latex balloon did not appear until 1847. Although the Latex balloon was manufactured in London in the mid eighteen hundreds and early rubber balloons were sold in America in parks and circuses for a penny each; the mass production of them did not happen until 100 years later in 1931.

The world of balloons became more advanced as they developed in line with technology. Now balloons are made from rubber Latex, polychloroprene or nylon and may be inflated with air, Helium, hydrogen or water. Inflating the balloon with air can be done with the mouth, a manual hand pump, electric inflator, foot pump or with compressed gas. Balloons are used for many differing purposes, and decorated in numerous ways to fit the event. Balloons are usually used for entertainment or displays.

Some balloons are purely for decoration, others are ideal for specific purposes because of their low density and relatively low cost. The balloon’s properties have led to them being used in a wide range of other applications in the areas of meteorology, military defence, medical treatment, and transportation. There are many different types of balloons which can be categorised under different headings.

Different Types of Balloons

Good Old Party Balloons

The most popular types of balloons are the ones we are used to seeing at parties, particularly a child’s party. These are often bought in small packets and blown up by mouth or with a pump to create a festive scene for children’s parties and other kinds of celebratory events. These days you often see a balloon cluster at the entrance to a house or hall to indicate where the party is being held, it has almost become a universal indicator of a party in progress! The balloons come in many different sizes and colours and can have printing on the face which expands as the balloon is blown up. Party balloons are mostly made of natural Latex tapped from rubber trees. The rubber’s elasticity makes the volume variable. Balloons filled with air always hold their size and shape much longer than those filled with Helium.

There is a great range of colours for balloons and many different sizes due to the flexibility of the material from which they are made. You can use cartoon characters on printed balloons that become larger than life once inflated.

Foil Balloons

The foil balloon or Mylar balloons first appeared during the late 1970s. They are generally more costly than Latex balloons and are made of thin non-stretch metalized plastic film or Mylar. The first time I remember them being used a major event was when they made an appearance at the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana and they caused quite a stir. Mylar balloons have a nice high gloss reflective texture and can be supplied with colour pictures, logos and patterns to customise them. The most useful property of metalized nylon for balloons is its ability to prevent the Helium gas from escaping for several weeks because it is less permeable. Foil balloons also have the benefit of being light weight, longer-lasting with greater buoyancy. They are best for extraordinary celebrations, in-store decorations, parties and for gifts. At our granny’s ninetieth birthday party a few weeks ago I brought along a foil balloon with 90 printed on it to add to the festive occasion.

Balloons in Animal Shapes

Balloons in animal shapes are ade from metalized nylon which can easily be cut into pieces so that when pressed together they make the three dimensional shapes of animals. Screen printing the appropriate design on the model, makes the chosen animal come realistically alive. Once inflated, these unique balloons make a very bright decorative impact for that special event. Balloons in animal shapes may be used as gifts or as a talking point at your special event. Balloons in animal shapes can make a great birthday gift for a child as an extra pleasure.

Rockets from Balloons

Inflating a balloon and releasing it go before tying it is as game most kids play at some time or another (and adults too)! The rude noise it makes generally has everyone falling about laughing as it zooms all over the room. This game is teaching the children basically how a rocket works and they are called balloon rockets. As a kid I can remember being fascinated as I learned why it did that.

When the top of the balloon is let-go, the elasticity of the balloon contracts so that the higher pressure of air inside is forced out causing the balloon to be propelled forward. This is basically how a rocket works. The balloon can also be inflated with different gases other than air, with similar results. Balloon rockets are a widely used a learning aid to show the principles in laws of nature of the functioning of a rocket. The balloon rocket is also regularly used to demonstrate Newton’s third law in physics. Children can have hours of fun playing with balloons as a balloon rocket. The unpredictability of where they will go adds fun to the fun.

Balloons Filled With Water

The water balloons are obviously filled with water and are intended for children to chuck at each other as a game or practical joke with the aim of getting each other drenched. They are generally smaller than normal sized balloons and made from weaker rubber so that they can be easily broken. Water balloons are often used in competitions or games.

Balloons Filled with Helium Gas

The reason Helium balloons float is because they are filled with Helium gas which is lighter than air. So for an event where balloons are set off into the sky, they will all be Helium filled balloons. If the Helium balloons are rubber balloons they usually only retain their buoyancy for a few days. This is because the Latex has tiny holes that are bigger than the enclosed Helium atoms so the Helium gradually leaks out. To increase the life span of a Helium balloon the inside of the balloons can be coated with a special polymer solution which reduces the leakage of the Helium for a week or more. Having even just one foil Helium filled balloon at a small party can create a special effect to enhance the occasion.If you require a large amount of balloons then buy wholesale balloons to acquire the amount required.

Balloon Sculptures
Balloon Sculptures are made from hundreds of balloons to create a solid structure such as a balloon arch, wall or statute. Other shapes are more difficult, but on occasion more ambitious sculptures have been created so they are possible. These sculptures are usually made and designed by professional party decorators as it is a very skilled job. Balloon sculptures are really quite limited because of the shape of the balloons but with intelligent colour choice simple arches or walls can make an impressive feature at your party. The balloons need to be precision filled with exactly the same amount of gas and to do this professional balloon sculptors use electronic equipment to deliver the exact amount of Helium into the balloon. For non-floating balloons air inflators are used. Professional quality balloons differ from most retail packet balloons as they are bigger in size, stronger and made from one hundred percent biodegradable Latex. Sometimes Helium balloons are used as table decorations for special events which may have three or 5 balloons with an arrangement of flowers. The decoration will generally include curled ribbon with an added weight to stop the balloons from floating away.

Balloon Modelling and Balloons in Art

Balloon modelling is a popular entertainment for children and adults alike and is not to be confused with balloon sculptures discussed above. The Latex used for balloon modelling is made of extra-stretchy rubber so that it can be manipulated and tied without popping when making the balloon model. A Balloon modelling artist pulls and twists the inflated modelling balloons into shapes resembling animals, people or hats. When I have watched these artists at work I am always anxious that the balloons will burst when they are twisting and tying their handy work. These tiny tubular balloons are extremely tricky to inflate and often need a pump to get them started, until you have developed the lungs for it.

Dropping Lots of Balloons from a Net

Most people have seen a party or dance where at the end of the night hundreds of balloons are dropped from the roof to create excitement and fun amongst the party guests. This is known as a balloon drop and is often performed at parties such as New Year’s Eve celebrations or at political rallies and conventions. It is a relatively low budget way of creating a festive atmosphere at the party climax, so everyone goes home feeling they have had a really great evening.

It is possible to setup your own balloon drop for that special event providing you have a room with enough height. To begin with you will need to set up a large plastic bag or net overhead, which is suspended at the required height. Get your other organisers to lend a hand with inflating balloons as it can take quite a while to do the number needed. Then pile the inflated balloons into the net and make sure the opening works so that the balloons will fall onto the target area below when they are let go. You will also need to devise a mechanism for releasing the balloons.
Balloons used in balloons arches a stronger Latex balloon is used, instead of regular balloons.

Mass Balloon Releases

Because of concerns about the impact on the environment of a large amount of balloons being released, the NABAS – The Balloon Association have produced a code of practise that is available on their website at www.nabas.co.uk

If you are preparing a balloon release of more than 5,000 balloons, it is a pre-requisite that you apply in writing for permission to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) at least 28 days in advance. The CAA also like to be notified about balloon releases involving less than 5,000. An application form can be obtained by calling either the NABAS office on 01989 762 204 or the Airspace Utilisation Section of the CAA on 020 7453 6599

Environmental Concerns and Balloon Safety

Latex is an organic product obtained from rubber trees that are grown in certain regions of the tropics, so balloons are actually organic being manufactured from natural rubber Latex (NRL). These trees are not harvested to produce the NRL. The NRL is harvested by tapping mature plants and is an indespensible sustainable crop providing employment for many agricultural workers in some of the poorest regions of the world. Latex is a sustainable crop that is good for the environment and the economy of the country in which the rubber trees are grown.

The planting and maintenance of rubber tree plantations contributes towards the prevention of tropical rainforest deforestation. Without the cultivation and the consumption of Latex products the plantations may very well become just another casualty of the clearance of land for arable use. One of the great advantages of NRL cultivation is the significant contribution to the reduction of greenhouse gases from the atmosphere that is produced by industrialised nations and is a major source of global warming.

Printed Latex balloons are an absolutely fantastic, low-cost and environmentally friendly way of advertising your promotion or event.

Conclusion

The toy balloon has been a source of pleasure and excitement for many years at celebratory events such as parties, product launches and conferences throughout the world. They have been an educational tool as well as providing hours of entertainment and interest for children and adults alike. Non toy balloons are used for experiments in science, as an aid for heart repair in medicine and even as a form of travel as in the hydrogen air ship idea. Balloons are invaluable in helping us to learn about our world and some of the properties of physics.