NOT Nagini

...so we are driving to a job site and Kim yells out "Oh My Goodness, is that a reeeeal snake?" I look out the window and see this friendly guy poking his head up on Kim's door window. I was driving at about 80km/h so he was hanging onto the side of the van for all he was worth.
In answer to Kim's question I replied,"not sure, let's slide the window down to have a better look, and see if he IS a real snake...."

...by the time we arrived at Parramatta RSL the ringing in my ears had stopped and my hearing had returned to normal.
Kim states that she is not getting out of the van, so it is left to me to calm the savage beast. I grabbed out scaly friend off the van. If he turned and tried to attack me, this would indicate he was venomous. My plan was to drop him and run. Thankfully my highly flawed plan was not put to the test.

He seemed to be about 1.6mtrs long, but quite harmless. I wanted to catch him though just to make sure. I was channeling Steve Irwin, Harry Butler, Bear Grylls, The Leyland Brothers AND Indiana Jones, as I reached out and grabbed his head.
Don' try this at home. Note Kim's (still in van) facial expression - priceless.

And then of course we have the celebrity kiss.

our friendly snake was then released into Parramatta Park.

So next time you are in the Parramatta Park, having a picnic and you see something moving through the grass........

love yout work.

Footy Finals Fever 2011

Another season has past and the mighty Wests Tigers have made it to the final 8 again.

So my friends at Wests Ashfield want the club decked out in Tigers colours - different from last year of course.

So we start with the foyer.
Something that will WOW the members as they enter the club. OK, so let's do two columns and huge entry frame over the stairs. This will get the fans in for the game on Friday!


I also got to sell my brand new taper columns. Free standing, long lasting taper design with large helium star on top with the Tigers logo to top it off. These were placed throughout the level 1 foyer and the lounge.





Then we added some garland to highlight the signage, congratulating the team on making the finals again in 2011.


This is a close up of the sign that you could see from the entry foyer. Half way up the stairs we have a personalised square pack wall...

...or if you prefer the escalators, you won't miss out on the fun either.

Of course if the team go all the way to the big one, the Grand Final, we will get to have lots more fun. Go the Tigers!!

Sydney Harbour Wedding

How cool is this montage pf pictures. The very clever Wenjing Hu CBA put this together for me, and I wanted to share it with you for a few reasons.
1) I was in Melbourne on the weekend, so although I sold the job, I played no part in putting it together. My staff only had 1 hour to install and they did it!
2) It highlights how well "the right" balloon decor can work both outdoors and on the water.
The arch had extra weight on the bases, and the topiary balls are fastened to the rails securely. Even in the rough water shot (bottom left), the balloons ain't going anywhere. everything is in its place.
3) The funky buddies were specifically designed for the inside of boats. A dancefloor decor piece that won't float off out the back of the boat. They are also the perfect height so as not to obsruct the happy couple.
4) ..and finally it shows off the gorgeous Sydney Harbour!


Great job team!

Harry Potter 7 - Part 2

You walk in to the cinema to see the latest (and last) instalment of the Harry Potter series and are attacked by Nagini the snake.



This sculpture was at Events Cinema Beverley Hills to greet patrons as they queued to get their tickets. Larger than life, with a tail that trailed off into the theatres, and as scary as the real thing. We were able to custom make this one to exactly fit the space required, and as you can see everyone was having lots of fun...once they got over the shock!

Sydney CBD parking !!

I just wanted to show this to everyone. We do some work in and around The Rocks area of Sydney, and I saw a spot where I thought we could park. My staff member said we couldn't fit. Oh ye of little faith. Perfect

I would like to state that the vehicles on either side of my van suffered no ill effects from my parking prowess...

Dessert Buffets

Have you noticed all the people doing wonderful things with dessert buffets recently? Very cool I reckon.

I love it. Amy Atlas is the one in the US who does this for the superstars, but we get many requests to replicate the balloon part of the whole set up. Some of the dessert bars we have decorated have so many tempting treats...

Bigger is Better

Originally this client asked for me to cover the ceiling with loose balloons. If you notice the venue is ECQ bar at Circular Quay - floor to ceiling windows. The effect would have been a big balloon release...that would have been very quickly over

So after talking with the client we came up with some big taper and starpoint designs for the room. There were only going to be 35 guests. Big impact, consuming some empty space and creating atmosphere was the design brief.
The client had also ordered some extra lighting effects from their DJ, so we chose the gold and silver foils to maximise the lighting.

Also our designs blended perfectly with the modern, sophisticated style at ECQ Bar. Add the harbour bridge as the backdrop and you have an awesome night lined up.

Half Yearly Sales

We have done some decor for a few Harvey Norman stores for their half yearly sales and this year was no exception. However, times are a bit tough in retail, so the franchisees were after long lasting displays and something very cost effective. Tapers to the rescue!



I started playing with some taper foils and came up with the following design. They have big impact, so the client didn't need as many as usual. They are long lasting, so they went well over the required 4 weeks, and they are a new idea that was very inviting for the customer, and it got people into the store. We added the personalised 20" star with SALE to complete the designs.

Client loved it and wants another new design for next time....

A Great Place to Work!

Imagine walking into your office and seeing this on a Monday morning. You would feel pretty special. This is what happened to a group of people, two weeks ago, in Sydney's north.


Amgen is a client of mine and they have used balloons for celebrations a few times in the last 12 mobths. This time they were celebrating being awarded as one of the Best Places to Work in Australia. I think they came in 15th. The awards were conducted by Business Review Weekly, so it is serious stuff.

To mark the occasion we installed 250 balloons in their foyer (ready by 6.45am on a freeeeezing morning), so that as their staff arrived they got a big surprise.Proof that Amgen is 'officially' a great place to work.

...I wonder if they have any job vacancies...

Funky Dancing Men

No these are not three wise monkeys. They are the new "Funky Dancing Men"...not the ugly bloke in the middle, but the two handsome devils on either side.


A new edition to the brand new MAD Balloons website, you can see that they complement loose balloons on the ceiling very nicely. If you check out the website you will see a range of other uses for these studs! We also make them different sizes for the vertically challenged....

So you need never be without a partner again. Everyone can be part of a 'couple'. Be careful though. As you can see these hunks like to get friendly with the ladies... It's OK Wendy. We won't tell your boyfriend.

New Restaurant Opening....

Welcome to the new Hooters Restaurant Penrith, in Sydney's west. They had their general opening on Saturday, just past. however they called us in to do the decor for their VIP opening. You know you are a Hooters VIP when you can park your Ferrari in fron of the store....

Anyway, we created lots of garland at the entry and the balcony area of the store. This had street frontage so was able to focus the attention of all the passing traffic onto the new restaurant.

Did you know that every hooters in America has a palm tree inside (this is what I am told). We had to get some of these iconic creations in there. Floor space was at a premium so instead of creating a life sized palm tree (from balloons) we modified our feather fantasy table centres to be palm tree centres. cool huh?


As well as the VIP guests, you need your top Hooters girls on hand for the opening. Miss Hooters Australia 2011 (the very lovely Mallory) was on hand and loved MY balloon work so much that she insisted on having her photo taken with me......that's my story and I'm sticking to it!
Work, work, work. My life is constant work.

let's celebrate AMELIA

This is just a short post to show you another way to personalise large star foil balloons. Last post was adding JW letters to one star. This post is about adding one letter to each star. A great effect and one that comes up really well in the photos.


We did this design for Amelia's christening. It was over the cake table ready for the big moment when mum and dad cut the cake, while proudly holding Amelia.

Personalised Stars & Celebrities

I was called in by Parramatta City Library to design something for their new automated loaning system. There new "fast lane checkout" was being rolled out and they wanted something with a racing theme that would stand out in all the libraries. They were very happy with the racing masterbow ribbon on personalised stars, and we installed these in all 5 of the libraries in the council area.



Now that the new Masterchef series is underway, I had better put up my brush with fame. While installing the personalised columns at the Parramatta Library, Jimmy from Masterchef 2010 walked in. He was in the area for the local Indian festival - Parramasala - and can I say, is one of the nicest, most down-to-earth celebrities I have ever met.

Happy Easter everyone

We have another shopping centre client who likes to use us occasionally. They have a "boutique" style centre, so we are able to do a balloon "Easter Egg" display that is interactive.

As you can see the little kids love it.
The manager told me that on Easter Saturday the display is destroyed by the kids as they 'souvenir' items on their way out after the Easter show the centre puts on. He loves it and apparently the kids do too....a win/win situation, so all is good!

We also do a nice big arch at the bottom of the escalators. This is right in the middle of the centre, so it is a real eye catcher for the shoppers. We use heavy weights and ensure all safety standards are met, so that everyone can go about their business. The simple designs really add that Easter Spirit to the centre, and it makes people want to hang around the place....and spend more money in the shops.

I hope you all have a great Easter. Stay safe and have fun.

EASTER BUBBLES

A good client of our wanted some new ideas for Easter for their shopping centres. As times are a bit slow, they wanted to promotion to last 5 weeks. Time to bring out the Qualatex Bubble Balloons.

I presented the Bubble design to the client and they loved it. We installed these in their two shopping centres three weeks ago. I did a maintenance visit today, and they were all still looking fantastic. There are many bubble designs and they are perfect for long lasting displays.

Floral Christening

One of my very good clients asked me to do her daughters christening. She had hired a backdrop that had material and fairylights. She wanted a design to frame that and also the fabulous cake (not pictured unfortunately) She stipulated that it was to be a floral theme. I used some of my floral pillar designs at each side and then pink and lilac flowers across the top - all magically suspended. Not too little, not too much - just right

State Election - Number 1 !

Last weekend we had the state election here in NSW. The Liberal party got into government finally after 16 years. As with the Federal Election last year, MAD Balloons was commissioned to decorate the Liberal Party's party..... We kicked off with the new Qualatex suprafoil numbers. "Make NSW number 1 again" had been the liberal campaign motto, so large number 1 columns were a prefect reflection of this. We combined these with the liberal printed balloons for extra impact. Parramatta Leagues Club is a large venue and we needed to inflate our balloons and coral them in a net so we could arrange them. Wendy and Alicia are working together to size the columns. Wendy is spotting, giving Alicia instructions so that each column is exactly the same height. Once that is all done we move them into position and bingo! It was a sensational party and the balloons behind our new Premier as he made his victory speech looked fantastic.

Sharing is Caring

The thing I love about the balloon industry in NSW is that everyone is willing to help each other out. There are two industry bodies - BASA NSW and QBN. Both are vibrant groups of balloon professionals that offer training and info to members.
At a recent training event I saw this design that was done by Maureen Egan from Balloon Elegance. She shared her design from her portfolio with everyone at the training session.



A client asked me to come up with a design for their Brazilian Carnivale them at the office. Thanks to Maureen, I had the perfect design in my repertoir.

Thankfully Maureen is simply following on from all the instructors who have come before her. When I am called on to instruct I try to share design concepts that will (hopefully) enhance other balloon businesses.

By sharing we create a stronger industry and a bigger base of decorators for our customers to choose from. As a customer you should ask your chosen decorator if they have their CBA (Certified Balloon Artist) or BASA Accreditation. If they do, they are part of a network of professional balloon artists, and you can feel confident in using their services. They can create fantastic designs like the ones you see here.

Black and White...with a hint of Christmas

I wanted to do a short piece about this job we did late last year. There are two reasons.

1) It was one of the most simple and most stunning decor jobs we did (unfortunately the photos do not do it justice).

2) Have a look at the ceiling height.


I booked a Christmas party at a new venue in Sydney that I have never decorated before. I neglected to do my homework on the venue specs, and where we would be able to set up at the venue.

I dropped Alicia and Wendy at the venue, wished them good luck and I raced off to collect the others who were at another job. To their credit, the girls managed to find the tiniest little area, and with time against them, they got it done.


When I returned the client loved it, and it took my breath away as I entered the room. I was amazed that such a simple concept could look so sensational.
I apologise that the photos do not do it justice.

Christmas Arch Outdoors ?

I was called by Forth Wall Events and they wanted a "Grand Entry" for their clients Christmas Party. It had to incorporate '80' because the client was celebrating 80 years in business in Australia. Also it was outdoors, so had to be able to withstand the elements..... The easy part of the brief was the 1000 balloon drop and confetti canons from the stage inside the marquee, but I'll do a blog for drops and confetti another time.



So we settled upon this design that fulfilled all the requirements. It was a very hot and windy day at Randwick racecourse early in December. We had to underinflate the balloons so they wouldn't burst in the heat, and we had to secure the frames of the almost 3mtr tall 80 sculpture so it wouldn't be blown over.

...Alicia would love to be able to give up balloons to be Australia's Next Top Model. Please no-one tell her I posted this pic.

A Masquerade Christmas

I love masquerade parties. A company came to me with some great ideas and the budget to make it a reality. They had hired out the dungeon of a castle for their event and every room was to have a different colour scheme and different designs.

At the entry we created some masquerade twisted towers.












The red room was to have funky top centrepieces.















The black room was to feature lots and lots of feathers.










...even on the floor bunches



















The blue room saw some topiary trees with feather highlights - add lots of blue lighting for effect.

















To finish the whole thing off we did some floor to ceilig columns. And of course all the designs had co-ordinating masks on them and lots of lights in the balloons.