Today’s itinerary advice: Always
plan a trip before you go on it.
So, dear reader, I assume you are here to accompany me on this exhilarating adventure – learning the art of the balloon animal.
So, dear reader, I assume you are here to accompany me on this exhilarating adventure – learning the art of the balloon animal.
If anyone out there is afraid of popping balloons (like my older sister), I advise you to run away now or choose this to be the moment you [vicariously] face your fear. I say this because I am sure my inexperience and clumsiness is going to cause the unfortunate end of several balloons.
I will be spending the next six weeks or so reading online tutorials, watching videos, googling a lot of stuff, and trying to twist inflated pieces of plastic into complex shapes. Very rough timeline shown below:
At this point, you might be thinking, “Uhh… that’s great. Not quite sure how this is a significant real-world skill though.” That thought did pass through my mind, so here’s my answer: balloon animals are a very successful way to a little kid’s heart. To elaborate, I volunteer a lot – at my own church, on various mission trips, at school – and often times the job includes taking care of and entertaining little kids. Balloon animals are a surefire way to do that.
My other reason is that I’m an artist. Whether it’s sketching, painting, doodling, building, or shooting (photos), I love to play around and experiment creatively. The hope is that balloon-animal-making might somehow help with my spatial thinking, proportions and that kind of stuff. This stems from an idea my mom planted in my head a while back – any kind of practice with art, regardless of the specific action, helps you learn how to more effectively get that image in your head out onto paper, or in this case, plastic.
Before my final presentation, I plan on asking a few friends for requests to see how well I can reply. This means I’ll have to learn as many different shapes as possible, and maybe a few shortcuts if possible. My end goal is to be able to make most things on request, and be able to talk to the other person as I make it, especially if it’s a little kid.
Game plan set and ready, map drawn out.
xx| Liliana, animal-balloon amateur
Looking forward: Stage two will include packing for the journey.
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ReplyDeleteUghh balloon-animal making is soo cooooll!! I'm really excited and looking forward to seeing some of your balloon animals. As an artist, have you ever worked on balloon animals before? What are your expectations for the learning process--meaning do you expect it to be easy, medium, or hard creating balloon animals?
ReplyDeleteWith my two-days' experience so far, I know that some designs are much easier than others. Proportions are probably the hardest - I can never quite figure out how long to make the legs relative to the head and things like that. So it takes me pretty long sometimes, but hopefully it'll only get better with practice!
DeleteThis is absolutely adorable!! I really love the design of your blog, and it’s really great that you would learn how to make balloon animals for the children you help out. I think you definitely have enough spatial intelligence and creativity to reach your goal. I’m already packed for the journey and looking forward to your next blog post!
ReplyDeleteAww, thanks :) I'm following your journey too, and excited for both!
DeleteI don't think I would have thought of this as a project idea. I know you're incredibly talented at art, and I think this creative and open mind of yours is definitely a major factor for that. Volunteering for kids can be tiring sometimes, and I think making balloon animals will surely capture their attention; if I ever see you make balloon animals, *I* probably would get super excited too! I'm really looking forward to the amazing balloon art you'll be showing us!
ReplyDeleteHmm... well, I guess I'll have to ask you for some requests when I get there then.
DeleteThis is so cute! Balloon animals will have the little kids all over you. If it were anyone else, I'd be wary that they'd get stuck doing boring, textbook balloon animals, but since it's you and you're great at art I know it'll turn out awesome. Good luck (although you probably won't need it)!
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DeleteDo "boring, textbook balloon animals" mean dogs and such? Because I actually have instructions for how to make a unicorn :)
DeleteWow! At first I was thinking that this isn't going to be that special, all you have to do is memorize ways to to twist a balloon to make, say, a dog. But its so much cooler! Are there specific folds and twists that get you different outcomes/designs? You just have to master them and you can start creating everything! Can you make me a baby duck? I feel like that would be difficult. Can't wait to see what you can do!
ReplyDeleteInteresting, I might have to make a mama duck so you can tell it's a baby duck. I'll see what I can do.
DeleteThis sounds really fun! I like that (in addition to pleasing children) you're using this to expand your artistic abilities. It sounds like you are interested in this project. This is a really creative idea, and I can't wait to see how much you learn. If you're taking requests yet, I'd like a giraffe.
ReplyDeleteNot requests quite yet, but a giraffe was definitely on my list to learn. I'll make sure to get you one by the end of this.
DeleteI think that this project sounds like its going to be a lot of fun! I have tried to make balloon animals before, however, I have never been incredibly successful at it. I could never really make any complicated ones. I hope that you do a great job with this!
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