The following article first appeared in issue 52 of the Magic Menu. The Magic Menu is a bi-monthly magazine for restaurant entertainers. For subscription info, contact jsisti@ibm.net.
It's been a while since I've sat down to write one of these. It's certainly not because I haven't been writing at all. Quite the contrary. I just finished a huge project that went in a slightly different direction from the restaurant work I was doing previously. My first CD-ROM, "Attack of the 50 Foot Demon", is completed. The focus of it is on the really huge stuff that can be made with balloons.
When I say huge, I'm referring to things made with at least several dozen, or perhaps several hundred balloons. One particular job that I did a few months back used 15,000 balloons. In an effort to tie it in with the content of the Magic Menu, I thought I'd suggest using things like this as a marketing tool for yourself and a restaurant. I'm not suggesting that you go for the several thousand balloon approach, but a few dozen balloons in a rather unusual creation can bring quite a few people into a restaurant on the night you're working as well as advertise the skills that someone might be able to commission for a later date.
I ran into a problem with one restaurant that I worked in where the manager only wanted me once a month. Regular restaurant workers know how bad a move that can be. The restaurant guests will never remember when you're there. My solution was to make a large sculpture that could be hung up in the front of the restaurant a week ahead of time. A large woven figure will easily last throughout the week. A sign hanging off of it indicated when I would next appear. It also contained all of my contact information so that people knew how to get a hold of me all week long. The result for me was a lot more bookings.
An alternative use for a large sculpture would be as a door prize for a restaurant guest. Each person that wants a chance to win just has to answer a short survey. The survey answers can be used by the restaurant to improve service. With the right questions on it, it can further be used to demonstrate for the manager just how valuable your services are.
Obviously the amount of space is limited here, so describing these things in great detail is hard. I will however try to offer some ideas of what can be done, and point you to my CD-ROM and website for further information.
A vase full of flowers is always popular. The vase I usually make is constructed out of fifteen 260 twisty balloons. The flowers can be any style at all.
A wedding cake, made with the same technique as the vase, can suggest to people that you would be available to perform at, or possibly even decorate, a wedding.
The basic idea behind both of those sculptures is a series of concentric circles twisted into a set of spokes. This can be seen here, in this picture of a starburst.
In fact, the starburst by itself may be enough to use as a decoration on a wall.
The technique shown here is usually referred to as balloon weaving. I prefer to think of it as balloon fabric creation. The reason is the parallel to the number of things you can do with patterns in textiles. With a little bit of imagination, the possibilities are rather incredible.
A huge amount of information with great details is available for free on the web at http://www.fooledya.com/book/attackof.html. Or, if you prefer the full thing, I'm more than happy to sell the CD. Attack of the 50 Foot Demon is available for $20 + $3 shipping. It can be ordered by phone at 716-359-8695, by mail at PO Box 23523, Rochester, NY 14692, or on the web at http://www.fooledya.com/sale.html.