From balloon-request@cvs.rochester.edu Sat Aug 26 11:35:40 1995 id AA27599; Sat, 26 Aug 95 11:31:20 EDT Date: Sat, 26 Aug 1995 11:31:09 -0400 (EDT) From: Larry Moss To: Balloon Sculpting Mailing List Subject: Review: Qualatex 321Q Book Message-Id: Balloon Magic - 321Q figures by Marvin Hardy published by Pioneer ISBN: 0-9616600-7-4 price (U.S.): $9.95 Figures in book: Apple, pumpkin, rocket, bee, hummingbird, mosquito, dragonfly, penguin, head, head and hat, eyeball, helicopter Quality of instructions: I found the instructions very easy to follow in most cases, however I felt that the bubble sizes given in the book were almost always too large. The 321's seemed shorter than the book suggested. The only scultpure I was not clear on was the dragonfly. It took a while to figure out what the instructions were describing. Format of the book: The fact that it is spiral bound, unlike most of the balloon books I have, makes it easy to work with. The photos in this book were fairly well done, but I usually prefer simple, clear drawings to photos. Simple drawings always look less cluttered to me. I found the constant reminders scattered throughout the book, reminding me to buy only Qualatex balloons, to be disturbing. The figures themselves: There wasn't a very great selection. Some of the ideas, especially making heads out of 321's, are great. Others, like the hummingbird and the mosquito, could have been mentioned as variations on the bee without going through the same step by step directions several times. In other words, I would have preferred greater variety, but what's there is well worth learning. I especially like the heads and eyeballs. Both were new to me, and I intend to use them now that I know them. One thing to note is that despite the name of the book, 260s are needed for most of the sculptures. I don't see this as a bad thing at all, but many people prefer to make sculptures with only one balloon. Level of the figures in the book: Most were fairly easy and could be learned quickly by a beginner. Only a couple toward the end would take a bit of practice. I had a bit of trouble getting used to making a head. Price/value: I think the cost is worthwhile to anyone that is already proficient with 260's. The few new ideas I found in it would easily justify the cost. However, I would recommend another book with more variety for anyone just getting started.