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By: Carol B. Cahall, CBA, The Main Event, LLC

Balloon décor has made incredible progress since its creation in the early 1980s.  Starting on the west coast of the United States, professional balloon decorating reached the east coast of the United States in the early 1990s and has continued to impress event planners, guests and brides every since.

The balloon industry has been around since 1824 when Professor Michael Faraday used rubber balloons in his laboratory experiments with helium.  Shortly thereafter, in 1847, the first toy balloons were created.  From 1847 until 1986 when the first publication on balloon decorating appeared, the balloon was exclusively a toy, often associated with clowns and circuses.  While the balloons utilized in balloon decorating are structurally similar to toy balloons, they are used to create stunning, dramatic and previously unimaginable, and unaffordable, decorations for events ranging from casual celebrations to the most elegant wedding.

In order to understand the art of decorating with balloons, it is best to stop thinking of a balloon as a child’s toy and think of it as a construction material.  As with any construction material used in the creation of event decorations, such as fabric (chiffon, lame, etc), props (wood, foam, plaster), floral (flowers) or glass centerpieces (glassware, mirrors), the basic material is unusable in its basic form.  However, as with all event décor construction materials, in the hands of a master craftsman, stunning and elegant results can be achieved.

Balloons are popular as an event décor material due the wide range of colors in which they are available, their ability to fill large spaces inexpensively and their ability to be connected, altered and crafted into a wide range of shapes. The ability to accommodate a wide range of colors is critical to creating the desired effect at any event.  Color is one of the most powerful aspects of visual design.  Along with texture, color provides the basis for a visually appealing and pleasant appearance.  Unlike other event décor materials, balloons are readily available in a wide range of colors and textures and can be easily, and cost effectively, adapted to meet the needs of an intimate reception, or a coliseum filling extravaganza

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 In their simplest form, balloons can be attached to a decorative weighting material and provide an inexpensive centerpiece which also disrupts the visual path of guests at an event.  This is particularly useful when a reception is being held in a very large room, the walls of the room do not provide the desired atmosphere or when ceiling height gives a sensation of being in a warehouse.  When combined in other structures, balloons can fill the air with massive, stunning arches, swags and garlands.  Even more impressive is a balloon wall in which balloons are interconnected into an opaque, stunning structure that more closely resembles a stone wall than anything constructed from a child’s plaything.

Finally, by combining balloons with supporting structures and frames, balloons can become the paint in an artist’s palate.  By interlocking balloons and framing structure, balloons can be adapted to provide visually striking structures ranging from text to logos to pictures suitable for display in an art museum.

Balloon décor has redefined the uses of balloons.  While initially created as a laboratory instrument, and rapidly adapted to be a child’s plaything, a small, highly trained group of balloon professionals have redefined the purpose of the humble balloon over 150 years into its lifetime.  By stepping back from its original purpose and viewing the balloon as a construction material, these dedicated professionals are leading the event decorating industry in providing stunning, elegant, complex and visually appealing effects for some of the largest and highest profile events in the country.  In addition, balloon décor is the fastest growing of the major categories of event décor around the world.  In less than twenty years of effort, balloons have been transformed from a child’s plaything to a crucial tool in the toolbox of professional event decorator.