Here are some resources for the novice balloon twister.
How to Twist
The best place for help on twisting balloons is on the internet at balloonhq.com. The absolute best. And, although they do have memberships available with more features, all of these features are free of charge:
- It has balloon sculpture basics written by hundreds of professional balloon twisters and amateur enthusiasts: http://balloonhq.com/faq/twists_101.html
- It has a vibrant email list/forum that where you can ask for help and advice: http://balloonhq.com/subscribe/
- There are also years of archives you could glean for oodles of information! They are semi-organized on the balloonhq.com home page under: Balloon Facts and Fun. You can also search the archives here: http://www.balloonhq.com/twistmail/
Members get their own website, they get to search the photos (which is very helpful if you are looking for great ideas) and they get a special balloonhq email address.
Where to get Balloons
For my Maine Students: To order balloons you have a few options.
The best brands, for a quality product, would be Qualatex or Betallic.
Locally you can try to get balloons at a party store. This is best if you only need a few balloons. Honestly, I have found the selections to be sub-par, and very expensive. If you have a larger gig you might find the balloon quality better and it might also be cheaper to order from one of the businesses below.
For Larger orders locally. You can try ground shipping at both of these businesses, you will likely get the order in a couple of days.
- Semi-Locally try Clown Supplies in New Hampshire: http://www.clownsupplies.com/
- For wholesale balloon orders, you can try Rainbow Balloons in Massachusetts, www.rainbowballoons.com
Not local at all, try TMyers (they have a lot of good stuff and are well-suited to help balloon twisters): http://www.tmyers.com/