Welcome to our new series of videos, focusing on providing the basics you need to know if you are in the balloon and party industry. Guess what we’ve called this new series? Balloon Basics!

In the first video we are joined by Mark from Qualatex who will take us through the different finishes of balloons that you will come across in the industry and what those differences are. To start with Mark shows a Diamond Clear latex balloon which is the base latex that they make all their balloons from. They then add pigment to in order to get the various colours and finishes of latex balloons.

Jewel

Next up are the Jewel Tone balloons, these are similar to the Diamond Clear in that they have a translucent finish which creates a very vibrant looking balloon. These balloons are very strong in pigment and colour which makes the uninflated balloon look quite dark. For instance, purple balloons looks black when uninflated but will become the correct colour when fully inflated.

Opaque

Next are the opaque finishes of balloon which are called the Standard and Fashion ranges. These are a much more of a solid colour and make up the bulk of the balloons that you would come across when decorating or selling latex balloons. The difference between the Standard and Fashion is just the colour; Standard balloons are basic colours whereas Fashion balloons are hues, tints and tones of the basic colours to make a much wider breadth of colours.

Metallic

Finally, we move onto the Metallic latex balloons. These are sometimes called Pearl or Pearlised and have a reflective pigment mixed into the latex. This gives them a shine similar to what you would expect from a pearl, hence the name! These Metallic balloons do come in different ranges as well, you have the Radiant Pearl colours which are much more vibrant, opulent and darker colour range and you have the Pastel Pearl colours which give you the softer pastel finishes.

 
That’s it for this show, look out for another one of these videos in 2 weeks’ time!

Rob

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