Balloon Review #109 - The Balloon Artistes Guild TBAG #8 Brian Asman

Available from http://www.balloonartwholesale.co.uk

Having now been a member to TBAG for almost 3 years (I think) it is probably about time I reviewed one of the club DVDs. Hopefully this will tempt some of you to sign up for next year! I've chosen the most recent DVD featuring the lecture from Brian Asman. I have chosen this one as I didn't attend the lecture in person so it would allow me to evaluate the quality of the club DVDs.

To begin with, whilst this DVD has menus for rapid access to the individual models, there are no fancy camera angles just a single fixed position camera that is left to run throughout the lecture. This actually adds to the appeal and allows you to feel that you are at the lecture yourself. You get to hear everything that is said including the jokes and comments from the audience some of which are very helpful if not entertaining!

This DVD is not for beginners. You will need to be familiar with the basics as this is not a step by step simple instructional guide. The fixed camera is sometimes a little too far away from the action which is why you need to be competent doing certain twists yourself.

So let's see what we have here...

GIRAFFE

A quick and simple 350Q giraffe design. Ideal for line work when you have a little extra time. Sizing is critical here to maximise the use of the 350Q. Add some additional artwork on the body if you have time. Very practical and usable.

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BIRD

A very cute bird design utilising 350Qs. Plenty of variations can be made here just by adding different colours. The body can be made using a heart or a round. This model is self standing and looks great on a headband.

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SNAKE

I really like this head design. I would recommend inserting the eyes whilst you are making the head instead of afterwards. The use of a 9"/16" round for the base is cool. Add a water weight to make it stand on its own.

The basket is option - you could just leave a long body instead.

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Quote from: "nippy99"So let's see what we have here...

That always puts a smile on my face Darren when I read this  

Ha ha - it has become my catch phrase!

TEDDY

A cute looking teddy - a variation of the original single balloon teddy design taken to the next level. The use of 5" rounds for feet make this one free standing. Unfortunately the angle of my photo looks like he only has one eye.

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WHALES

These small whales are brilliant and perfect for mounting onto a headband. The photo doesn't really do them justice. Super cute and reasonably quick to make.

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LION

Not a bad lion but I can't help thinking the body is too small for the size of the head. Well constructed and the basic design can be used to make many different big cats. Not really one I will use.

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PEOPLE / FACES

Brian demonstrates a number of excellent face designs. I have only shown the basic one here. This section is worth the price of the DVD alone. Very adaptable, really good expressions and incredibly versatile. Well worth a look.

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TURTLE

A fairly quick turtle design which can be made in under 5 mins. Rather than use four rounds for the feet it is easy to thread 260Qs through the body as legs saving a few pennies!

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MONKEY

I'm not too sure about the face of this monkey. It doesn't particularly look like a monkey to me. The body design is similar to the Buster Balloon one I have been making for many years. For me I will stick the my usual one even though this design isn't bad.

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LADYBUG

A really cute character with a multi-purpose head design. Brian's original uses a polka-dot print (i think) but I just drew my dots on. The head is a little tricky to position the eyes. Lots of potential with this one.

Join TBAG before the prices go up!

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