Balloon garland calculator: How many balloons for a balloon garland?

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How many balloons do I need, for a balloon garland

I’m I going to run out of balloons?

So, you’re making a balloon garland and you have no idea how many balloons you need? I hear you. It can be very frustrating and stressful starting a DIY project and not knowing if you’re going to be able to create the vision that’s in your head while at the same time worrying about running out of balloons midway.

Well, my friends, I understand your frustration and that’s the reason I created some handy little infographics, that will help you when planning your balloon garland whether it be for a baby shower, birthday party, or any special event you have coming up.

Here at Party glow up I scour the internet to find you the best-rated balloon garland kits online. A lot of frustration from buying DIY balloon garlands is that the images used can be quite misleading, people think the kit will contain everything to make the huge deluxe garland that’s on the product image but in reality, you could need multiple kits, and balloons in a variety of sizes to create the look for your special occasion.

All balloon kits recommended at party glow up come in a variety of different size balloons, you can shop our selection Here

The key is to know what size of garland you would like to make in advance before purchasing your kit, the most popular sizes are 4ft, 6ft, 8ft, and 10 ft. Once you have established the size, you can work out if the balloon garland kit has the correct number of balloons for your needs.

Here are some balloon garland examples

small dinosaur balloon garland
balloon garland on teepee
8ft white and rose gold party garland
balloon garland on sail boards

 

They are the best way to add the wow factor to any kind of party, they can be used as a photo backdrop, matched to your color scheme to incorporate the theme of the party, or even draped across the dessert table. They are an inexpensive way to make a big impact at your next party.

How many balloons do I need?

Firstly, you need to work out what size of garland you would like to make, below is an infographic showing you the most popular sizes of garlands.

infographic showing balloon garland sizes

 

The infographic below acts like a balloon arch calculator, this shows you how many balloons are needed to make the spine of an organic balloon garland, the most important metric is how many 10 or 11-inch balloons there are in the kit as this is the main size of balloon needed to make the balloon garlands spine. You need different sizes of balloons to add variation and depth to your garland, the other sizes are just for the look and appearance of the balloon garland.

 

For every 1ft, you need six balloons in 10 or 11 inches tied into a cluster, by always sticking to this calculation you will always be able to work out how many balloons you need. it’s a good idea to account for a few extra in case of any popping balloons.

Once the spine is made, you would add in your accent balloons, i.e., smaller balloons like 5-inch balloons or 3-inch balloons, confetti balloons, and your large balloons 18-inch or 24-inch balloons.

How are Balloon garlands made?

Balloon garlands can be made using various techniques, the most popular ways are using either a balloon garland strip or hand-tying the balloons using fishing wire.

You can find our organic balloon garland tutorial Here my guide is a super easy way to make your own balloon garland using easy steps that are simple to understand.

In my experience, you will get a much better-looking garland using this method over the tape method.

Here is a low down on the different methods to make a balloon garland.

TAPE METHOD

Within each balloon arch kit, there is a strip of hard plastic tape that has holes throughout its length this is called balloon tape or balloon strip, to make the garland you would need to blow up the balloons in the kit using a handheld balloon pump or an electric pump, either one of these is a must when making a balloon garland and the ones we recommend are available to purchase here

Once you have blown up the balloons and tied each one, you would start pulling the end of the balloon through one of the holes on the tape until the balloon knot stops the balloon from slipping back out of the hole, and you would continue until you have the garland at the size and look, you’re after.

Pro’s

  • Tape is in the kit.
  • some people find this method easy
  • popular if this is your first time making a garland.

Con’s

  • looks pretty basic, won’t give you a professional look
  • balloons easily pop out of the holes
  • not good for traveling
  • fiddly to add balloons.

ORGANIC METHOD

This method involves using different sizes of balloons and blowing them up using either a hand pump or electric balloon pump and creating clusters of balloons. The most common clusters are balloon pairs (two balloons tied together) or quads (4 balloons tied together).

You would then tie the clusters together, the most popular way to do this is to use fishing line but a pro tip is to not use anything but the balloon knot from one balloon in your first cluster tied to the knot of a balloon from the next cluster, this is by far the easiest way to make your balloon garland.

Pro’s

  • More professional fuller looking garland
  • can be made big and you can use giant latex balloons within the design not just standard sizes
  • can add specialty balloons and different types of balloons ie Foil balloons, and happy birthday letter balloons.
  • can be made in sections before the event, easy to transport and put together at the venue.

Con’s

  • Can be tricky at first to tie knots.
example of style of balloon garland.

How to hang your balloon garland

Command hooks are also available as command strips are the best way to hang your balloon garland, they come in various sizes for different needs with some hooks being able to hold 3.5kg. These handy hooks can be used for most types of party decoration and are a perfect way to hang banners, fairy lights, and signs and are easily purchased online and in most party supply stores.

The little plastic hooks have a flat back, you also get a strip of adhesive that you attach to the wall, you then place the flat part of the hook onto the adhesive and hold for a few seconds until they have bonded together. To remove the hook, you would slowly pull down on the adhesive strip and if done correctly will come away without damaging any paintwork.

To hang the garland, you would first attach the command hook to the wall. The balloon garland needs two hoops on both ends to attach to the command hooks. The most popular way is by using a 260q balloon, big elastic band, elastic, or balloon ribbon.

You can also hang your garland onto an easel to create a great welcome feature, moon gate, arches, rectangle arches, sailboards, or any event prop, you can shop my selection of recommended event props,  Here   They are a good investment if you have future events and really add the wow factor to your special parties.

Balloon garlands can also be hung outside on fences, or brickwork, for this you would need stronger industrial sticky hooks that work a lot better than command hooks for outdoor conditions, available to purchase  Here

Balloon garlands look good free-standing against a wall or piece of furniture if adding command hooks to the wall is not an option.

Conclusion

The good news making a balloon garland should not be stressful, by using my calculation as a rough guide you should always be able to work out approximately how many balloons in equal numbers you will need for your diy balloon arches. The key is to know what arch shape you would like to make prior to ordering your diy balloon arch kit.

For best results, a kit with different size of balloons will give you a more professional organic look. By not using the decorating strip and the balloon glue dots for attaching the small balloons and instead creating balloon clusters using my method found Here  your balloon decorations will look amazing. Whether it’s your first balloon arch or your 10th, switching to this method will have you creating garlands like a pro.

Check out my other posts that answer some common questions regarding balloon garlands

How long does a balloon garland last?  Here

How much does a balloon garland cost?  Here