We recently connected with Carolynn Hayman and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Carolynn thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?

Even though I’ve been a balloon artist for well over a decade now, I’m still learning about balloons at every chance I get! Last year, I attended a balloon convention in The Netherlands, and that was a great experience! There were classes taught by amazing balloon artists from all over the world, and I learned some new techniques and designs which gave me new ideas for sure. I also attended two conventions in the US this year – one for balloon twisting and one for balloon decorating. I competed in the costume competition at the twisting convention with a fun cow costume. There were lots of incredible costumes this year, and most of the artists are happy to share ideas and creative tips which is really nice. Right after that, I designed a clown costume for a local festival using some new techniques that I had learned about from an Australian artist. I like to learn new tips and techniques whenever I can and from wherever I can!

Now I regularly teach balloon art! I sell online tutorials for other balloon artists, and I also teach live classes at various balloon conventions. It’s really fun to see other artists take what they learned in my class and start making their own original designs. I also offer classes to people who are not balloon artists. My team building workshops are really fun for groups of coworkers or athletes. We have a little introduction to working with balloons and then have small groups work together to build balloon costumes. It’s so exciting at the end of the workshops to see the people taking photos of their costumes and try them on. Most people have never worked with balloons before but are able to have a really postive experience with them! Who knows if I might be getting a new person started in our industry!

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I started working with balloons as a hobby when my daughter was ten years old. We had books from the library and some resources online. Once I found a group in Michigan who met regularly to twist balloons, I found a community of people who were incredibly generous with information and sharing designs and techniques! At that time, there were a few advanced artists who came through the area and gave classes. I loved being able to learn from them!

A few years later, I attended my first balloon convention and expanded my community. The classes were so exciting, and the level of art was incredible. I was so inspired! I kept attending that convention annually and even started competing in a few of the categories. One of the instructors took an interest in me and my art and gave me some great feedback. He also invited me to be a part of a gathering of balloon artists that winter, and that is where I learned about balloon costumes! As soon as I put on a. balloon costume, I was hooked. It was so fun to be inside and be able to make people laugh. Once I started designing and performing in my own original costume designs, I found my real passion.

As far as day to day business, I focus on smaller events and a lot of birthday deliveries. Being in a college town, I get a lot of requests for birthday deliveries. It’s fun to make a special design and then be able to send the parents pictures of their student with the balloons. I have families who order from me every year that their kid is in school and then book their graduation balloons with me, too! Graduation is my busiest time of year. I start booking in January for that year. I try to offer new designs each year as well as some standard favorites. Two colors that are always in stock for me are Maize and Blue!

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

I feel so lucky to be a part of celebrations with my art. Almost everything I make is for a happy event, and my clients love how fun and colorful balloons are! The most rewarding job is when clients let me work with their ideas and create what i think will work best for their event. It’s great to hear how much they loved the balloons and also see photos of them enjoying them at the event.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

One of the things people can do to help support artists is to share their work! Whether it’s buying something for themselves or a friend, telling other people about the artist or sharing and liking posts on social media, it all helps to bring attention to art. I share a lot of photos and videos online, and it’s great when people comment or like my posts. It helps get them recognized and out to more people. There’s a parent Facebook group at the University of Michigan where a lot of my clients say they have seen photos of my work. When I deliver balloons to a student, I try to get a photo of them with the balloons to send to their family. When they share those pictures in a Facebook group, it brings attention to my art and business and helps get me more customers. I truly appreciate that!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.popdesignsandcreations.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/popdesignsandcreations/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/popdesignsandcreations

Image Credits

Jen Geer Photography for the photo of me on my front porch.