We recently connected with Stephanie Green and have shared our conversation below.

Stephanie, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

I learned my craft as many creators in this time, through YouTube University. Knowing what I know now, I would have tried to attend conferences and classes sooner. Learning different techniques from other artists has increased my skills, time manaegment and designs significantly. For example, one small but very helpful tip that I learned from a local artist, is a different way to position my hands when inflating balloons. This gives the artist more control over the balloon and decreases the inflation time. In the balloon and event industry, timing is essential. So, any technique that could shorten the “set-up” time is beneficial. An obstacle that stood in the way of learning more is me. We live in a time where almost anything you want to learn is available at your fingertips. For example, there are always awesome new technique or designs that interest me. Instead of practicing, I tell myself “I will try it tomorrow.” Then tomorrow turns into the next day etc. Major growth requires practice and dedication and procrastination stands in the way. I am, however, being intentional to try new techniques, as well as enrolling in classes, seminars and conferences.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My name is Stephanie JOYcelyn Green, I was born in Jamaica but grew up in Boston, MA and I am a mother of a 4 year old amazing boy. How I got started in the balloon industry may sound cliché. But God literally gave me a bag of balloons. I went to visit a friend who was clearing out items from her basement and she gave me a BIG bag of balloons. Every type of balloon you can think of. Foils, Geo’s, 5, 12, 18 inch, link balloons, EVERY balloon. Prior to this, I was praying to God for him to give me a passion. And Based on those prayers and how the balloons entered my life, I have to give God all the glory. I always had an interest in event décor and wanted to be an event stylist. But I didn’t know which direction to go. So I hired a business coach. We decided it was best to “niche” down and start with balloons. Currently, I create luxurious designs such as balloon garlands, walls, sculptures, ceiling installs and gifts in a balloon. Using only the best quality balloons. All of my clients, have the same thing in common. They want their event décor to be beautiful. Balloons are guaranteed to provide just that and be the statement of the room. From inquiry to installation, our goal is to ensure our client’s entire experience and every detail is executed to their satisfaction. I also have a YouTube channel where I give tutorials on mainly balloon stuffing/gifts in a balloon. I am however, transitioning the channel to focus on all things balloon related. The channel was started by accident. I couldnt afford a balloon stuffing machine, so I tried various methods and suggested contraptions. I found stuffing by hand worked best for me. I decided to show members of a “stuffed balloon ” Facebook group how I stuffed a balloon without a balloon stuffing machine in hopes that it would help others in the group create their designs.Even though the video was private and could only be viewed via the link, the views increased rapidly. For me, that was a sign to create more videos. Currently, that video has 1.5M views and my channel has grown to over 17k subscribers. I enjoy teaching and sharing my knowledge and YouTube is the perfect platform to do so. An Item I created that I believe is a great tool is a 365 day planner specifically created with the balloon artist in mind. It has sections to include details needed for each event. Such as the event set up and start time. Client information and job cost. The planner is digital so it can be used with any PDF annotation app and could be shared with your team. I was sitting on the idea for over a year. So I am really proud of creating and actually executing this planner. I hope the industry finds it useful as well.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

For me, the most rewarding aspect of being an artist or creative is the feeling of accomplishment and knowing that what I provide will leave an impression that can last a lifetime . Seeing the beauty of my hard work and creative efforts is incredibly satisfying and inspiring. It’s a great way for me to express myself through art in a unique and meaningful way. Finally, I enjoy the ability to share my work with others and receive feedback from them. Knowing that people appreciate and enjoy what I create is a great feeling!

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

A lesson that I had to unlearn is that college is the only way to succeed in life. It is important to remember that there are many paths to success and that college is just one of them. My parents always encouraged me to get an education or degree, which I tried , but it wasn’t for me. At that time, they didn’t see the value in entrepreneur type ventures. I can hear their voice ” Doing hair is not going to get you anywhere, you need to get a degree”.Though their advice was not ill intended, my journey to entrepreneurship and success would have started earlier. There are plenty of successful people who did not go to college and still achieved great things. It’s important to recognize that success is relative and that what works for one person may not work for another. Ultimately, it’s important to find a career path that works for you, regardless of whether or not it involves college.

Contact Info:

• Website: Joyexpressionsco.com
• Instagram: _joyexpressions
• Facebook: Joy Expressions
• Youtube: Joy Expressions
• Yelp: Joy Expressions

Image Credits
D.Irving Photography Kayjoplin Wedding and Events Fuertes Photography Flavio D Photography Shots by Lewry Photography