Face Painting and Balloon Twisting Blog

Each year, International Clown Week is celebrated during the first week of August. Clown Week became official in the United States when President Nixon signed Public Law 91-433 and proclaimed August 1-7 as Clown Week.

Thanks to the charitable nature of clowns and clown alleys, many clowns in the United States use the week to give back to their community. Some do it by wearing their clown shoes to their regular day jobs, others donate their time for one or more charity events. To further encourage clown alleys to paricipate in activities during International Clown Week, Clowns of America International (COAI) gives out the Charlie Award. The Charlie Award is a trophy that is given to the COAI Clown Alley which best documents and celebrates International Clown Week (August 1-7).

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Public law 91-443

JOINT RESOLUTION
October 8,1970
91st Congress H. J. Res. 236

Authorizing and requesting the President of the United States to issue a proclamation designating the week of August 1 through August 7, 1971, as “National Clown Week”.

Resolved hy the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled^ That the President of the United States is authorized and requested to issue a proclamation (1) designating the week of August 1 through August 7,1971, as “National Clown Week”, (2) inviting the Governors of the States and territories of the United States to issue proclamations for like purposes, and (3) urging the people of the United States to give heed to the contributions made oy clowns in their entertainment at children’s hospitals, charitable institutions, institutions for the mentally retarded, and generally helping to lift the spirits and boost the morale of our people, at a time when it is especially desirable and necessary.
_ Approved October 8, 1970.

Source – http://www.internationalclownweek.org/

I mentioned before, sometimes I like to see the video of a real face painter in action as seen by the parents over a professional doing a face painting demo in their own home. Here are two videos from parents taken at Universal Studios…

Boy becomes Frankenstein at Universal Studios

Boy becomes Dog

I have never been big on reading books. In school, the only books I ever read, were the books my teachers said I had to read. But, once I decided to become a clown, I realized I needed books to help me learn the skills I needed to succeed. I ordered a few books from the various websites that sell clown, face painting, and balloon supplies. I also got a few books from Amazon.com. It wasn’t until I was bored one weekend and decided to venture into a used book store that I discovered there was a cheaper way to get great books.

I have been visiting the local used book store every month or two and never walk away without finding something interesting. I have found books on juggling, magic, mime, clowning, face painting, balloons, puppets, jokes and a variety of other topics. The best thing is that I rarely have to pay more than $3 for a book. I don’t think I can go wrong spending $10 and coming home with 3 or 4 used books. Actually, it is usually more like $30 and 8 to 10 books.

Friday, July 8th was Cow Appreciation Day at Chick-Fil-A and now is the time to vote for your favorite cow. I hope you will vote for me by visiting my page at http://www.cowappreciationday.com/gallery/detail/432

Mike at Chick-Fil-A on Cow Appreciation Day

Friday, July 8th is Cow (Customer) Appreciation Day at Chick-fil-A and customers who come dressed head to toe as cows get a free meal. Visit their website http://www.cowappreciationday.com/ for more details.

So, here are some ideas for cow balloons or face painting designs.

Each month, I host a face painting and balloon jam at the Cici’s Pizza in Chantilly. It is normally on the 2nd Monday of the month, and in July, the official jam will be on Monday, July 11th.

This month, we will share ideas for dealing with lines. The theme is only a conversation starter… come with your questions and ideas for dealing with lines of kids (both at birthday parties and larger festivals) and share with others. What do you do when faced with 15 kids who all want to be next? Bring your ideas and an open mind for the discussion. The regular Jam will be from 7:00-9:00 pm when the restaurant closes. Bring your balloons and face painting supplies.

Note: The theme is more a conversation starter for the dinner period of the jam. It is not a lecture but an open opportunity to ask questions of the group or share what has worked in the past.

The actual jam portion of the night begins around 7:00 and continues until Cici’s closes at 9:00pm. You can come as early or late as you like. The jam is open to face painters and balloon twisters of all skill levels.

June Face Painting and Balloon Jam in Chantilly
Monday, July 11th
Buffet from 6:00 – 7:00
Jam from 7:00 – Close

CiCi’s Pizza Buffet
14392 Chantilly Crossing Lane
Chantilly, VA 20151
703-961-9100

The Snazaroo USA website (http://www.snazaroo.us/) is a great resource for any face painter.

Several years before I became a clown and started learning how to do balloons or face painting, I discovered the Snazaroo website. I was interested in becoming better at painting my face for Halloween and found their photo contest pages (http://www.snazaroo.us/photos.htm) an incredible resource. The pictures mainly show the end results and not the actual steps, but it was still useful.

I still visit the Snazaroo website when looking for ideas or variations of images. For example, when a kid asks to have their face painted like a dog, I normally paint either a dalmatian or a brown and white dog. The photo pages have several other styles of dog faces along with most types of cats or farm animals.

The Snazaroo website also has an extensive FAQ (http://www.snazaroo.us/faq.htm) which answers just about any question related to face painting or running a successful face painting business.

Magical Balloon-dude Dale has a great balloon blog on his website (http://www.mbd2.com/forum/balloon_Animal_Blog). As someone still getting started, seeing some of the large, detailed balloons that Dale had created, is somewhat intimidating. I make a tiny 2-3 balloon dragon compared with his much larger and more detailed dragon. But, seeing his designs can also be an inspiration to continue learning and trying to make bigger and better designs.

I highly recommend checking out the Magical Balloon-dude’s website.

Celebrate the Art of Balloon Sculpture by participating in 12th Annual Balloons Around the World on Wednesday, October 5, 2011. Visit http://www.balloonsaroundtheworld.com/ to sign up or find a group near you.

One of the great resources for any balloon twister is the Balloon HQ (http://www.balloonhq.com/). I must admit, that I haven’t spent enough time there. I visit from time to time when I am looking for something specific, but it has a vast collection of information.

If you do balloons or interested in doing balloons, I suggest you check out the Balloon HQ and see what they have to offer.