Life & Work with Brett Whaley of Lagrange, GA

Today we’d like to introduce you to Brett Whaley.

Hi Brett, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I started my balloon journey at Church-working for a kids day-basically giving the kids another fun activity for everyone to enjoy. After that I made more balloon animals for my daughter’s birthday, giving her a memorable experience. After some time practicing and just making balloon creations at home, I got a job at Your Pie in Lagrange making balloon animals for kids. Working there, birthday parties, corporate events, or any social gathering, has been the most amazing experience-because I rarely use a menu board-instead I have the kids tell me what they like, and that is what I make them. The most important person to me is the kid at the front of the line who is waiting on their balloon, that minute to couple of minutes of interaction is the most magical time. Then their reaction to what I made them is truly amazing.

During Covid, when everything shut down, I prayerfully came up with an idea of Social-Distance Deliveries. Parents could send me a text message of a balloon creation they wanted for their kids, I would make that creation-wipe it down with Lysol wipe-and with my wife’s help-I would wrap it in plastic wrap and deliver the creation to the person’s house-send a text message, ring the door bell then leave. On a few occasions I was able to see the kids reaction from my truck-and was so excited at seeing their joy with the balloon creation. In a year of uncertainty (2020),it truly seemed amazing to spread just a little joy with these balloons.

In 2020 I also tought myself how to do balloon decor (arches and garlands). Setting up Arches for events, or garlands at parties is truly wonderful. The customer will give me an idea of what they want a balloon garland or arch to look like, and after we decide on the colors, I will bring their vision to life. This may not be the easiest of jobs to do, but once done and the customer sees it, then I know it was all worth it. So whether I am working on balloon decorations or balloon animals-one of the best feelings is seeing the customer and/or kids reaction to their idea coming to life.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Smooth road-no. There has been challenges, such as learning more and more balloon animals. As new movies and TV shows come out-I am trying to keep up with the cultural trends so when the kids ask for a new creation-I am aware and can try my best to make it. There are also days I may be tired, not feeling well, or just my hands hurt, and yet I am going to try my best to make sure the kids enjoy the interactions and or balloons created. If the parents are happy with booking me for their kids birthday party, and the kids are laughing and enjoying playing with their balloon animals, then I know I have successfully done my job.
In terms of the balloon décor, not all the designs work out 100% of the time. I will always put the arches or garlands together in advance, and once I arrive on site try to get the setup done as quick as possible. Sometimes balloons pop due to heat, or other circumstance and I know I only have a short time to correct. I only get 1 chance to make a good first impression and I am going to do just that. The biggest help to make the deliveries smoother is in 2023 I added an enclosed trailer to work out of. With that trailer I can have all my supplies with me and save time on set ups-ensuring the customer gets the balloon set up they wanted in a timely manner. The biggest struggle in all this I would say is myself. Whenever I finish a build, I will always take a step back and look at the creation. Automatically I will see problems. I will see something not right, or wish I did something different to make the build better. The customer can tell me they love how the creation looks, and once I clean up from the build and leave, I will look at pictures and wonder what could I have done to make it better. Outside of that I will always make sure the customer is 100% satisfied with their balloon creation, not leaving until they are.

When starting on both balloon animals and arches, I promised God and myself I would always give 100% on everything and nothing less.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Twisted Tales Balloons. Years ago when my daughter was 4 I made her a balloon animal mermaid. I can remember her getting it and all of a sudden, the mermaid came to life. She played with it and talked to it for hours. At that point I realized that every balloon animal made is going to have a story told by the individual kid that gets it. From that day going forward I have made countless numbers of balloon animals, superheroes, princesses, or anything else that the kids can come up with. Since December of 2018 I have been making balloon animals in public like at restaurants, churches, schools, picnics, businesses, and parties. I absolutely love seeing the smiles when kids (and sometimes adults) get that magical balloon creation they asked for. Today, outside of working all sorts of events, I also still do the social distance deliveries if needed-anyway to bring about a smile.
Balloon Garlands and Arches. I love making balloon garlands and arches, or columns. Anytime someone ask and colors are agreed on, I will make these at home, take them over to the destination and set up, clean up any trash/scraps and leave. My biggest worry is getting in someone’s way at the party so I always make it a priority to have all balloon decorations done and supplies packed back in the trailer 30 minutes before party starts. That way when guest arrive they can see a beautiful balloon setup and no trash or anything else around it. I strive for excellence in every balloon creation-décor or animals. If the customer can see it or show a picture of what they are wanting, I will strive my hardest to make that vision a reality based off of their description and my understanding.
People do see me around town and know me as the balloon man. From time to time I may have a few balloons with me and if a kid sees me and ask, I just might make them a simple balloon animal. At one of the restaurants I worked at, I was known as POP-POP due to a few balloons popping. To me its all about having fun.
I have made so many wonderful things over the years such as life size movie characters, superheroes, UGA mascot, princesses, and/or a headphone balloon arch that works, a balloon tornado that spun, and an Easter balloon with carrot bases. I cant truly pick a favorite creation I have made, but I can say I am very proud of the first 1 balloon dog I made. That balloon dog was simply a fantastic starting point. Once I mastered that balloon dog-I simply had to challenge myself to see what I could make next. From that point I have gone through daily challenges to see what I can make next and what I can do better. I have plenty of tutorials from other amazing artist that help me really push myself to the next level. I always want to learn and strive to make really amazing creations for the kids. I want that kid at the front of the line to have a WOW moment when they see their finished balloon animal. While I say that, I will say I really don’t know what sets me apart from others. I strive hard to not compare myself or my work to others work. We all have different visions and abilities and we all work to make the customers happy. I will not talk bad about someone else’s work, because I know when anyone leaves from their balloon job (whether a party, restaurant or décor set up) that they gave their best and if I see that person I will always try to tell them their work look amazing. There is so much negativity in the world that with balloon work-Positive Vibes/Positive Praise can go a long way, especially when the balloons can bring out smiles.

I truly thank God for every customer I get, and everyone I meet while on this balloon journey. The journey has not been easy but I am truly blessed by what I call my Gift from God. Often times I am asked what is the coolest thing I have made. If a kid ask I will say a superhero/princess or movie character, but if it is an adult asking, I will answer with I have made amazing friends and smiles. My biggest hope in Twisting balloons is that I can make a positive impact in the world.

Alright so before we go can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
Anytime someone has an inquiry about my balloon work, they can simply message me on Facebook messenger at Brett Whaley (my profile picture has a picture of me with a balloon dog logo on my shirt) or Twistedtalesballoons (there is a picture of a character similar to Olof from frozen made of balloons). I am always happy to talk to people about ideas, events, and or answering any questions. I love to chat and discuss ideas.

For any pricing information, I always base my pricing for balloon work by the job depending on what’s needed. If anyone is wanting balloon work to elevate their event, please message me to discuss and I will be more than happy to discuss pricing.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: brettwhaley2021
• Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/brett.whaley.35 and https://web.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100041537726410

Image Credits
These are all my pictures