Balloon Cluster Decoration with Streamers

Ok, so this isn't a food recipe.. BUT it is a recipe on how to do something. That fits right? :) Well, for a church activity we were celebrating a birthday. I saw this idea floating around on pinterest and I couldn't wait to try it. When this event came up, I thought it would be perfect. But just like pinterest does, it only gives us an idea.. not step by step instructions. The girl that originally posted it told us how she made it, but I didn't have the materials on hand (wood and staple gun) or the right place to hang a piece of wood up. So I created my own and thought I would share the step by step instructions.

So here it goes:

Materials:
5-7 balloons of 5 different colors
String, ribbon, or twine
a box that has been cut up one side (making it a long length) and the top and bottom cut off
tape
streamers that match the color of the balloons

Instructions:

Step 1: Cut one side of a large box so that the box lays flat length wise. Cut off the top and the bottom of the box. I used a box that had pots and pans in it to give you a good comparison. If you use a smaller box, you just need to blow your balloons small.

Step 2: Blow up your balloons and tie a string to the balloon. Make sure to use enough string to bring through the back of the balloon and tie it.

Step 3: Visualize where you want each color to be. Start from the left side. Punch a hole (using something like a screwdriver) through the middle part of where you want your first color to be. For example, I had five colors and wanted them close together. I sectioned off a small section for the first color and then poked my hole in the center of that section.

Step 4: Take 1 balloon and bring the string through the hole so the string comes out the back. DON'T punch a whole bunch of holes until you get the balloons in one at a time. You never know how they'll be placed and you want to adjust as needed as you go.

Step 5: Take the next balloon, position it by the first balloon and decide where you want your hole to be for that one. (You want the hole to be where the bottom part of the balloon will sit)

Step 6: Repeat step 5 for the remaining balloons in that one color. Turn the box around and tie two strings together, then tape them. (I thought of this like how kid toys come packaged. They are always tied together in the back to keep them in place)

Step 7: Repeat this with the remaining colors.

Step 8: Add the streamers. I would highly suggest adding your streamers on the cardboard BEFORE hanging the balloon cluster up. I didn't and it ended up being a huge pain. You could staple them, or tack them in, or tape them. I taped them and a few occasionally fell down.

Ok I hope this helped! Let me know if you have any questions.