Making my own juggling bizzles

breadmonkey

I made two balls this morning out of balloons and rice. They didn't work out too badly. I managed to get them the almost exactly the same size and weight of my other 3 balls (from the shop). Only thing is that they're a little harder than I'd like and whenever I drop one (hardly ever, I swear! , they get all mashed and I have to squeeze them to get them back into a spherical shape. Anybody know of anything better to use as filling?

Stephenm

Hi

I use Flour as a filling when making balloon balls - it's a little less dense than rice, so I get the weight/size I want.

You could also try millet or birdseed..

Also important is the size of balloon you use - it sounds like the balloons you are using are slightly too small. It is worth buying "helium quality" balloons as they last for years.

Instructions for making balloon juggling balls:

Need:
Flour, small plastic Sandwich bags, Balloons, Scissors, Spoon.
Put about 4/5 Tablespoons of flour in a sandwich bag and twist the top.
Cut the "valve" off the balloon and stretch it over the bag of flour.
Stretch a 2nd balloon over the ball so that the holes/valves don't match up..
Repeat with some more balloons (Depending on how strong you want to
make the balls). 3 or 4 per ball is good.


All this being said I recommend you buy a good set of juggling balls soon - they are a little expensive, but are great value when you consider the number of hours you'll get from them. Make sure to get at least 2 more than you think you'll need!!

Stephen (who has far to many props)

amazingemmet

No offense but it think those juggling balloon bags are s**t. learn to sew and make some proper ones that feel nice and last. check here for some advice and patterns

breadmonkey

s**t - maybe
cheap - definitely

amazingemmet

Fabric bag are just as cheap if not cheaper, from one meter of fabric i get enough to make 100x 2 1/14" bags, cost of fabric €7 another €1.50 for thread and about €6 for 4kgs of millet. works out about 15c per bag and you can make em as firm or as soft as you want.

Richard W

Man I'd love to be able to make my own stuff. Seems way cheaper, and also pretty nifty.

sweet-rasmus

all good ideas, i must say...

breadmonkey

I think I'm going to take Emmet's suggestion and try and make some decent ones. Any chance of a list of places to get the necessaries?

amazingemmet

For the fabric and sewing stuff theres a place just by the southside of the ha'penny bridge as for millet most health food stores have it.