How to Make an Impression at Your Next Kid's Party with Balloon Arches

Balloon arches turn your usual party decorations at home into an impressive experience for all your guests. At first glance, they may seem complicated to make, but they are actually quite easy to make. If you want to make a lasting impression on your party setting, then go for balloon arches.

A standard balloon arch can be as simple as arranging monochromatic colors into a patterned arch. The most common patterns for balloon arches are spirals and flowers.

How do you make a balloon arch?

Some balloon arches are made from helium-filled balloons so that the floating balloons form an arch. However, ordinary inflatable balloons can easily form arches even without a stand or without leaning against a wall.

How many balloons are needed for a balloon arch?

First, you need to know the length of the arch from one end to the other. We recommend using one of these two methods.

Use some PVC pipe to get an idea of how big you want the balloon arch to be. Bend the pipe to form the arch at the same location where you want the balloon arch to be. See how it looks, and if you are happy with the size, measure the entire length of the PVC pipe used. (Later, you can use the same PVC pipe as the support for the arch. This is very desirable if you are setting up the balloon arch in an area where there may be wind or where you will have children or adults running around.)

Or, you can get a rough idea of the height and width of the arch you need by measuring the following

1. If you want a wide balloon arch, simply add up the height and width of the area where the arch will stand to get a rough total length of the balloon arch.

2. If you need a round balloon arch, multiply the height by 1.5 and add it to the width.

3. To create a balloon arch much larger than the width, add the height to twice the width to accurately estimate the length of the balloon arch needed.

Balloon arches can be made up of clusters, with each cluster consisting of four interconnected balloons.

So, next, to determine how many balloons you will need for your arch, divide the length (in inches or centimeters) by the diameter (also in inches or centimeters) of the balloons you have chosen. From this, you have calculated the number of clusters needed to complete the balloon arch. Then, multiply the result by 4 - the number of balloons in each cluster. We recommend increasing this result by 20% to ensure you have a compact balloon arch.

For example, if you need a 25-foot arch, use a small 5-inch balloon ......

1. length of arch in inches = 25' x 12" = 300"

2. Total length divided by balloon diameter = 300" ÷ 5" = 60 clusters

3. multiply clusters by 4 balloons = 60 x 4 = 240 balloons

4. Increase the total number by 20% = 240 x 120% = 288 balloons

As another example, suppose an arch of 12 meters is needed, using 11 inch (28 cm) balloons ......

1. length of the arch cm = 12m x 100 = 1200cm

2. Total length divided by balloon diameter = 1200cm ÷ 28cm = 42 clusters

3. multiply the clusters by 4 balloons = 42 x 4 = 168 balloons

4. Increase the total number by 20% = 168 x 120% = 200 balloons (approximately)

The standard sizes for balloon diameters are 5", 9", 11", 14" or 16". Having said that, you may decide to blow up an 11" balloon to 10". Needless to say, you will need to calculate the above formula accordingly.

If you are still unsure how to calculate the number of balloons you need, we have calculated the total number of balloon arch lengths for a handful of balloons.