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Josho Special user Albany, New York 758 Posts |
Maybe you've seen Matt Falloon's "Keeping Up With Matt Falloon" Youtube series (possibly the fastest balloon tutorials on the planet). If you've seen the fifth one you've seen a sample of his Picos, miniature balloon animals made primarily of 160s. The DVD is out and available from Continental Sales.
Overall, Picos require a lot of small pinch twists and internal bracing to keep them tight, durable, and amusingly squat. They are, I'd argue, less forgiving than most figures: 160s are finickier to begin with, and sizing, on such a small scale, has to be REALLY spot-on. You probably won't make any of these very well the first time, but Matt does them smoothly and with consummate finesse. The disc includes instructions for the following basic figures: Tiny Turtle Cutie Crab Shrimpy Spider Micro Mouse Fiddly Fly Puny Penguin Scrappy Snail Mini Minecraft Itty Bitty Kitty Teensy Teddy The Itty Bitty Kitty has a number of excellent variations attached. Appropriate artwork is thoroughly and carefully discussed and demonstrated (except in the case of a couple of the Kitty variants, for which the appropriate artwork can be found very easily on the web). They're all different enough in structure that you get a broad range of possible constructions, not just a lot of variations on one or two body types. Both the instructional aspects and the production values are high-quality (as they were in Matt's earlier DVD, "O.C.D.," which has some superb designs on a more conventional scale). Matt starts off each figure by showing the finished version, so you understand what you're shooting for, and he tells you at the outset of each figure just what balloons you'll need to make it. These are niceties that many videos and DVDs lack. I think PICOs have a tremendous advantage over hats and hairbands: they can comfortably be worn on something else the customer's already wearing: HER CLOTHES. Mounted on a small, cloth-covered hairclip, a Pico can go on a lapel or a sleeve or a collar or a shirt pocket or a waistband or a tie or a cuff...or even hair. Placing something this featherweight on existing clothes makes wearing them almost effortless as compared to hats or hairbands (hairbands are pretty uncomfortable unless one is used to wearing them, and hats are impressive, but how long do they usually stay on? Moreover, a Pico's more flexible placement options -- you can obviously move it around with ease -- gives the wearer a lot of control over how attention-getting it is, which is a real advantage for shy people ...and, really, everyone. Very highly recommended for people who are not only interested in these specific figures, but in honing their abilities overall. At least intermediate skills required. [I have not been paid or remunerated in any way by Matt Falloon or Continental Sales for this review, and I have no financial interests whatsoever in sales of the DVD.] Josh |
Amazing Magic Co Inner circle 1711 Posts |
Josh,
Thanks for the extensive review. I will definitely check this out. Dan. |
The Magic Cafe Forum Index » » Ballooning 101 » » Matt Falloon's PICOs - a casual review (0 Likes) |
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