Things You'll Need
Large and stretchy wide-mouthed balloons
Small party favors or gifts
Balloon pump (optional)
Funnel with wide bottom opening
Decorative ribbon
Small gifts tucked inside balloons offer a special surprise for young ones. The key to creating gift balloons is to use large, durable balloons with wide mouths, rather than narrow balloons better suited to crafting balloon animals. While professional equipment is available to stuff somewhat large gifts into even larger balloons, tiny prizes may be added to balloons by hand, no special equipment necessary.
Step 1
Stretch an uninflated balloon several times in multiple directions to make it more flexible.
Video of the Day
Step 2
Place one or two fingers from each hand inside the mouth of the balloon, stretching the opening as wide as possible. Stretch the opening several times to make it a bit more flexible. Roll the mouth of the balloon downwards so the balloon's neck become shorter.
Step 3
Stretch the balloon opening over the narrow end of a funnel so the balloon stays in place on the funnel without your assistance.
Step 4
Drop a small toy, gift or party favor through the funnel opening until it drops into the balloon. You may need to push it down through the funnel if the fit is tight.
Step 5
Inflate the balloon by blowing it up with your mouth. If you have access to a balloon pump, use that instead, when adding gifts to a large number of balloons.
Step 6
Tie a knot in the balloon to keep it inflated. Tie a bit of decorative ribbon around the knot, if desired, to dress the balloon up a bit.
Tip
Stick with gifts similar in size to gumball machine prizes; this way, they'll be less difficult to fit into a balloon without professional equipment.
If unable to find a funnel wide enough for the gift you wish to put in a balloon, use a piece of PVC pipe instead of a funnel. PVC pipes are available in a variety of diameters.
Gifts without sharp edges may be stuffed into balloons without a funnel or pipe. Roll the balloon's neck downwards to make the balloon as short as possible, then stretch the opening around the gift, pressing the gift down and unrolling more of the balloon until the entire object is inside the balloon.
Sprinkle confetti shapes such as stars, Christmas trees or birthday cakes inside the balloon to make it even more festive.
Warning
Keep gift-laden balloons away from small children, as the items inside may be small enough to swallow.
If you plan to stuff large quantities of balloons with gifts on a regular basis, consider purchasing a machine designed for this purpose, as it will make the task much easier to complete.
Video of the Day