Tattoo flash 4 - Hidden in plain sight
Hello and welcome to the Balloon Ace tattoo studio.
Check out this month's tattoo flash for some Balloon Ace inspired ink!
Here at Balloon Ace we love balloons!
Our customers love balloons!
What's not to love?
Balloons are fun, tactile, brightly coloured, sometimes fragile and at times sensual and to some people balloons are scary.
One question that we get asked frequently is 'do you ship orders discretely?'
To which the answer is a resounding 'Yes!'
Privacy and discreteness is the cornerstone of how any reputable business should operate.
We often get asked about the packaging that our orders are shipped in.
Whilst our home page and shipping policy describes the packaging that we use in words we have never shown an image of the actual packaging that we use. So here is an image of the packaging that is used for all orders, including your order!
Boring isn't it?
Nothing to see here!
Plain, brown, recycled cardboard held together with sticky tape and emblazoned with a return address for 'B Ace'.
Our packing provides everything you need to send balloons safely around the world and nothing you don't need whilst being environmentally conscious and unassuming to curious eyes.
It is impossible to determine the contents of each package without opening the package first or using x-ray vision. However, we are yet to meet someone outside of a comic book with real x-ray vision.
You say, 'yes but, customs officials have x-ray machines!'.... and indeed they do! However, the majority of the time they read the attached CN22 customs documentation which describes the contents as 'Toy Craft Kit' which happens to have the same HS import / export coding as balloons. Customs officials in general don't care about balloons.
We notice that some stores state that they describe the contents as 'confectionary'. This is fraudulent and unknowingly to them you need a license to export food to some countries. We once sent a balloon order including a chocolate bar to a customer in the USA and the paperwork pile to get FDA approval for a single chocolate bar through customs was crazy. Be wary of people or shops not declaring goods correctly for customs purposes as you the customer is deemed to be the importer and is the person who gets stung when it alls goes wrong.
We always operate within the law to keep you the customer protected.
Please note that where a CN23 is required we sometimes are required to include a commercial invoice and in that instance we need to HS code the contents as 'balloons'. However, this is very rare as the threshold for a CN23 is when the contents exceed £250 in value. We limit the maximum package weight to some countries at 2kg and other countries to 5kg which generally means that orders rarely exceed £250 in the value of their contents.
We do include a printed copy of your invoice within the packaging to help you remember what you ordered and also for us to use as a checklist when carefully picking and packing your order.
You may notice markings on your invoice and these all have a specific meaning. The two markings (usually black ink) on the left side of the invoice indicate that the line item has been transferred to our inventory tracker and that the inventory has been updated on our website. We hold a lot of stock in our warehouse but to be fair to all our customers we limited the stock which is uploaded to prevent someone buying up everything in one hit. Our website inventory is updated several times per day so if you the items you need are 'out of stock' if you try back later they should be available. Once the item is out of stock in our warehouse we remove it from our website.
The orange or blue markings on the right side of the invoice are added when orders are picked and the items are added into bags.
We wear gloves when we pick orders to protect the balloons from skin oils, which may degrade them, and to protect our hands from the factory applied compounds which the balloons are coated in to prevent sticking (usually powder but some Cattex balloons are coated in a special non-stick lubricant). A long time ago we did handle large quantities of balloons without wearing gloves and our hands ended up almost black from the non-stick compounds.
When picking orders we place the balloons into plastic hoppers before placing them in the appropriate number of resealable plastic bags. Whilst we use recycled plastic, resealable bags we try to limit the amount of bags that we use for environmental reasons.
We often get asked about mylar balloons and various plastic balloon accessories. To minimise our environmental impact we will never sell mylar balloons and we try to avoid using or selling plastic products where possible. All of our balloons are manufactured from 100% natural latex. Natural latex is derived from trees and is fully biodegradable.
So that's it our balloons are totally hidden when they are shipped and nobody except us and you knows that they are in the package.
During the colder months balloons are exposed to cold temperatures during the shipping process. This does not damage the balloons. However, just like you, balloons don’t like being cold. When balloons become cold, they need a little time to acclimatise to ensure that they are at peak condition before use. You wouldn’t run a marathon before warming up first!!
This is completely normal and is nothing to worry about although you should give your balloons time to naturally warm to room temperature before inflating.
As a guide; balloons which feel warm, soft and supple are ready to inflate. Whereas balloons which feel cold, stiff and rigid need warming up first.
Here are some helpful tips:
- Balloons are made from natural latex rubber which is susceptible to changes in ambient temperature. Extreme cold temperatures can make balloons feel stiff / rigid.
- Rubbing the balloons between warm hands and placing the balloons in a warm room (not hot) will speed up the warming process.
- Cold balloons may burst upon inflating due to their rigidity. Always make sure that balloons have been sufficiently warmed up so that they are soft and supple prior to inflating.
- A hair dryer used on low heat blowing directly onto the balloons from a distance of no closer than 30cm (12 inches) will make them soft and supple in a matter of seconds. Do not apply heat for too long to avoid damaging the balloons.
For the best results always warm your balloons and make sure they are soft and supple before inflating.
Balloons can be stored in the freezer compartment of your fridge (refrigerator for our American friends). Freezing balloons is known to slow down the degradation process of latex and can allow for them to be stored for longer periods without degradation that storing them at room temperature. The steps listed above need to be followed to allow for safe inflation.
On December 13, 2024 the General Product Safety Regulation (GSPR) becomes mandatory for all manufacturers of balloons which are sold in the European Union.
Whilst balloons are not usually considered dangerous improper use can result in injury or death. As we have been updating our processes to comply with it would be useful for you to take a look at our updated safety and environmental page which is located here.
Until next month
Next month our plans are to include the following:
- More balloon related tattoo flash
- More balloon related factoids
- More musings from the team behind Balloon Ace
As always, we welcome everyone to participate and get involved at Balloon Ace. We exclude nobody!
As a reminder keep sending your photos with Balloon Ace balloons so that we can feature them on our BAT Punks Instagram.
Pump some punk rock into your balloons!
We are Balloon Ace!
Thanks
Nicky & Glen