We do recommend

(1)  that you inflate the balloons to as near round (a sphere) as you can get them;

(2)  tie the neck of the balloon tight against the sphere rather than out near the lips of the balloon; and that you

(3)  tie the knot tightly, so that it will not move out of place when you squeeze the balloons during installation and so that it is less likely to untie when you trim off the neck of the balloon close to the knot.

It is lilkely that you will adjust these sizes to fit the the new Anagram balloons and your own comfort in handling the balloons and the Matrix.  I understand the new Anagram latex balloons are softer than the ones we used.

Softer balloons will be more forgiving of variations in sizing and can more easily fill in cracks between balloons in the framework.  They will also be less stress on your hands and wrist from the pinching, twisting and massaging involved in the installation of the balloons.  Softer balloons, however, will more easily roll out of your hands and out of the framework while you are working with them, especially in the smaller inflation sizes.

We have included a pdf (Acrobat Reader) file with template drawings for our suggested inflation sizes.  You may download them from this address:

http://rouseinternational.com/_proposals/DL20/pdf/1.pdf

Print the file and stick it to material that you wish to use to cut out your templates.  If you decide you need to enlarge or shrink the sizes from those we suggest, print out a fresh copy of the file and take it to a copy shop and have it printed in a new size.  This way all the template sizes will be adjusted in the same proportion at the same time.