29 июля 2021

Bling Bling Jam 2021

Bling Bling Jam, in Las Vegas, has always been one of the highlights of the Gemar USA calendar. This year we were thrilled to attend the Mini Jam, Gemar USA’s first in-person event since the pandemic! We were so excited to see everyone in real life once again and of course Bling Bling Jam did not disappoint.

This mini jam all took place in one large room. The focus was very much on jamming, with the addition of some pop-up classes and workshops. Two wonderful instructors attended on Gemar’s behalf, Paloma Saldana and Brady DeGroot. They each offered several classes with themes like love, slot machines (very appropriate for Vegas!) and planes.

We also had a class based entirely around the Gemar Shiny range, and of course that caught everyone’s attention. Paloma brought out the show stopping 31 inch Giant Shiny for the first time, and it truly did stop the show, if only for a moment, as everyone wanted to catch a glimpse!

Brady, on the other hand, introduced everyone to the multiform balloons and used them in various sculptures. The participants were fascinated to see how these balloons could be used professionally, they are completely different to the usual shapes and could be utterly transformed as part of larger sculptures.

Difficulties with Chinese imports had caused a balloon shortage and most companies did not bring any balloons to the jam. Instead participants were encouraged to bring their own. The only problem is, 120 inspired balloon artists can get through balloons very quickly! Of course we have no supply issues and Gemar were the only company to bring balloons. The participants were very grateful since it meant they could continue to learn and share, even when their own supplies ran out. Of course, they also loved the Gemar quality and beautiful colours!

We had a wonderful time. Virtual events are fantastic but nothing beats hearing the laughter, and occasional popped balloons, in real life. The full Bling Bling Jam is expected back in 2022 and you can bet we will be at the front of the queue.