Meet Ahzahdeh Neshat | Balloon Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Ahzahdeh Neshat and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ahzahdeh, how has your work-life balance changed over time?
When I first started out, I was taking on as many orders as I could, very constantly overbooking myself. As my business grew, instead of accepting help or figuring out a new system, I just kept doing it all by myself, which led to me burning out several times. It all came to a head in May 2021, when everything opened back up and everyone wanted to throw a party, which included balloons. I was working 36 hours straight with no sleep, didn’t see my family (even though we were all still home), and considered quitting. I decided to take a step back and reevaluate what was important to me. I purposely schedule a weekend off each month to spend with my family, and I’m only taking on deliveries with a certain minimum. While it has shifted the amount of work I do each month, my family/work balance is at such a better place. I am more calm during the week, I feel more present with my family and kids, and when I get to go back to work each weekend, I fully enjoy every moment of it.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I’ve always wanted to do something in a “creative” field, but when I compared myself to my friends and peers with fantastic drawing capabilities or beautiful singing voices, I felt as if I came up very short. I studied theatre in college, but very quickly learned that it’s a hard career to maintain while also supporting yourself in LA. I worked in a 9-5 office setting for 8 years, before going on maternity leave. In a weird turn of events, I ended up becoming a stay-at-home mom, and felt as if this was my time to find a creative career— the only problem was that I didn’t feel creative. I poured my heart into designing my daughter’s first birthday party, which led to others wanting to hire me for their own kids’ parties. I actually didn’t start off doing balloons— one day a customer asked me if I could, I lied and said yes, and the rest is history! I watched countless YouTube videos, tried to search online for as much information as possible (this was before balloon artists started telling their tricks and tips on social media), and managed to put together a balloon garland. Looking back, it was NOT good work, but I was so proud of accomplishing something I’ve never done before that I kept going at it. I honed my “craft” every chance I got, making practice garlands at home, chatting with more seasoned balloon artists, and eventually got to a point where I was the one teaching new artists tips. To this day, I’m continually learning and growing. I thought I had a perfect practice to attaching garlands to walls until I watched a video from another artist that showed an amazing trick that I now use every time.

As balloons continually become more popular, it’s important to remember that there is no “right” way. What works for one person may set another person back, because their method works better for them. There will always be different artists with different styles that are made for different clients. I have been asked to do certain work that I don’t feel confident in, but I know a fellow artist would blow it out of the water. It’s important to recognize your strengths, and use those to spread joy in every work of art.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I have been begging my friends to come out to LA, because you can visit so many different “worlds” in such a short amount of time. We’d start with coffee, either Alfred’s or The Boy and the Bear. Do some shopping on Melrose, then hit up somewhere nearby for lunch so that we can people-watch on the sidewalk. It’s always fun to bring newcomers to The Abbey on a Saturday night— there’s a certain vibe in the air that just makes you so, so happy to be alive. We’d recharge with a slow beach day, either on Venice to people-watch again, or make the trek up to Malibu for a more quiet retreat. I love taking people up the Culver City Stairs for that enchanting birds’ eye view around sunset. Being able to scan from the snowy mountains that stand in the shadows of Downtown LA to the Hollywood sign, to the mansions on the hills, to the sun setting into the ocean— it makes you realize it’s a vast place that truly has a spot for everyone.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
When I first started out doing balloons, I feel as if there was very little transparency in the business. Where people got their supplies, what they were charging, how they created their work, etc. Over the last few years, so many new balloon artists have emerged and created a voice on social media, lifting the “veil” behind balloon work. So many amazing artists are now teaching others their tricks, creating reels and videos for their techniques, answering questions for people just starting out, and it has helped us all become better balloon artists. While we all strive to be a successful business, we simply can’t take on every customer by ourselves, which is why it’s so important to build a community of peers. We message each other with questions, vents, laughing at ourselves— and it truly makes us feel less alone. I’m definitely thankful for people like Feathered Fox Designs, Balloonworks, The Balloon Mama, etc. for opening the doors and showing people it’s okay to share tips!

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