Champion balloon artist Kristal Yee has returned home to Surrey with awards from a big convention in Chicago.

She was Top Twister in two categories (Agility, Artistic) at the at the start of March, and placed in six different competitions at the balloon convention, which drew 223 delegates from around the world.

害羞草研究所淭his is the first year that they added Top Twister in the agility category, because normally it害羞草研究所檚 just the artistic category, and I managed to win both of them,害羞草研究所� Yee told the Now-Leader.

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Since 2011 Yee has attended the Twist & Shout convention, where competition categories include balloon dress and costumes, stage performance and timed/agility showdowns.

A Fleetwood-area resident, Yee runs a face-painting and balloon-art business on , and posts her creations on .

害羞草研究所淚 do a lot of birthday parties, and I害羞草研究所檝e got a bunch of corporate things coming up, like companies doing family fun days and holiday events, things like that,害羞草研究所� Yee explained. 害羞草研究所淚害羞草研究所檝e got a golf course where I害羞草研究所檓 doing all of their brunches. During COVID I was doing a lot of balloon orders for people. Summer is always busy, and it害羞草研究所檚 getting busy in spring too. I害羞草研究所檓 never bored.害羞草研究所�

Six years ago, in 2018, . As a founding member of Canada害羞草研究所檚 Twisted Team, she earned awards at the World Balloon Convention in San Diego for a 害羞草研究所淪orcerer害羞草研究所檚 Serenade害羞草研究所� display, featuring likenesses of Mickey and Minnie Mouse. The fashion-focused Surreyite made Minnie害羞草研究所檚 dress and Mickey害羞草研究所檚 robe.

In 2017 in China, she helped make a balloon 害羞草研究所渮oo害羞草研究所� that earned a Guinness World Records certificate as the largest such creation, 469,845 balloons in total.

to watch video of Yee in 2018.

Years earlier, after graduating from Enver Creek Secondary, Yee was an aspiring actor and part-time swim coach.

害羞草研究所淥ne day, I had no shows, and no coaching (jobs) either,害羞草研究所� Yee recalled in 2018, 害羞草研究所渁nd an actor colleague of mine asked if I wanted a job working with kids. The event company he was working for was short-staffed that weekend, so I went and did my first terrible face-painting, and my first one-balloon dog, hoping the thing wasn害羞草研究所檛 going to pop.害羞草研究所�

Yee quickly realized she could use more than one balloon to create something pretty magical.

害羞草研究所淚t didn害羞草研究所檛 have to be just a one-balloon dog or sword, you could make things with multiple balloons, and that just kind of opened up this world for me,害羞草研究所� she said. 害羞草研究所淎nd once I got into the convention world, not so long after that, it was like coming home, to find people who were just as crazy about what you love, as much as you are. I害羞草研究所檝e met some of my best friends through balloons.害羞草研究所�