ABOVE : A behind-the-scenes look at the production of some of the larger , inflatable design elements . IMAGES COURTESY OF MIKE CONRAD
For the inflatable pieces , Conrad sought out the help of Aerostar . As Conrad said , “... who better to fabricate large inflatables than a company that makes hot-air balloons ?” Aerostar worked with the schematics to cut and seal together panels of balloon fabric . Big electric fans ( kind of like for a bounce house ) ran constantly to keep the inflatables upright .
Conrad worked with The Nassal Company to create the painted fiberglass elements , including the rose over the archway , icing pieces , the “ 25 ” candle , gumdrops , and lollipops . I had the opportunity to see the fiberglass rose in person in 2021 . At the time of publication , it was on display at the Lakeland Antique Mall just west of Walt Disney World . Take in the size of 5 ’ 7 ” Rain standing next to the rose , and then compare it to photos of the cake castle . Forced perspective or not , Cinderella Castle is huge . That ’ s a lot of fiberglass and balloon fabric .
With two different companies working on elements for the same structure , Conrad had the challenge of making sure the colors matched . He flew from Orlando to Sioux Falls with photos of The Nassal Company ’ s work to color match with Aerostar . Conrad remembered thinking , “ A perfect replication was impossible to achieve , given the disparity of the materials involved , but at least the colors match ; the initial impression is one of a continuous aesthetic .”
BAKED TO PERFECTION Conrad said of the installation period , “ Guests didn ’ t see a lot of the installation work because most of it was done at night , although the transition was fairly gradual and construction
This massive rose looks miniscule when adorning Cinderella Castle in some of the photos above . IMAGE COURTESY OF RAIN BLANKEN