Keaton's Blog

The Sass Factor

by Keaton on November 2, 2009

It occurred to me one day that I was missing something. Something in my life was not in sync with my being. My core. I have been absent-mindedly searching for what this thing could be with zero results and no Eureka’s. Then on Friday as I was once again putting my hair into a ponytail and looking at myself in the mirror in a very ‘Hello Plain Jane’ way- it dawned on me. I was bored. Not bored with life however- not bored with work or my amazing husband or my fun and interesting photography classes, but bored with MYSELF. I had no style, no sass, no oomph.

When was the last time I walked out the door and said - you look cute today Talmadge (I still call myself by my maiden name when I’m speaking to myself in the third person- I find it’s more effective). When was the last time I walked into a public place and felt great about the energy that I was bringing into that environment… it’s been too long. I have been weighed down by ‘I don’t have anything to wear and zero funds to go shopping’ and ‘I don’t have time to do my hair in the am or go to yoga today’… so I decided that I was going to do something about it.

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and here I am… Sass Factor returned. This weekend I not only went out on Halloween as a 1920’s Flapper and danced my tail off, but I also hiked 3 miles on Sunday. Watch out world~~~

Be Drastic ~ You only live once.

XO,

Keaton

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Our New Home

by Keaton on September 22, 2009

We’ve come a long way Baby… Hoopnotica now resides in a lovely 5,000 sq. ft. warehouse packed to the rafters with hoops and more hoops. I thought I’d share some pics of our wonderful Office Team- these are the people that make it happen each day and I adore them.

Raileen ~~ Our Office Manager knows how to keep the daily ins and outs of our office running smoothly. I love that she took a 2 week vacation and came back with pink braids in her hair… Raileen is a mother of 4- she can hoop on stilts- and has an infectious energy when she twirls…

raileen

Kat ~ You hear Kat’s voice whenever you call the office- she keeps our customers happy by providing the incredible customer service that Hoopnotica is famous for. She’s not afraid of heights or mustaches, and her dog is bigger than I am.

kat-in-new-space

Josh~ Our newest addition- Josh makes sure your orders arrive on time. He puts up with all the women in the office with absolute grace and can drive a mean forklift.

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My hats off to my team of hard working Hoopers~ You guys ROCK!

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We’ll Rise…

August 12, 2009

This is my final for my most recent photography class~~ enjoy~~

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jfHhGttwqc

Scars are a daily reminder of our body’s incredible capacity for healing.

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Keep living,

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Self? Portraits…

July 7, 2009

Ever tried to sum up your life into 10 photos?

So I had the tricky task of having to take 10 self portraits for my new summer photography class- and at first, I was like- oh easy! I’ve modeled before - should be a snap… however… when you layer in that you also have to set up the photo and try to focus on where you’ll be- hit the self timer and then run into place - wait for the shutter sound and then run back to see that you cut off half your face… PLUS the whole task of trying to make them INTERESTING and meaningful- so that they actually tell a story about you… is a whole other shabang…

Of course- this assignment was due during one of the busiest Hoopnotica weeks in a while - being in US Weekly has it’s perks! - so I was slammed for time- but I was able to take a couple while performing at the Santa Monica Summer Solstice festival~~

Keaton Hoopnotica Keaton Hoopnotica 2

It bummed me out that I couldn’t go in and crop or edit these photos- but we weren’t allowed to touch them– so… I end up with spider bites on my head and a tree tail feather… lol

Obviously these self-portraits represented my current life as a performer– but I also wanted to get some heritage in there– so the next 2 were born…

Keaton Portuguese

I’m half Portuguese and proud…

Keaton Maple Leafs and I married a Canadian and have taken on the love (& hate) for the Toronto Maple Leafs Hockey Team.

My next shots I thought I’d hop outside the office- grab some lunch- and show newfound love of Yoga on Venice Beach… which is probably the only place where I didn’t feel bizarre taking self portraits as there is a lot weirder stuff going on all around me…

Keaton Yoga _mg_9373

and finally… came the shot that was the hardest of all… it had to be shot at ‘Golden Hour’ - which is that beautiful time an hour beore the sunsets, where the light is so warm & rich you could drink it… but what do to? what to shoot?

I sat and thought about what was currently happening in my life and then from somewhere– inspiration hit… and here it is~~~ cause really… as the VP of Operations for Hoopnotica– I’m a girl in a business suit in the middle of a playground…

Keaton Playground Keaton Playground 2

I encourage you to try this assignment on yourself– even if you just have a point and shoot– go learn something about yourself today and get a mini mosaic of your life in portraits..

and did I mention that I love being married?

Keaton Maple Leafs
xo, Keaton

All photos © Keaton Koechli and are not to be re-printed without permission.

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High Performance

June 9, 2009

I love the simplicity of shooting against a white backdrop~~ I also love Jamie cause she’s always so willing to hoop for hours while I click away on my shutter… Here is the latest of our ventures together~~ the Hoopnotica® High Performance Hoop!

These hoops are so fun and colorful — they make you want to get up and dance. Which is a good thing considering how much time we spend at our desk or on the couch… The design is hot hot hot tamales. In fact- I may start calling them the Hot Tamale Hoops. Designed for that fiery hooper that needs a new challenge.

Plus they make great performance hoops if you are interested in playing with twins. (i mean, come on… who’s not interested in playing with twins?… off-side? a little? ok… i’ll stop now)– but seriously folks– Fur Boot covers over Melodia’s are smokin’…

Keep playing~

Keaton

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10 minutes a day…

May 22, 2009

I forget sometimes how simple it is… Hoop for 10 minutes– just 10 small little minutes (about 2-3 songs) and watch how your smile turns from “Thank you for calling (insert company name here), how may I help you?” to “Hi! Isn’t today just beautiful?!”

We shot a video today for our Free Spin (out June 1st) and I didn’t want to get out of my chair and do it. I have no earthly reason for not wanting to get out of my chair- other than the fact that I was feeling lazy and uninspired and the thought of being filmed hooping was not appealing…. but finally Rayna gave me the look of… “really? try being 7 months pregnant lady…” and that got me off my booty and into the game toot sweet.

We’re filming high cardio hooping with our 5 segment TravelHoop (god bless it- it’s so awesome) and we only needed 1 take… cause once I started going… the smile started turning… and there I was~~ Miss High Energy Infectious Hooper.

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and the rest of my day turned easy breezy beautiful…

Have you gotten into your Hoop today?

xo,

Keaton

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Louisa’s new friend…

May 5, 2009

My camera aquired a new best friend a couple weeks ago… His name is Macro and they have been inseparable since they met. If you’ve never met Macro before~ you might recognize him for his famous blurry edges and the ability to make ANYTHING interesting… seriously– this was my lunch yesterday… (and yes, it’s Poutine- my new Canadian friends…)

and this is a milk jar that we use to put our change in. and our knife block- isn’t it INTERESTING??

and my favorite ~ a trip to the Lancaster Poppy fields…

I swear it can make anything interesting- Test me! I dare you! Name something super boring and Macro will find a way to make it interesting in my next post~~ Or I’ll just rome around the Hoopnotica office like an ant with a really big camera…

xo,

Keaton

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How much fits in 5 years?

May 1, 2009

We met at a Costume Fundraiser 5 years ago today. 2 years after that date we moved in together- 1 year after that we were engaged… and now we’ve been married for 7 months… my how time flies.

Today I celebrate us and how much life can transform in just 5 years…

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Keep Love Alive~

Keaton

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Hoopnotica at the Choreographer’s Ball 4/29

April 22, 2009

Yeah for Performance! Jamie & I have been knee deep in Hoop Tease rehearsals with the ever lovely & talented Kelleia Sheerin~

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aka Leia Leia Boom Boom of the HOT burlesque troupe Cherry Boom Boom (last seen with special guest Carmen Electra on Dancing with the Stars!) AND founder of Hoopnotica’s favorite accessory The Luna Bag~~

sand-luna

We’ve been in preparation for the April Choreographer’s Carnival at the Key Club!

Kelleia has choreographed a super sweet piece for us to rock out and we’d LOVE your support in the audience! Print the flyer below and save $5 if you arrive before 10pm!

april-e-flyer2