Baby Bump Hula Hooping!
It may or may not have come to some of your attention that I am completely pregnant. I say completely as often people ask me how pregnant I am. Definitely 100%. Am I going to stop hooping when I’m reeeeeeally pregnant –
yep still definitely 100% completely and now massively pregnant. But my answer is the same – that I will keep hooping as long as my body says it’s ok. Here I am hooping on stage at a club night at 6 months pregnant…
I think that it’s really important to listen to your body, that goes for if you’re ill, tired or in my case – pregnant. I have been very lucky. Until the last month even I hadn’t really noticed the pregnancy. I ‘bloomed’ at 6.5 months with the arrival of a bump on landing on holiday in Egypt. I literally got ON the plane with nothing to show for 6.5 months baking and got off the other end with a big firm bowling ball smuggled up my top!
I thought after my holiday that I might be too round to hoop but it has been fine and we only spend around 30 or 40 mins of class on the waist and the rest is hand/off body usually depending on what I’m doing with then so it has been fine. They keep asking when will I stop but I can’t really answer as I will keep going until the baby or the body says otherwise! Just as… Continue reading
Support from your fellow hoopers
I was in a negative head space this morning but it has just dawned on me how lucky I am to be able to connect with a massive amount of hoopers from around the world through social media. I’ll be honest, I’ve not been feeling great about hoop business recently, but reading some of my facebook group posts this morning it started to sink in how great our online hoop community can really be.
I’m a member of several facebook groups for hoopers and they all serve different purposes, some inspiration, connecting with people locally, communicating about events and workshops. There is one group in particular though that has really made an impact on me the past couple of months, and I think probably a number of other hoopers too – I owe Andie Painter a hug and a drink whenever/if I actually get to meet her.
And that is the crazy thing – I think there may actually be only two or three of these hoopers I’ve actually met. Some of them are not even in the country at the moment. But I feel like I have support from them, I really, really do.
Recent posts that have touched me have been on public perception of hoopers, business advice, teaching advice and just generally when you’re feeling negative. The words and the love that other hoopers have given to these posts, to these hoopers, is something I’ve not seen before on social media. I… Continue reading
Sheffield Circus Gathering Videos…
So I finally managed to put some video footage together from our event in Sheffield…
This first video was filmed after the convention. Some of the international artists were around for a couple of days after the event, and we filmed some clips of us spinning, hooping and juggling in the HUBS (Sheffield Hallam University Student Union Building).
Circus Skills Include: Cyr Wheel (Roue Cyr), Hula Hoop, Poi, Staff…
Mat Manamat (Dargaville, New Zealand)
Birte/Amalaya (Berlin, Germany)
Gail O’Brien (Belfast, Northern Ireland)
Armin Taeschner (Berlin, Germany)
Gustavo Ollitta (São Paulo, Brazil)
Petey-the-Tall (Sheffield, England)
Rosie Morrison (Sheffield, England)
Charlie Ledger (Sheffield, England)
And finally I will leave you with this video (which is about 20 mins long), with all the best bits from the Gala Show at Sheffield Circus Gathering on 9th March 2013, so check it out and see what awesome acts you missed!
Compère
James Gilbert (Sheffield, UK)
Pole
Eve – Butterfly Studio (Sheffield, UK)
Devil Sticks
Kai is the Best (Sheffield, UK)
Cigar Boxes
Joey is Better (Sheffield, UK)
Poi & Buugeng
Gustavo Ollitta (São Paulo, Brazil)
Cyr Wheel
Mat Manamat – Spinnovation NZ (Dargaville, New Zealand)
Pole
Sasha – Pandora Circus (Sheffield, UK)
Hula Hoop
Birte – Amalaya (Berlin, Germany)
Poi
Armin Taeschner (Berlin, Germany)
Hula Hoop
Helen Orford (London, UK)
Thanks to everyone who came and supported the event, love and hugs to you all xxxxx
Using hoops a different way
So my fiancée has totally surprised me and started really getting into hoop, whoop whoop : ) He’s sickenly quick at picking up tricks and moves. It’s not too surprising really as he went to circus school and learned juggling, acrobalance, aerial, hats etc. Having skills with several other props when learning a new prop is a real advantage. He’s also been listening to me prattle on about hoops and watched me practice for years and now I’m teaching and making hoops too so I think maybe he’s just eventually thought he’d give it a go and was like “wow, this is actually really fun”. I think it’s always like that when you start a new prop, the pace you learn at is rapid and it’s deeply satisfying to make progress like that. It made me a bit jealous to be honest, I’d like to have that sense of achievement again. So I gave clubs a go but it’s just more like work to me so I had a think and I thought about why I’d like to learn clubs and to be honest it’s the people passing clubs that make it look so fun. I’d done some hoop passing before in Bag’s workshops and done a bit with Gail and it’s a ton of fun. So me and Paul started passing hoops and it is SO much fun : ) We started with passing 3 and when we got comfortable… Continue reading
Music Videos – Just add Hoops!
Seems like every band/recording artist and their backup drummer are featuring hula hoops in their videos lately! Here’s a few of my favourites that have popped up on my radar in the last few weeks.
First off there is this pretty unusual soundtrack from Sufjan Stevens, famous for his more upbeat attempts at writing albums for each state of the US (he got as far as Michigan and Illinois and then got distracted). The hula hooping in this video is all pretty up close and features lots of silhouettes and interesting composition. It’s pretty and stuff.
Then there is this very stylishly shot number from the band Human Woman, featuring the relentlessly stylish Beka Hoop. Continue reading
Ricardo Maddonious Tambo – Hoopdiculous London
Those of you who know Ric will probably know him as the guy who pays a lot of money to go to hoop conventions, misses all the workshops and spends most of his time cleaning up. He’s also the guy who leaves the free time sessions, with the expressed intention of finding a cardboard box from the rubbish outside, and then hooping it until there’s little left of said box. Lately, he’s been attaching cords to his hoops, inspired perhaps by Gail O’Brien (whom now needs to up her game one would think), as demoed in this new, very individual, hoop video. Between layers of possible/probable madness, there’s actually some really cool stuff in here, and within that madness is a method, part personality, part genius, possibly a mixture of the two, that Ric brings with this new video. Remember, hoop is supposed to be fun, init!
I’ve known him since I was 11 years old and this must rank as one of his finest moments, possibly trumping the time when, while opening a record shop in our home town, Neil ‘Dr’ Fox referred to him as the Leo guy at the height of Titanic fever (not the real one, just the film). He did have a nice haircut.
Be sure to watch out for Ric at festivals and conventions over the summer if you’ve not met him before. He’s the shy, retiring one in the corner, probably dressed as a duck.
Awesome Hoop videos.
So I don’t actually watch a lot of hoop videos. I live in my van and a lot of the time the internet is to sloooooooooooooooooooow.
However in the last few weeks there have been some MIND BLOWING videos coming out that make me want to stop what I am doing and go practice.
Have a look people there’s some jaw dropping stuff out there 
Tiana Zoumer posted this full of crazy bad ass stuff
Mary Jayne Schroeder is my hero I’ve witnessed her do these crazy handstands with TWO fire hoops on one foot.
I also witnessed Mary Jane trying to throw this lovely lady over the edge of the stage into the deep dark woods at Hoopcamp though I think they were calling it Acro!
Finally this video by Jade Dussault made me want to lock myself away and just practice til i am a ninja.
There’s enough inspiration in these video to keep you practicing for years
Enjoy xxx
The Little Hoop Maker
I had a totally different post in mind for today but then I woke up to see this and it changed my mind. Makes me think of all you wonderful hoopers who travel the world running fun sessions with kids and the smiles you must bring to their faces. I don’t know any details about this little one - the picture came from the Recycled Art Foundation’s facebook page. In this country we try to get our kids hooping to stop the obesity crisis or to tear them away from their £300 computer games and get them in the sunlight. In other countries kids want to play with hoops to JUST BE KIDS.
Flow and the art of studying other props
We are hoopers and we love hooping! But it’s always incredibly inspiring to watch other flow artists play with different props. To wit, I present you with two completely different but amazingly beautiful videos. Enjoy them and actively start thinking to yourself – what could I take from this video? What could I apply to my hooping, my dance, my body shapes?
This first video makes me want to immediately pack my bags and head to Italy! It’s Spiral, one of the founders of modern hoop dance, playing with a flow wand instead. A lot of the time, I’m barely watching her prop, I’m fascinated instead by her movements, her physical control and the way she dances.
The second video is Gustavo Ollitta playing with striped S Staffs (also called buugeng). Again the video is stunning and the music beautiful. Just mesmorising.
What are your favourite non-hooping videos? Post them in the comments and share the love!
IHC May 4th&5th 2013 – Castle Extravaganzaaaaaa!
Ever wanted to dance in a ballroom? Now’s your chance!
We have now confirmed our line-up for the Irish Hoop Convention (IHC) 2013 and are SO EXCITED to start selling tickets for the ONLY hoop event this year in an actual CASTLE! And only €75 for the whole weekend! Continue reading
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