Your First Pointe Shoes - Study Ballet More

The THE PERFECT POINTE BOOK will help you study ballet more. And prepare you for your first pointe shoes.

When you go to buy your first pointe shoes, take your time. Let your parent know that you cannot be rushed or pressured in any way. It is very exciting, but you are composed, calm, and have some idea of the challenge of the sizing variations in pointe shoes, the styles, the brands, and the possibilities of which one will be exactly the right fit for you.

You may already know your foot type and what type of pointe shoe you need.

A wide shallow box, non-tapered, low wings and medium strong shank.

A deep box, high vamp, high wings and very strong shank.

A tapered box, narrow, medium vamp, more flexible shank.

And there are so many more variations! Every Bloch, Sansha, Freed, Capezio (and more and more) shoe has lots of shapes, strengths and styles. Since everyone's foot is anatomically different, even though it belongs to a "type", just try on a lot of shoes.

Your toes may feel constricted, but you should be able to wiggle them. You must be able to do a demi plie in first and a small second position, without pain, although this will feel compressed. The wings of the shoes should cover your little toe as well as the other four toes.

You will probably want some type of toe protectors. Gel "ouch pads", lamb's wool, or an individual (for example, for a long second toe, or its neighbor big toe) toe shield may be needed. Padding can be used to equalize the pressure that will bear on the toes, which are always of varying lengths.

Many ballet students worry that their toe shoes will hurt too much for them to dance well. It cannot be emphasized enough that the stronger your sole-of-foot muscles are, the more control over the shoe you will have.

If the shoe is not the BEST fit, but pretty close, strong feet will still dance well.

Yes, you want to get the best fit you can. But, no, it will not necessarily be too painful to dance if the fit can be better. Honestly, it may take a few pairs of dance ballet shoes before you really discover which brand, style, and size is the best. You can know how to avoid pain and prevent dance injuries.

The PERFECT POINTE BOOK will help you study ballet better.