Can I clean pointe shoes?

[BankruptMum]

My daughter danced on a stage which must have been painted black - her pointe shoes are absolutely wrecked. The platforms are now black and there are black smudges all over the box areas.

 

I have tried baby wipes and bread but to be honest I don't think there is any hope for them. I have tried to cover it with calamine lotion, it isnt completely dry yet but it isnt looking good.

 

Is there anything else I could try?

 

Thanks for any help,

[Picturesinthefirelight]

Window cleaner?

[Pups_mum]

I recently had good results using some dilute biological laundry liquid and a sponge,taking care not to get the shoes too wet, but I'm not sure that would work after using calamine.

[Elliepops]

I'd try the following depending on the kind of paint you think it could be.

 

Water based - a detergent solution

 

oil based - white sprirt

 

acrylic based - Isopropyl alcohol

 

J x

[ballemum]

My dd's are doing a show and have had similar problems. I was told to use warm water and a small amount of washing up liquid. It cleaned them quite well got rid of normal marks and the black ones faded. Enough that they are not so noticeable.

What is your daughter doing?

[BankruptMum]

Thanks for all the tips - I was just a little worried about getting them too wet.

 

The calamine seems to have dried out a little better this morning, definitely passable for rehearsals. Will keep the other suggestions on file, should have known to "ask the experts" before I started messing with them!

 

Balletmum - she is doing the RYB production in Newport (Dec) - the stage is very black!

[Elliepops]

You could try some pointe shoe covers. DD got a pair of the Sansha ones to keep show shoes clean for EYB and they worked very well.

 

As for getting too wet you'd be surprised how much moisture a shoe can take. The current project DD is involved in has meant dancing in the open air regardless of the weather conditions and pointe shoes we thought completely ruined by water have recovered surprisingly well with careful drying.

 

J x

Edited July 19, 2012 by Elliepops

[BankruptMum]

Thank you Elliepops I had forgotten about the covers - she has a pair somewhere!

[miss.pointe]

I cleaned my pointe shoes by dipping a damp toothbrush (damp, not wet) into a very little washing powder and then gently scrubbing the shoe. It takes the sheen off the satin and almost seems to bleach it, but if you are just using them in the classroom it should be fine, and if you don't get them wet they should retain their shape. Once you've used the washing powder, use clean water on a clean/rinsed toothbrush to rinse off the powder.

[Frangapani]

bicarb of soda mixed to paste - gently rubbed onto the shoes. Leave to dry then brush off

F xxx

[BankruptMum]

What amazing ideas - thank you soooo much!

[Sheila Beelam]

Agree with the above - I use a nail brush and fairy liquid! Then if needs be you can harden shoes with pointe shoe glue

[ArucariaBallerina]

Hi all, I have a question about cleaning pointe shoes.... How do you get mud off them? 🙈 I was taking some outdoor pictures with them on and now have mud over the box etc! I'mleaving them to dry at the moment, but please please give advice, as I was hoping to wear them for exams in a few weeks time! Thanks!

[Jan McNulty]

If you can brush off the dried on mud then the methods above may work.

 

I've had a few incidents with mud pools on my local beach recently and have had the devil's own job trying to remove the stains (the shoes are nubuck).  I ended up declaring the shoes "dog-walking only" and bought some new ones!!!

 

Good luck!

[David M.Jhonson]

Have your shiny new pointe shoes lost their shine? Pointe shoes are so beautiful when they are new, but they don not look that way for long. If your pointe shoes are looking a little dirty, here are a few tips for removing or minimizing stains and to properly clean your pointe shoes.

Using

Baking Soda
Laundry Detergent
Calamine Lotion