Grishko Smart Pointe

[Aurora3]

Has anybody tried the Grishko Smart Pointe? What is your experience? For what kind of feet is it suitable?

[MAK]

Yes DD1 tried them when she was training for RAD Intermediate. She doesn't have very arched feet so the pre-arch gave her a nice shape. However, her feet are still quite strong so they didn't last too long and she is back in the 2007 now. 

[Aurora3]

Oh, that´s intersting because I also use Grisko 2007. How do they fit in comparison to them?

[Sheila Beelam]

The smart pointe has a nipped in “waist” around the middle of the foot and is wider across the metatarsal area than the 2007. The box is not as tapered. More info on the particulars on the image on our website. Tried to upload the image here but the file is too big  

https://www.justballet.co.uk/products/grishko-smart-pointe-shoe

[Aurora3]

Thank you, Sheila! Would you say it is suitable for semi-tapered (my first two toes do not differ much in length, then they become shorter) or is it too square?

[MAK]

Definitely going to defer to @Sheila Beelam here!!

[Viv]

I tried the Smart Pointe last year. They looked gorgeous in the fitting but the wings broke down astonishingly fast. Within 20 minutes in class my extremely narrow feet had lost all support and the shank started twisting. I ended up with a twisted ankle and lost both my big toenails from only 30 minutes of pointe work... I took the shoes back to the fitter and she was appalled, they had changed shape completely from the fitting and were now completely wrong for me. She was nice and gave me 50% off a pair of grishko novas to get me through the rest of concert season but it was far from a good experience. I've tried 2007s before and they fit fine in the box, I ended up in novas because I couldn't get the 2007s to stay on my heel, plus they looked awful on me haha. The Smart Pointe fit entirely differently to a 2007 in my experience.

 

In terms of feet, I have a relatively low arch, so pre-arched was great. My feet are very very narrow feet, I wear X in a bloch pointe shoe and still sink down without padding. I have long toes with a lot of hypermobility, all my joints, including my toe joints, bend in funny directions and my feet are incredibly compressible (shame that this hypermobility hasn't given me a better arch! Darn bone structure). Although my feet are only slightly tapered, the compressibility means I prefer to wear a more tapered box to give more support when actually en pointe. The fitter, who I highly rate usually, has said after this she'll never fit another girl with hypermobility in the Smart Pointe because they don't provide enough support across the metatarsals. Take from this what you will.

Edited October 5, 2019 by Viv

[Sheila Beelam]

 

On 02/10/2019 at 21:02, Aurora3 said:

Thank you, Sheila! Would you say it is suitable for semi-tapered (my first two toes do not differ much in length, then they become shorter) or is it too square?

Hi Aurora I would say that no, they wouldn’t suit a tapered foot, as there would be too much room across the metatarsal area. The 2007/nova/dream/allure/pro flex are all more suitable shapes  

[Sheila Beelam]

8 hours ago, Viv said:

I tried the Smart Pointe last year. They looked gorgeous in the fitting but the wings broke down astonishingly fast. Within 20 minutes in class my extremely narrow feet had lost all support and the shank started twisting. I ended up with a twisted ankle and lost both my big toenails from only 30 minutes of pointe work... I took the shoes back to the fitter and she was appalled, they had changed shape completely from the fitting and were now completely wrong for me. She was nice and gave me 50% off a pair of grishko novas to get me through the rest of concert season but it was far from a good experience. I've tried 2007s before and they fit fine in the box, I ended up in novas because I couldn't get the 2007s to stay on my heel, plus they looked awful on me haha. The Smart Pointe fit entirely differently to a 2007 in my experience.

 

In terms of feet, I have a relatively low arch, so pre-arched was great. My feet are very very narrow feet, I wear X in a bloch pointe shoe and still sink down without padding. I have long toes with a lot of hypermobility, all my joints, including my toe joints, bend in funny directions and my feet are incredibly compressible (shame that this hypermobility hasn't given me a better arch! Darn bone structure). Although my feet are only slightly tapered, the compressibility means I prefer to wear a more tapered box to give more support when actually en pointe. The fitter, who I highly rate usually, has said after this she'll never fit another girl with hypermobility in the Smart Pointe because they don't provide enough support across the metatarsals. Take from this what you will.

Narrow, compressible and hyper mobile....that’s a pointe fitting hat trick! 🤪

 

Seriously though, those are all fitting challenges and certainly the first two would rule out the smart pointe in my mind. 

 

Different styles in each brand will fit differently, so you could be an X width in one Bloch style and a 0X (narrower than an X) in another. 

 

If you like a pre-arched shoe you may want to try the Allure, which is based on the 2007 shoe last, but with a pre-arched plastic shank

 

[Aurora3]

Thank you, Sheila and Viv! That sounds like the Smart Pointe is not good for me! I also have hypermobility and a high arch, but a low profile. 2007 is a good fit, but is quite a heavy shoe and very loud and as I´m very light I have problems breaking in the demi-pointe. But the Smart Pointe does not seem to be an alternative for me then!

 

[Sheila Beelam]

19 minutes ago, Aurora3 said:

Thank you, Sheila and Viv! That sounds like the Smart Pointe is not good for me! I also have hypermobility and a high arch, but a low profile. 2007 is a good fit, but is quite a heavy shoe and very loud and as I´m very light I have problems breaking in the demi-pointe. But the Smart Pointe does not seem to be an alternative for me then!

 

You could try the 2007 Pro - it has easy roll through, with quieter and lighter glue  

[Viv]

5 hours ago, Sheila Beelam said:

Narrow, compressible and hyper mobile....that’s a pointe fitting hat trick! 🤪

 

 

I have been told multiple times that my feet are difficult to fit, because I also have a disappearing heel! And my knees are incredibly hyperextended, to the point that I can fit a takeaway coffee cup under my heel and keep my knee flat to the floor. Pray that I never walk into your shop Sheila 😂

 

Unfortunately, where I live in Australia there are very few pointe fitters and all are contractually obligated to only fit one brand of pointe shoe (ridiculous in my opinion). They also tend not to stock the same variety in shoes as in larger cities because the demand is low and they would end up sitting in a back room for a very long time before finding anyone wanting to try them on. I would say 4 styles of bloch, 3 styles of grishko and 2 shank strengths in gaynor is all we're allotted. I will ask my grishko stockist about the allure but I think it's safe to say I do not have a 'grishko foot'. I have been wearing mirella whisper for a while and, don't judge me, increasing the padding as the box widens to increase their lifespan... Luckily I am going to Queensland over the christmas period and will be able to attend a larger shop which also stocks gaynor minden and russian pointe/energetiks. I'm hoping the tapered, narrow, low profile russian pointe will finally allow me to keep my toenails without all this faffing around. Fingers crossed!

[Fiz]

Good luck, Viv! 

[Peanut68]

Viv, I think Wisbech needs to be your next travel destination 😉

[Aurora3]

Thank you very much, everyone! Sheila, I might consider 2007 Pro then, I thought it differed from 2007 only in that it is more quiet!

But if narrow feet are not possible in the Smart Pointe, I´ll surely be unable to use them! This even applies to size X?

[alison]

10 hours ago, Peanut68 said:

Viv, I think Wisbech needs to be your next travel destination 😉

 

Bit of a long way to come from Australia!

[Peanut68]

But think of the shoe choice? Gotta be worth 2 days travel & all those $$$!!! 🤣

[Derin's Mom]

My DD has been through so many different brands and models. She always felt it very difficult to find the perfect fit for her. She finally felt good in Grishko Smart. She has narrow and tapered feet. She has strong ankles and mobile fingers but a low arch. The vamp height supports her metatarsals.

She feels supported and lifted in Smart M shank.

Now her school recommends to use Freed in class but unfortunately she cannot find the model for her in Freed and wants to continue in Grishko but the school says they are always very hard...

[Aurora3]

Derin´s Mom, did I get it right? Her feet arealso tapered and she is not sinking in the Smart Pointe?

[Derin's Mom]

14 minutes ago, Aurora3 said:

Derin´s Mom, did I get it right? Her feet arealso tapered and she is not sinking in the Smart Pointe?

Yes tapered and not sinking. How about the width? My DD sometimes wears XX sometimes XXX, since her feet are still growing, it varies from season to season.

[Aurora3]

I have XX in 2007, but I would take X in Smart Pointe as it is wider than 2007!

[Sheila Beelam]

7 hours ago, Derin's Mom said:

Yes tapered and not sinking. How about the width? My DD sometimes wears XX sometimes XXX, since her feet are still growing, it varies from season to season.

 

7 hours ago, Derin's Mom said:

Yes tapered and not sinking. How about the width? My DD sometimes wears XX sometimes XXX, since her feet are still growing, it varies from season to season.

That’s very interesting  I guess it depends on where the taper is on her foot? As I mentioned earlier in the thread, they have a nice nipped in waist, but then come out in width below. 

Ill try and remember to take some photos in the shop tomorrow of smart next to 2007 and post here so you can see what the differences are  

[Aurora3]

Sheila, that sounds wonderful! That will help me a lot!

[Sheila Beelam]

Ok, here goes! I'll try to upload photos I took of a smart pointe size 4.5 XXX (on the left) and 2007 Pro 4.5 XXX on the right. I then swap the Smart pointe shoe for a 4.5 XX shoe.

 

Sorry the files are too big If you can let me have an email address I'll send them to you! I'll also put them on our FB and Insta stories  @justballetuk

Edited October 9, 2019 by Sheila Beelam

[Aurora3]

Thanks a lot! I´ve just sent you a message with my mailadress!

[Sheila Beelam]

Sent

[Kanangra]

On 06/10/2019 at 13:21, Viv said:

 

I have been told multiple times that my feet are difficult to fit, because I also have a disappearing heel! And my knees are incredibly hyperextended, to the point that I can fit a takeaway coffee cup under my heel and keep my knee flat to the floor. Pray that I never walk into your shop Sheila 😂

 

Unfortunately, where I live in Australia there are very few pointe fitters and all are contractually obligated to only fit one brand of pointe shoe (ridiculous in my opinion). They also tend not to stock the same variety in shoes as in larger cities because the demand is low and they would end up sitting in a back room for a very long time before finding anyone wanting to try them on. I would say 4 styles of bloch, 3 styles of grishko and 2 shank strengths in gaynor is all we're allotted. I will ask my grishko stockist about the allure but I think it's safe to say I do not have a 'grishko foot'. I have been wearing mirella whisper for a while and, don't judge me, increasing the padding as the box widens to increase their lifespan... Luckily I am going to Queensland over the christmas period and will be able to attend a larger shop which also stocks gaynor minden and russian pointe/energetiks. I'm hoping the tapered, narrow, low profile russian pointe will finally allow me to keep my toenails without all this faffing around. Fingers crossed!

 

Hi Viv, where in Australia are you? I'm in Australia too (just south of Sydney) we are very fortunate to have an excellent dance shop with good fitters and a range of shoes available here. I also know of 2 or 3 good fitters in Sydney who are not only Bloch.

[Viv]

On 11/10/2019 at 10:16, Kanangra said:

 

Hi Viv, where in Australia are you? I'm in Australia too (just south of Sydney) we are very fortunate to have an excellent dance shop with good fitters and a range of shoes available here. I also know of 2 or 3 good fitters in Sydney who are not only Bloch.

 

Unfortunately I am on the other side of the country and haven't made it over east for more than a couple of days since starting pointe. I have a list of shops I want to go to but time and money are the issue.

[Meetmeatthebarre]

Sorry to resurrect this thread, but having recently felt amazing for discovering the Smart Pointe as my "Cinderella shoe", I'm somewhat deflated that my first pair have lasted about 5 hours(!). Mainly, the shank has completely lost its support at the demi-pointe (I break in the 3/4 anyway), though the box is also a little softer than I'd like. 

 

As far as I was aware, the Smartpointe has the same shank as the other traditional Grishko models, perhaps with just a slightly more supple outer sole. I'm wondering whether I just got a bad pair, and if not, what to go for next? The SP last was better for my foot, though the 2007 still fits ok. I'm thinking either a harder shank or to go for the polymer of the Dreampointe/Allure? 

 

Any thoughts welcome!

 

 

 

 

[NJH]

1 hour ago, Meetmeatthebarre said:

Sorry to resurrect this thread, but having recently felt amazing for discovering the Smart Pointe as my "Cinderella shoe", I'm somewhat deflated that my first pair have lasted about 5 hours(!). Mainly, the shank has completely lost its support at the demi-pointe (I break in the 3/4 anyway), though the box is also a little softer than I'd like. 

 

As far as I was aware, the Smartpointe has the same shank as the other traditional Grishko models, perhaps with just a slightly more supple outer sole. I'm wondering whether I just got a bad pair, and if not, what to go for next? The SP last was better for my foot, though the 2007 still fits ok. I'm thinking either a harder shank or to go for the polymer of the Dreampointe/Allure? 

 

Any thoughts welcome!

 

 

 

 

depending where  you are a trip to see Sheila in Wisbech or  the lovely Leanne in Essex  might be in order . 

i've not been fitted by Shiela but  i know plenty of people who have  and  Leanne has a massive  selection of the full Grishko range including some  'special editions'  (Stock shoes  Leaane gets  that are  a custom spec based on common  things  that  keep popping up  in  custom orders for  particular shoes  ) 

[Fiz]

Sheila is moving from Wisbech to Lincolnshire very soon so it would be worth checking when you book.

Edited July 12, 2021 by Fiz
Spelling.

[Peony]

I think 5 hours is within the expected life for a traditional pointe shoe. Have you tried jet glue etc? What shank did you have? The dream pointe fits differently but may be ok, I follow Lianne on social media and I think she says it’s one of her most popular styles so must fit a variety of feet!