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Pointe Shoe fitters, London


munchkin16

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Hi! I'm from Singapore and I'm flying to London for a short holiday in feb and would like to find some ballet shops at the same time! I would like some advice on choosing brands for pointe shoes. A little background: In Singapore there are only a few bloch models and grishko 2007 available. As i have quite a high arch, i need hard shanks and i also have quite narrow feet. Tried Bloch serenade, suprima and axiom and all did not fit at all. Ended up with lots of blisters and i couldn't even do classes properly with them. I then went to hong kong and tried some shoes and was fitted with grishko 2007 pro and it was quite a good fit. Ended up wearing them for 2 years (that was when we still didn't have grishkos in sg). In june, i tried some russian pointes in hard shank but they were too soft for me. Well, i am still currently wearing grishko 2007 pro, width x and hard shank but i feel that rolling into demi pointe is very hard because grishko shoes are really hard but once it gets softer it is just too soft for me and it makes a big difference because of my high arch. Please recommend any brand or shop that i can get fitted at or even the fitter. Sorry for such a long post!

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My DD has very high arches and her Freeds lasted for a very short time. Several teachers and friends have advised her that Freeds are primarily performance shoes and are known to be less than long-lived for dancers with highly arched, strong feet.

 

She currently wears Grishko Vaganovas, which have a high vamp as well as a strong shank which helps her feel more secure at she isn't at risk of popping out of the shoes en pointe. Despite being shoes designed for the Russian method of springing onto pointe she has been able to roll up and down in them. She didn't break them in at all prior to first wearing them but allowed her feet to do the moulding during class work, at the suggestion of her teacher whose partner has similar feet and pointe shoe issues. They may work for you?

 

Alternatively she loved her first pairs of shoes which were Bloch Sonatas and would like to try the hard shanked versions of these. They also have a high vamp. Perhaps Dancia, if it carries stocks of all major brands, might be a good place to shop so that you can try on various makes and models of shoe.

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Because many of the Freed shoes are handmade using traditional materials, I can imagine that for the very strong, high-instepped foot they may not last as long as a shoe with a plastic-based or plasticised shank.

 

However, I would not say they are only for performances. Studios, if they suit your feet, are particularly hard wearing. With the addition of some pointe shoe glue in strategic places, my dd's Classic Pro shoes last her a few months which is fine. The overriding advantage for us is the fantastic expert fitting by Beth and Sophie, and the fact that the shoes suit her feet better than any other brand we've tried.

 

Horses for courses and all that so it's worth trying as many makes and different shops as you can.

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Dont know what part of the country you are taxi but apparently Porselli in Norwich have a good fitter for suffolks...not used them myself but it was suggested as an option when I tried to get an appointment with the suffolk pointe shop- always unsuccessful as overseas!

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Hello, just a quick question.

 

I'm planning on going to London in a couple of weeks and thought I'd get some new pointe shoes whilst I'm there. I've had about 4 pairs of pointe shoes before (either grishko or gamba) but just from local shops and thought it might be good to try on a wider variety of shoes. My favourite shoes were my first ever pair, gambas (from about 1999) but i've tried new gambas again recently, since starting back at ballet, and they just aren't the same (maybe it's since the manufacturing went to France, or probably that my feet have changed). And I didn't get on with the grishko 2007s, they looked lovely on my feet but they were so stiff to roll up through demi pointe, and by the time I'd just about broken in the demi pointe the shank had gone and gave me no support under my arch and that was just dangerous. Plus I found them very noisy when walking and jumping, has anyone else found this?

 

Anyway after all that, I just wondered do I need to make appointments or just turn up? it'll be a Friday afternoon when I'm there.

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We have always just turned up, although when going to Freed I do phone and check whether dd's favourite fitters are in. The only person you need to make an appointment with is Bob Martin if he makes your shoes via Bloch. :-)

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We've always just turned up as well and have always ended up buying Freeds.  We have had different people serve us each time and the service has been very thorough.  Last time we went we literally just popped in on the way to get shoes for DD1 on our way to DD2s exam at RAD HQ.  DD had the name of her existing shoes,size etc written down but the assistant still brought back a couple of alternatives with her to just double check it was still the best shoe for her.

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Hi VBee - You mentioned you liked Grishkos 2007s but found them hard to roll up through demi-pointe. If you could find a shop - or someone to order for you - the Grishko 2007 Pro-Flex model I would recommend you try them out. They are the same as the normal 2007s but the shank is more elastic so they seem to suit people who find the normal 2007s too hard. However, they are not suitable for people with very high arches.

Good luck finding the right shoes for you.

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Thanks for the replies, I guess I'll just turn up then, hopefully they won't be too busy on a Friday afternoon.

 

Dancer Sugar Plum, thanks for the recommendation, but you might have misread my post. Although they looked really pretty on my feet I found that the shank went really quickly on grishko 2007's, whilst the demi pointe stayed solid. Which was a shame because they did look very nice. So I'm not sure that the proflex would suit me, I have got quite high arches.... I appreciate the recommendation though! :)

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Yulpany, do you need a high profile or a low profile shoe?  Another brand you might consider are Suffolk shoes.

 

i haven't tried many shoes so i do not know which type of shoes actually fit me better but low or high, both seemed okay for me :)

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Hi VBee, sorry I misread your post. I know of someone getting a harder shank for 2007s. She had high arches and the shanks on the normal 2007s went too quickly for her. She had to get them specially ordered but I don't know how she found rolling onto demi-pointe, etc. The Grishko website seems to show a variety of shoes with different shanks, so if you find you would like to try Grishkos again you could go to a shop that supplies Grishkos and ask if they could order some shoes for you to try on. I get the impression that most shops that stock Grishkos seem to only stock the normal 2007s.

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We stock the 2007, triumph and the Nova, Grishko are definitely our most popular shoe, closely followed by Gaynor Minden :)

 

We're on a direct train link from London, next to a station, would be lovely to see you if you have time? Fittings do need to be booked though as we allow an hour for each one.

 

I had a girl in yesterday who was fitted in London by one fitter who was fitting 4 girls at the same time! She had them all lined up on the barre! Won't name the shop but she ended up in a pair at least 2 sizes too wide, so wherever you go make sure you get 1:1 attention from the fitter :)

Sx

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Sheila - It's good to know there are shops that stock different models of Grishkos in the UK. The shops I've been to so far, which have Grishkos, only have the 2007s. Unfortunately for me, I don't live anywhere near London, so if I was to take a trip to your shop in the future, I would have to add in an overnight stay in London, or something along those lines.

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VBee I can confirm that we have been offered the option to make changes to Grishko shoes by our fitter in Brighton, who only supplies Grishko.  She has told us that dd can make changes to her shoes (obviously at a charge) and that the shoes will then be made to dd's specifications. I don't know if this would include a different shank.  Wondered if this might be an option for you.  We haven't gone down this route as yet as dd finds the Nova suits her perfectly, but it is something we have always kept in mind.  Have no experience of other shoe makers and whether they offer this option, I would have thought they would.

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Dancique in Birmingham have just fitted DD with a beautiful pair of shoes...after a series of shops which said she had 'difficult' feet, Dancique had a range of styles and makes that she could choose from.  They were helpful, attentive and DD came away with a fantastic pair of shoes.  Highly recommend Dancique.  Would love to visit Just Ballet one day, by the way, Sheila!!!!

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