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Dancing with socks over pointe shoes


pointe shoes

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Could I have some advice from you knowledgable people please?

My daughter does ballet in a village hall so the floor is not the best. To stop their pointe shoes from becoming dirty the teacher makes the children put socks over their shoes.They then do their class like this. To my non dancing eyes this looks dangerous as the socks have no grips on them.

Has anyone else encountered this? Am I worrying over nothing!

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Good morning, :-)

 

Hmmm. I can't say I've ever seen this! Dd wears socks over new pointes but only when wearing them in the house to break them in. Even then, they are slippery so she doesn't go up or downstairs in them.

 

It doesn't sound very safe to me! You can get pointe shoe protectors; I know Sansha used to do them. They may be safer than socks.

 

Edited to add: here they are - http://www.justballet.co.uk/shop/help-for-shoes/sansha-ballet-pointe-shoe-covers/

 

However, it does say that they are designed to be worn over the shoes while breaking in - not sure if you can dance in them?

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Hi 

 

To add to what the others have already said, I don't think dancing with socks over pointes is a good idea, it'll make it far too slippy and dangerous, Like Spannerandpony mentioned, I've known people to put socks over their pointes whilst they break them in, but never to dance in. Maybe the teacher has misread this somewhere?

 

I also think it's inevitable that they will get dirty, I darn the end of my pointe shoes, and even after one class, using a bit of rosin, they are pretty filthy. Is there a reason why the teacher wants the shoes to stay clean, like a performance or exam coming up?

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Agree with the above :)

Pointe shoe covers like those spannerandpony mentioned above are useful to keep shoes clean whilst breaking in for a show or exam, but they are not for everyday wear.

They have a full suede sole so provide grip, so you can dance safely in them, but won't last forever. Eventually the traction and tension will cause the cotton cover and suede to part company :)

Shoes will get dirty and smelly through wear. It's their job. Let them do their job and put safety first! Sx

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I know very little about pointe shoes but every nerve in my body screamed "No!" I didn't comment as there are many others here who know so much better than I do. It is very worrying that teacher resorts to this method of teaching.:o

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Have to agree with all of the above.Never heard of anyone taking a class,even if just doing warm up exercises,in pointe shoes that are covered in socks. I remember if i was wearing a pair of pointe shoes around the house to break them in and mould them to my feet,if they were new i would wear socks over them to keep them clean. But if the teacher is trying to keep everyone`s pointe shoes clean for a forthcoming exam or something then this is a very silly and irresponsible way to go about it.

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My DD wears her Pointe shoe covers (from Just Ballet of course) when breaking in new shoes and also when she is moving between changing room and studio door when at her classes.  She does this as the main corridor is where everyone enters the Dance School with their outdoor shoes on and she's very conscious of not damaging her teachers lovely floor (her words) by walking rubbish in on the soles of her shoes.

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Yes, they are the same thing, and they do work, up to a point. My DD has used them a couple of times when she has wanted to keep new shoes decent prior to a show or exams. They are ok for occasional use I think, and the suede is quite grippy when they are new, but as Sheila has said, they do wear out quite quickly so I wouldn't recommend them for regular use.

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