Ray Rose Shoes

[Twilight_Elena]

I am thinking of trying out Ray Rose shoes next time I get new shoes for ballroom. Who has ever worn Ray Rose shoes? What are your opinions on them? Comfy? On the narrow/wide side? Stable? Hard/soft? Too much/little suede?
Please specify what model you have tried on when you reply.

Twilight Elena

[Twilight_Elena]

Bump? I'm positive there are many members who have posted things about Ray Rose shoes before, I don't understand why there are no replies...

Twilight Elena

[Dancebug]

Ok, I will tell you my experience. I got my Ray Rose because I read good reviews on the web. I did not find anything special with them. I felt the heels were shorter than other brand shoes. Maybe it was because their heels are more toward the ball. I am not sure. Any way because I did not really like them, I put them away. They are just sitting in my closet in an almost mint condition. I forgot the name of the line, but it was one of those t-strap shoes.

[Twilight_Elena]

More toward the ball? You mean they target the weight on the balls of your feet? That would be a good thing, wouldn't it?

Twilight Elena

[Dancebug]

More toward the ball? You mean they target the weight on the balls of your feet? That would be a good thing, wouldn't it?

Twilight Elena
For other folks, maybe. Acually a lot of people like their shoes because of that reason. Not for me. I am happy with the positioning of Supadance shoe heels.

[Twilight_Elena]

Actually I've been wanting a shoe that's targeting on the ball because I tend to put some weight on the heel and want to eliminate it.

Twilight Elena

[Anna]

I actually just got some Ray Rose shoes in January, and I love them! I tried on a ton of different shoes when I was buying them, and the Ray Rose ones felt a lot more balanced and closely fitted than Supadance (and all the other brands I tried, too). So I'd highly recommend them, although I suppose it really depends on the exact shape of your foot.

[pygmalion]

Where did you buy them? The Ray Rose website is under construction. :cool:

[delamusica]

Here's what I wrote on another thread:

Order early, though. I ordered shoes from them only once, it took months to get them, and when I finally did, the shoes they sent were not the size or heel height I had ordered. They came with a little handwritten note saying the ones I wanted were unavailable . . . fine, I would have cancelled my order - I couldn't even get my feet into the ones they sent me.

[pygmalion]

Hmm. I was shocked. I went over and checked Dancevision's site. They still have some RR shoes on clearance, mostly in very small or very large sizes. But it's certainly worth a look-see, if you're in the market. :cool:

[SDsalsaguy]

Isn't LeNique the current source for Ray Rose America?

[pygmalion]

No idea. I saw some for sale at Aida Dancewear. And, of course, the Dancevision ones are (I'm fairly sure) from the same batch of discontinued styles they've been selling for a while now. That's why I was surprised they had any left. At $49 a pair, I'd have expected them to be long gone. *shrug*

[Anna]

I got my pair at Worldtone in New York, their webpage is here: homepage.mac.com/lanzo/. They had a great selection and very helpful sales people.

[pygmalion]

Thanks for the link, Anna. I drool over dance shoes. :)

[pygmalion]

Ooh! I see some practice shoes I've never seen anywhere else. :idea: Tra la la! :D

[Twilight_Elena]

I checked out the site too. I'm rooting for Blizzard in Dark Tan, it's for narrow feet, looks wonderful and the Dark Tan colour has a reddish hue to it I really like. Or maybe it's just the picture.

Twilight Elena

[Anna]

They told me at the store that the straps across the toe on Blizzard are all satin, so they'll wear out a lot quicker (the straps for the other models have a leather backing). But I guess they'd be more flexible, too.

[Twilight_Elena]

They told me at the store that the straps across the toe on Blizzard are all satin, so they'll wear out a lot quicker (the straps for the other models have a leather backing). But I guess they'd be more flexible, too.

Oooh. Good point. Thanks, Anna. :D

Twilight Elena

[JoeCZilla]

Oh my... Gawd! Are we talking about SHOES again?!?!? :)

[pygmalion]

And what exactly is your point? :wink: :lol:

[delamusica]

Oh my... Gawd! Are we talking about SHOES again?!?!? :)

Ha - you say AGAIN. That which does not cease cannot re-occur. :)

[SDsalsaguy]

Ha - you say AGAIN. That which does not cease cannot re-occur. :)
Yep, the exact thought going through my brain was "you mean they ever stop???" :lol:

[fascination]

i just DO NOT get the whole shoe fetish thing...nor the chocolate thing...am afraid I'm not really female....

[Twilight_Elena]

i just DO NOT get the whole shoe fetish thing...nor the chocolate thing...am afraid I'm not really female....
Hey. It's not a fetish. In my case, it's just a matter of looking ahead of time. I know I'm going to wreck my shoes in 4 months time, so considering my UK friend who gets me shoes from comps will come home (with new shoes!) in April and will come back again around July or August (4 months in England ;)) I want her to bring me my then new pair of shoes when she comes home in the summer. See? No fetish.

Twilight Elena

[JoeCZilla]

Shamelessly stolen from other threads...


:D Two pairs of new shoes!

…That's right, folks. Two pairs of dance shoes. I didn't mean for it to happen so fast but here's how it went.


…When my UK girlfriend comes, she's bringing me a new pair of Melissas. 80€ (from comp vendor, XNarrow), good price for dance shoes.

…So I was checking them out and teacher suggested I get a pair for shows and special parties and stuff, because after all I'm a teacher-to-be and I'll need a good shoe (not the one I'll be killing during practice). So I'm getting a 3" heel, all black with sparkly black finish at spots I picked (you pick any combination you can think of out of many available colours) and I'm paying just 75€! :D :D On discount because the school owner knows the shoe guy. Not to mention I told him I've got a narrow foot on the front and he'll tell the guy to make it a bit tighter on the front. And if it's too tight (custom made shoes aren't stretchy) I can take it to any cobbler and he'll put it in that stretch machine of his. ;)
…So I'm getting two pairs of dance shoes at once! Whoohooo! Happy happy!

…Tell you what, I'll make my photographer friend take some piccies, kay? From the knee down, of course. It's a shoe business. ;)

…I am thinking of trying out Ray Rose shoes next time I get new shoes for ballroom. Who has ever worn Ray Rose shoes? What are your opinions on them? Comfy? On the narrow/wide side? Stable? Hard/soft? Too much/little suede?
Please specify what model you have tried on when you reply.

…I might be purchasing the Sofia's by Capezio. I found them at a good price (69$) here…

…Does anyone have experience with these shoes? Good? Bad? I liked them because they look a lot like my Melissa's by International, which have been great so far.

…The good things I've heard about the Romas suggest that they're a good practice shoe

…Well, sometimes you just need a comfier shoe. I've heard great things about the Romas, but blochs are also a really, really good option. They're like wearing your regular old sneakers, only comfier and not as sticky. :P They've helped me a lot.

…Depends on what shoe you're wearing. Is it a dance sneaker, suede soled, rubber?

…My drama just never ends.
Remember my Blochs? They were great at first, till I realised I should have gotten them bigger. Perhaps my feet grew bigger over the summer, perhaps I got used to bigger shoes, but they're just killing me right now. It's stupid, because Blochs are great shoes, but there you go. So now I have no dance sneakers, which is a killer. I was thinking that perhaps I could get a trade or a resale within DF. After all, they're in a great condition. Good idea?

…Mac, why do you find Heavenly Dance Shoes to be so good? Good balance? Arch support? Just plain fancy? :P Just curious. Very interesting info, Claire. :D I'll keep Heavenly's in mind for my next pair then. Do you buy them at a retail store or online?

…P.S. Perhaps it's for the best. If I saw those Heavenly's up front, I might have fallen in love with them and bought a pair. Not affordable. :P Silly of me, of course, since I really don't need dance shoes right now, but you all know how the shoe demon tempts the dancer's mind. ;)

…As most of you might have noticed from the subject title, I'm very excited! After a totally unexpected gesture of enormous generosity from a very dear DF friend of mine, I am now the proud owner of a pair of perfect fitting Melissa's by International! :D :D :D


…So, update. I danced a tango yesterday with my latin heels…

…I wore my Bloch sneakers for 3 days straight during my school's fundraising fair (I was in the technical team, which means you're running around 15h/day. Bad thing was I ended up with my toenails going black because those shoes are made for dancing and thus are a much tigher fit than normal shoes.

…I agree with pygmalion, old timers know how to deal with us crazy shoe people. :P I wonder if they know about suede resoling as well...
Could just ask my local shoe repair guy. :P Sometimes we miss out the most obvious thing!

…I suppose shoe repair stores have suede replacements, right? Or if you go to a store and give them the suede to glue it on, that would be no problem.
Anyone done that? Very interested to know, suede wears out pretty quickly if you dance a lot.

…Shoes... I adore them, but I don't go for shoe sprees as I'm a) a teen with no money of her own, and b) my mom has tons of shoes and we are almost the same size. The joy! :P :P

…I'm 17 and I'm lucky enough to be wearing almost the same shoe size as my mom, so I can borrow her heels! I also take her clothes from when she was 20-25 years old with an amazing body and cool outfits!

…Really, now, who needs a dress so formal? Only for 2-3 times every year on special occasions like Christmas or a big party? Don't think so. I'll save up for a pair of Supadance heels! :D ;D

…I'm a low budget teenager, as most of you might have guessed by now. I really need a pair of dancing shoes, but can only buy one (at the moment)

…I'm so very excited with my new Bloch dance sneakers! I got them at just 70 Euros, and they're amazing! I love the way they feel! Now the only test they need to pass is the salsa test...

…90 minutes to go for the ultimate salsa/ballroom test of the sneakers, but they're going to pass with flying colours! DancePoet, I use them for both practice and socials since they're a) the only dance shoes I've got, b) so comfortable and c) so very pretty! :D :D :D :D

…You know what's next? The store assistant (who was very, very heplful!) reccomended me a pair of sweet Supadance babies for latin heels! They're black and totally, totally simple looking. Just a buckle with no fancy rhinestones and such, 2 inches, I think, or maybe 2,5. Very good for a beginner like me! :D :D :D :D

…Ladies--
What is the best shoe for a salsa addict? Latin heels? Trainers? Barefoot? ( :P It's economic, the least.)
Bring it on, salseras!

…I GOT THE SHOES! :D :D :D :D :D :D
I’m sure theres more but the search function just laughed hysterically at me when I put in “Twilight_Elena” and “Shoes”

Care to rescind your previous statement??? :D

[SDsalsaguy]

:uplaugh: :uplaugh: :uplaugh: :uplaugh:

Sorry TE, but I think he's got you on this one!

[pygmalion]

No fair turning ones words against her. I'd hate to see what turned up if somebody did the same search for me. :oops:

I don't think it's a shoe fetish either, btw. I couldn't care less about shoes in general. But I can talk dance shoes all day. So, if there's a fetish involved, it's more likely a dance fetish lol.

But seriously, it only makes sense that we talk shoes a lot, since the number one tool every dance person needs is a good pair of shoes. So, by the time you talk fit, styles, support, mechanics, minimizing injury, vendors, prices and so on, that's a lot of shoe threads. A lot.

[JoeCZilla]

Now, now... Just having a bit of fun.. I'd use the word obsession more than fetish anyways.. :) You have to admit that women have a fasination with shoes that I dont see any men matching... Hmmm too bad I can't do a search on shoe threads started by men...

It would probably read something like this: Q:Are these shoes good? A:Yeah :D

[Pacion]

rotfl re JoeCZilla ! My word! That was hilarious! Okay, question, kind of serious ;) can we start the nominations for the 2006 DF Awards yet? I need to nominate JoeCZilla for something! :lol: :lol:

[lynn]

No fair turning ones words against her. I'd hate to see what turned up if somebody did the same search for me. :oops:

I don't think it's a shoe fetish either, btw. I couldn't care less about shoes in general. But I can talk dance shoes all day. So, if there's a fetish involved, it's more likely a dance fetish lol.

But seriously, it only makes sense that we talk shoes a lot, since the number one tool every dance person needs is a good pair of shoes. So, by the time you talk fit, styles, support, mechanics, minimizing injury, vendors, prices and so on, that's a lot of shoe threads. A lot.

Yeah, and i recall reading somewhere where you confessed you own 25+ pairs :shock: ! Just curious, has that # grown any more :raisebro: ??

[Twilight_Elena]

I’m sure theres more but the search function just laughed hysterically at me when I put in “Twilight_Elena” and “Shoes”

Care to rescind your previous statement??? :D

Nope! It's not a shoe fetish. I'm just in a forum about dancing, I'm a dancer and I'm talking about the tools of the job. I don't think you'd call it a screwdriver fetish if I was a technician and talked about the new handle of the new X2000 Screwdriver Master, would you? Or if I was a cook and talked about pots and pans. ;)

Twilight Elena

[Pacion]

Or if I was a cook and talked about pots and pans. ;)


I thought only dishwashers talked "pots and pans" ;)

[JoeCZilla]

Nope! It's not a shoe fetish. I'm just in a forum about dancing, I'm a dancer and I'm talking about the tools of the job. I don't think you'd call it a screwdriver fetish if I was a technician and talked about the new handle of the new X2000 Screwdriver Master, would you? Or if I was a cook and talked about pots and pans.
You're right, I wouldn't if it was just a comment or two on the new X2000 Screwdriver Master like "Its a good screwdriver, gets the job done", but when you have ten in each color, and are like "OMG im soo happy! the new X2000 Screwdriver Master is almost here! It's soo shiny, I love it! Wee!" then I start to wonder.. :)

I wouldn't use the word fetish though, i'd use obsession. :) For it to be a fetish you'd have to say something like "I got the new X2000 Screwdriver Master last night and we went home and had some naughty time together" :D

And I hope you know i'm just having fun with this thread. A healthy shoe obsession is nothing to be ashamed of, I just find it amusing and a little odd. It makes me smile when I read about all the ladies shoe dramas, but then I'm a guy and I'm not meant to understand these things :)

[Twilight_Elena]

Dude. You're insulting the Shoe Gods.

Twilight Elena

[JoeCZilla]

Shoe Gods??? :) Heh, I rest my case...

Dude? Bah! I've never roped a doggie or wrangled cattle in my life! :) I do respond well to "Your Excellency" though :D

I am pretty excellent! :D

[Twilight_Elena]

Your Excellency.
Fear the wrath of the Shoe Gods, for they will punish you for your blasphemy with shoes that don't fit right.

Twilight Elena

[pygmalion]

Rotfl!!

[pygmalion]

Yeah, and i recall reading somewhere where you confessed you own 25+ pairs :shock: ! Just curious, has that # grown any more :raisebro: ??

I decline to comment. :lol:

[Twilight_Elena]

I decline to comment. :lol:

Wise decision. You sound like a true follower of the Shoe Gods.

[Twilight_Elena]

Okay, the second page of this thread has gone WAY off topic. And since I'm really thinking of getting Ray Rose shoes, I'd like some help heeeeere. Please?

Twilight Elena

[Anna]

All I have to say is I have Ray Rose cyclones, 3 inch, and I love them.
I had a problem in the beginning with my little toe falling out of the straps, but as I wore them more the straps became molded to fit my feet.

[alemana]

most of the RR styles look very similar. i'm going to try whatever i can get my hands on here in ny soon, as it'll be time for new shoes in a very few months.

[chocolatchica]

WorldTone in LA has them. If you get them let me know how you like them. I was also eyeing the Blizzard. I hear they have new colors out for their shoes

[Mawmaw]

WorldTone in LA has them. If you get them let me know how you like them. I was also eyeing the Blizzard. I hear they have new colors out for their shoes

uuhhhmmmm.... COCO'S Ballroom Boutique has them too.... no shipping charges either...

[lcdancesport]

WorldTone in LA has them. If you get them let me know how you like them. I was also eyeing the Blizzard. I hear they have new colors out for their shoes

I bought two pairs off of dance-shop, they come to about $135-$140 with shipping, not bad! Delivery is about 1.5-2 weeks. I hope they have new colors, the dark tan doesn't match me well at all.

I have the Earthquake model, they haven't stretched too much for me. I originally bought the Cyclones, but they became too big too fast, that's what I get with narrow feet!

The blizzard ones look really nice, but they don't have leather backing on the straps, something to keep in mind.

[Norbert]

Hi! well, very interesting to read all that feedback. My 2 partners and i are internet retailers of dance shoes and we have chosen to retail Ray Rose dance shoes in priority because of their very superior quality and performance characteristics. Several things to keep in mind:
- first, in terms of stability, their heel is differently placed and provides much greater stability.
- yes, they do fit rather on the tighter side but i also find that every model seems to offer a different forefoot support depending on the construction of the straps and your foot shape. It's always good to try...
- yes, they do stretch but the satin should hold the stretch to a certain extend.
- i'm actually surprised that the cyclone are not leather lined... interesting, i'll have to check that out... i don't see why they wouldn't.
yours truly... frenchie with Lucienne Dance Works LLC

[Lzilla]

I've followed the shoe discussions and bought a pair of vintage Ray Rose about two years ago from someone online. They have lasted a long time, so I decided to get a new pair...the Blizzards from Rumba Lucia a UK shop. They had a sale over the weekend and the price seemed very fair. Lucy corresponded with me about details and I loved the personal touch. There is no VAT and they accept PayPal. The shank and double wrap is great for someone like me who has a high arch and needs the shoe to stay on the foot. I understand about the satin straps stretching, but it is a fabric and the foot does sweat and move around. Even leather watch straps deteriorate from sweat! My dance teacher says that for Latin shoes the toes should go totally to the edge. I wear an 8.5 to 9 street shoe, but found that the 5UK RR was the right size. Tried to get them at Worldtone in NYC, but it seems they aren't carrying them in the same quantities or styles, so I went online. Will update when they arrive.