Which colour shoe?

[dancin_feet]

I know there are some dance shoe fiends here so I thought this would be an appropriate place to ask the question. :D

I have recently become aware of the better look given by "natural" or "flesh" coloured latin shoes. Comparing my skinny legs in black shoes to another girl with skinny legs in flesh coloured shoes, the flesh colour definitely looks better.

What should I go for? A colour that will blend in with my skin / stocking colour, or maybe a bronze or platinum (little more flashy)? Most flesh coloured shoes I have seen are satin. Does leather give the same look in that colour?

Pleeeaaaassseee heeeellllppp!! :D :wink:

[pygmalion]

Flesh tone shoes definitely extend your leg line. Since I'm brown, not peach, I've had a couple pair dyed to match my real skin tone. I went to the fabric store and searched high and low for a swatch that matched my skin ( a pecan/brown/tan color) Then I took that to the shoe shop and had them dye my white satin shoes. The problem with leather is that the selection of colors is extremely limited. If you're not a textbook "tan," whatever that is, your shoes won't match you. That's why fabric works. You can make it whatever color you want.

[dancin_feet]

So to match my skin colour would be the best way to go, eh? Rather than just a neutral type of colour. Don't think I can go to the expense of getting them dyed, but will probably lean towards satin. I thought satin didn't stretch much and was difficult to keep clean, that's why I have stayed away from them.

[10Dancer]

If you wear fishnets with your latin shoes make sure to check the color. For instance, there are two colors in Supadance latin shoes, Flesh and Dark Tan. The Supafit line is dark tan and it matches the Danskin fishnets that are Suntan. The regular flesh tone Supadance shoes match the Danskin fishnets that are Light Toast.

If you don't wear fishnets, try to match the color to your skin tone as close as possible. As previously stated, it extends the leg line. I have found it is better that the shoes are darker rather than lighter.

I have been told by a number of pros to stay away from silver and gold tone shoes. The other thing is black shoes, I have been told that if you wear black satin latin shoes ALWAYS wear black fishnets. I have seen that this is what most of the pros do if they wear black shoes. It keeps the extension of the leg line for being broken.

I once saw a competitor wear Suntan fishnets with Flesh colored latin shoes and to state it plainly, it looked awful. There shoes stood out and looked so out of place due to the contrast between the fishnets and the shoes. Not to mention it draws a lot of attention to the feet and in this case it wasn't the best thing.

Again, just my 2 cents.

[10Dancer]

Just another note about your last post Dancin Feet. I have tried both leather and satin latin shoes. I prefer the satin. They do stretch some, enought to be comfortable for me. It really is all about finding the right shoe for your foot. Some people only wear a given brand for this reason. I know many of the Ray Rose followers are like this. BTW, the Ray Rose shoes are mostly dark suntan also.

Also, the only brand of leather latin shoes I have ever seen on a competition floor are Dance Naturals.

The best thing to do would be shop around the internet and look at pictures of the shoes and the colors. You can also dye them yourself. I have done it before and it isn't all that hard. It was scary to try and dye a $100 pair of shoes but it turned out okay.

If I can help in any other way just let me know. :D

[dancin_feet]

10Dancer - Most of the time I don't wear any sort of stockings with my shoes, I really don't like them, but for winter and performances, I will put on a pair of normal pantyhose or flesh coloured dance tights.

[ShyDancer]

I prefer flesh colored shoes, My latin shoes are all satin flesh colored.I do have black ballroom shoes , they were my first (and worst) choice of shoes.

It just depends what you like I guess, but personally I love the look that the flesh color gives. An it goes with anything! Pants, skirts, even 3/4 length pants, and with any color too.

Im not sure about the satin V leather, again is personal preference, I just adore the satin, I think it looks prettier :D


Id go into a store and try them all on!

[10Dancer]

I don't usually wear them either. (Sorry, got a post in between :D , I was referring to the fishnets) My suggestion would be to look for a shoe close to your tan color or have them dyed to match your tan color. There is a wide range of tan colors and many companies will dye the white shoes for you for a small fee of $5 or $10. Many of the companies now have two colors of tan stain and Dance Naturals even has two colors of tan leather.

[Laura]

I agree...for competitions, leg-line-colored satin is the way to go. I've been dying my own shoes for years using the controversial but effective hot-water-bath method. Yes, I fully immerse my shoes in a hot water dye bath! There are other, safer ways of doing it, too.

By the way, if you are wearing a pastel Standard dress it is not out of style to wear dyed-to-match shoes. But, leg-line-colored gives you the most use, so it's better to stick with that unless you can afford to have a pair of shoes for every dress. If your Standard dress is dark or bright, don't dye the shoes to match...it's not unlike wearing black shoes.

One word: if you do wear white shoes with a white Standard dress or pastel shoes with a pastel Standard dress, keep in mind that the lighter shoes will emphasize your footwork. So, if your footwork is clean, go for it, but if it's sloppy or if you have feet like boats, don't.

[Sagitta]

This seems to a lady shoes discussion. I've seen guy mostly wearing black. Is black the way to go? When would a guy wear another color shoe?

[Vince A]

This seems to a lady shoes discussion. I've seen guy mostly wearing black. Is black the way to go? When would a guy wear another color shoe?
Any color, as long as it is black!

[pygmalion]

There's one company (Is it Coast? Celebrity? I'll have to look it up) that offers men's dance shoes ready made in a variety of colors. There are some nice brown leather ones that I remember in particular. But I'm pretty sure those are aimed at social dancers, not competitive dancers. You know, guys who want their dance shoes to look like just any old shoes. And, of course, there are some companies, like Elegance, where you can custom order shoes in any color leather you want.

I think most men stick with basic black, though. Lucky ducks. That way, they only need a few pairs. Women, on the other hand ... :oops: :lol:

[pygmalion]

It's Celebrity. They offer a few men's styles in colors other than black. They have some camel/tan ones, some chocolate brown ones, some white ones :shock: , several black and white spectator types, and some that you can special order in any color you want.

[Vince A]

Yes, it's Celebrity.

There is a new show company out there . . . well, I'm not sure how new, but they were being introduced as new in Reno this past March.

Magic . . . they have a website. The men's shoes were extremely comfortable, but the shoes were geard for those social dancers and the Lindy Hoppers, as most are two-toned and look like wing tips or spats!

The women's shoes look normal, but (sigh) none of them fit me :wink:

Give 'em a shot . . . people were raving about them after buying a pair, but what else do you do after AFTER you've spent the $$$$$$???

[Sagitta]

Thanks. I don't really like ordering shoes online unless the return policies are generous, such as free S&H. I usually wait until I go somewhere. There is a pretty good store in NY city called World Tone Music. Probably going there this weekend...to see if any of they have any shoes on sale that fit me.

[10Dancer]

This seems to a lady shoes discussion. I've seen guy mostly wearing black. Is black the way to go? When would a guy wear another color shoe?

IMO, Black is always the way to go. But I a have seen some Pro Latin men wear colored shoes if their entire outfit is a color other than black. I've been red once, blue once, and white a few times. I imagine the shoes were satin and dyed but I could be wrong. Personally, I wasn't impressed with the look.

[dancin_feet]

I would say that for guys, generally black is it. I have seen instructors during performances wearing tan or white, depending on the costume. Would look a bit strange wearing a white costume with black shoes!! :shock:

Thanks for all your help guys, looks like I need to get with the times and buy myself a pair of flesh coloured shoes. Will have to do the sums over the weekend to see if I can afford to get them now or if I will have to wait for a while. That will make 4 pair of shoes!! Considering most people I dance with have only the one pair, (and some of the instructors only have two) I'm practically the Imelda of our studio. 8)

[Sagitta]

A black and white tone shoe does look good, especially with a fedora to match. Reminds me that I'm on the hunt for the perfect fedora. :)

[10Dancer]

Considering most people I dance with have only the one pair, (and some of the instructors only have two) I'm practically the Imelda of our studio. 8)


I have 10 pair of dance shoes. :shock: It is pretty crazy really. I have ones for practice in both standard and latin and ones for performance. The performance ones stay nice and clean in their box and only come out on special occassions. Then I have the Heather's for social. It has become an addiction really. (I think I have a general shoe addiction anyway :D ) Then I have a few that I went through while trying to find the exact right fit. I keep them around for dancing on club floors that ruin suede bottoms.