Leather shoe soles? Should I do it?

[mellody43]

My first post here was about my dance shoe soling issues -- since I dance in a club, not a pristinely clean ballroom, my suede soles take a serious beating. :cry:

Should I get leather soles on the shoes? Is this a big mistake? Are they going to be too stiff AND slippery?! (These are salsa shoes, btw.)

Thank you for any advice!
Melissa

[SalsaGeek]

I'd just brush and clean the crap out of my shoes. If you have more than one pair then you can just wear the older/cheaper pair to the clubs.

[mellody43]

A brush doesn't seem to clean them enough so I gently use sandpaper to get the crud off. But that wears the suede down much faster.

*sigh*

[SalsaGeek]

:lol: The joy of being a dancer :lol:


A brush doesn't seem to clean them enough so I gently use sandpaper to get the crud off. But that wears the suede down much faster.

*sigh*

[pygmalion]

Can the answer be yes and no at the same time? Hmm. :? :lol: :D

The real deal: suede shoes require careful handling. Check out the tips and advice library on gottadance.org. It goes through the whole shoe thing at great length -- why to buy them, how to fit them, how to take care of them, how to handle dancing on cruddy floors, etc. Worth a look-see. If you can't baby your suede soles for any reason, go for the leather.

If, on the other hand, you're willing to baby your shoes, suede is much preferable. Not necessarily because it's more flexible. That depends on the shoe you buy. But because leather tends to be more slippery. I have a pair of leather-soled dance shoes -- very lightweight, comfortable, and beautiful shoes. But it took me so long to break them in. Slippery! Yikes! :shock:

But remember -- baby your shoes. Carry them in a shoe bag. Stay away from puddles and beer spots and cigarette ash. Never wear them outdoors. Clean them only with a hard-bristled wire brush, and clean them often. gottadance.org spells it all out.


The suggestion to have a pair of older club shoes is a good one, too. I think you do most of your dancing in a club, though, right? :? So take a look at that website, and please let me know what you think. :D Oh yeah, and also check out Terryl's article on dance shoes and your feet in the articles forum. :D

[mellody43]

That gottadance.org stuff is wonderful! Thank you.

I couldn't believe the one line about resoling every year or so -- ummm, I've resoled mine like 4 times in one YEAR!!! Damn club floors. *wahhh!*

As usual, Jenn, you are so helpful.
:D

Melissa

[borikensalsero]

I can see my socks peaking through the side of my dance shoes... does that mean that I need new ones? I think it actually adds character to see the sock sticking out the side... I'm not sure what kind of character it adds but some kind is good enough for me... :roll:

[Sarah]

I can see my socks peaking through the side of my dance shoes... does that mean that I need new ones?

New socks? Well if they're going to be showing, you should try to get something that matches your partners outfit. Either that or fluroescent green with pictures of bunny-rabbits.
HTH
Sarah

[Swing Kitten]

HTH ?

that one's new to me

[Sarah]

HTH ?

that one's new to me

Hope this helps

Cheers
Sarah

[Swing Kitten]

AAAaaaaaahhhhhhh! I see! Thank you!

[Vince A]

I can see my socks peaking through the side of my dance shoes... does that mean that I need new ones? I think it actually adds character to see the sock sticking out the side... I'm not sure what kind of character it adds but some kind is good enough for me... :roll:
Those shoes are probably just broken in . . .

[SDsalsaguy]

Those shoes are probably just broken in . . .
Or maybe just broken? :? :wink:

[borikensalsero]

I can see my socks peaking through the side of my dance shoes... does that mean that I need new ones? I think it actually adds character to see the sock sticking out the side... I'm not sure what kind of character it adds but some kind is good enough for me... :roll:
Those shoes are probably just broken in . . .

Yeah, they are just broken in... that is what it is... I like your perceptive Vince... :D My shoes are just broken in....

[Swing Kitten]

Whatever makes you feel better! It's amazing the things people tell themselves! ;)

[SDsalsaguy]

Whatever makes you feel better! It's amazing the things people tell themselves! ;)
broken + in = boriken! :lol:

[borikensalsero]

Whatever makes you feel better! It's amazing the things people tell themselves! ;)

You are not kidding... when I look down I see a $300 dollar pair of brand spanking new shoes, minus some glue and some leather... Its kind of like, wounds of war. An old battered soldier who is still giving his all to his nation because of personal beliefs, not caring that he can bearly walk but still holding gun in hand fighting for freedom... Now, is that being positive or just delusional? Hmmmm... No, no, don't convience me otherwise... they've been with me since I picked them up from Hospital Capizio...

[pygmalion]

Hey. There's nothing wrong with forming an attachment to your favorite pair of dance shoes. I'm sure we've all done that, from time to time. I know I have. I don't wear bunny socks, though. :lol: :D

[borikensalsero]

Whatever makes you feel better! It's amazing the things people tell themselves! ;)
broken + in = boriken! :lol:

very creative... me likes that... 8) My shoes are starting to look kind a way cooler right about now...

[SDsalsaguy]

Whatever makes you feel better! It's amazing the things people tell themselves! ;)
broken + in = boriken! :lol:

very creative... me likes that... 8) My shoes are starting to look kind a way cooler right about now...
Anytime boriken... anything I can do to help out a fellow salsero! 8)

[pygmalion]

On a serious note, though (sorry folks, somebody's gotta do it. There are guests watching. :shock: ) no matter how much you love your dance shoes, there comes a point when they're no longer supporting your feet. That's when they've gotta go. Sad but true.

[DancingMommy]

Should I get leather soles on the shoes? Is this a big mistake? Are they going to be too stiff AND slippery?! (These are salsa shoes, btw.)

Here's what I've done with "dress shoes"... I've sanded the bottoms with a power sander to get them slightly less slippery. It's better than wrecking the suede soled shoe that are freakin' expensive.

Just pop those babies in a vice grip and run the power sander over the ball of the foot portion. It roughs it up so it "looks" like suede, but it is much more durable. I've done this with character shoes, too.

[vey]

Being relatively new to the dance scene (5 months), I'm also trying to figure out what works best and is affordable for me.
- since I dance in a club, not a pristinely clean ballroom, my suede soles take a serious beating.
I think it also depends on what kind of floor is in the club- if it is somewhat "sticky" you might be fine with leather soles.

I had a bad experience with wearing suede sole shoes (the only ones that I own!) to the club - it was raining and the majority of people didn't change their street shoes, so there were puddles inside, then I saw a guy loosing a piece of gum out of his mouth right on the dance floor and I've noticed a couple of slices of lemon in another part of the floor :cry:

Currently I'm about to experiment with a new pair of regular street leather-sole shoes for club dancing.

And in the mean time I'm using a pair of leather-sole character shoes for these purposes. Although, I ve read in other posts that character shoes are bad for longer than 30-min dancing and I am are VERY sensitive to uncomfortable shoes, but my feet do not feel tired in them!!! (May be mine are "new and improved" version of character shoes :D :?: - they were about 40% more expensive than the other types of character shoes I've seen)
The drawback - they are a bit too slippery for the floors at the club where I go, so I will definetely try DancingMommy's advice: Just pop those babies in a vice grip and run the power sander over the ball of the foot portion. It roughs it up so it "looks" like suede, but it is much more durable. I've done this with character shoes, too.[/b]

[DancingMommy]

And in the mean time I'm using a pair of leather-sole character shoes for these purposes. Although, I ve read in other posts that character shoes are bad for longer than 30-min dancing and I am are VERY sensitive to uncomfortable shoes, but my feet do not feel tired in them!!! (May be mine are "new and improved" version of character shoes :D :?: - they were about 40% more expensive than the other types of character shoes I've seen)

Get a pair of insoles for your character shoes. :D They make them nice and cushy (especially when they get broken in and your feet start to slosh around inside. I have to do that with the pair I'm wearing right now. The leather is so stretched out, that my feet slide from left to right. :(

Supadance makes nice terry lined foam insoles. They aren't expensive, and they are so comfortable. I use them in my practice shoes.

I would have posted a link, but I can't find the doggone insoles only for sale. If you contact Showtime, they can probably sell you a pair. Just go for your English size.

[pygmalion]

Character shoes are great -- and the soles work really well, because they're not slippery. The main problem many people have is that they're not balanced like "dance" shoes. They place your weight over your heels like street shoes, not forward poised like ballroom shoes. If the difference in balance doesn't bother you, have fun.

[vey]

Thanks for your advice DM and pygmalion!
Get a pair of insoles for your character shoes. :D They make them nice and cushy (especially when they get broken in and your feet start to slosh around inside. I have to do that with the pair I'm wearing right now. The leather is so stretched out, that my feet slide from left to right. :(
I will definitely try that , may be later though... now they are pretty new and snugg and the cushioning that they have feels fine so far.

Thanks for reminding me about different balancing of char. shoes, now I remember that I've read about it somewhere. I do not know, my goal is to become a good social dancer, I do not even own a pair of ballroom shoes :cry: Do you think I'll be fine for a while?

Another advantage of char. shoes for me- it's easy to find low-heeled ones (1-2") in stores, while the absolute majority of ballrm shoes that I've seen have higher heels. And beeing inexperienced as I am, I can't order on the web, I HAVE to try them on first.

[Swing Kitten]

I'm not a ballroomer but I don't own dance shoes... I have shoes that I dance in... but nothing fancy.

I'd say shoes are important to a degree-- it's important to take care of your body-- but after a point it's more about the dance and how you move with it.

I wouldn't be in a rush to go out and buy expensive dance shoes. If you're comfortable and spin easily enough to not eventually hurt your knees then I'd say you're fine until you feel the desire to get different shoes.

[pygmalion]

Thanks for reminding me about different balancing of char. shoes, now I remember that I've read about it somewhere. I do not know, my goal is to become a good social dancer, I do not even own a pair of ballroom shoes :cry: Do you think I'll be fine for a while?

Another advantage of char. shoes for me- it's easy to find low-heeled ones (1-2") in stores, while the absolute majority of ballrm shoes that I've seen have higher heels. And beeing inexperienced as I am, I can't order on the web, I HAVE to try them on first.

Sure, vey, I wore character shoes for a couple months before I took the plunge, no harm done, in my opinion, because I had no idea what forward poise was, anyway! :lol: :D And you're right. It is hard to find how-heeled ballroom shoes. If you decide to go for the ballroom shoes at some point, try the Werner Kern comfort line or the Cuban heeled shoes at Showtime. Both are ballroom shoes with low heels. For the time being, though, I think you're just fine. You or your teacher can best judge whether/when you need to change.

Edit: What I should have said is ask your shoe dealer to order some in for you. You are absolutely right. for your first couple pairs of ballroom shoes, get a professional to fit you if at all possible. If there's no ballroom shoe dealer in your town, try ballet stores which sometimes stock ballrom shoes, or try going to dance events and comps nearby. Often, shoe dealers will attend these events and bring shoes with them.

[vey]

pygmalion, Swing Kitten and everybody involved, thank you so much for your input !!!

I'm so glad that I found this forum where I can get advice and opinions of much more experienced dancers, because people in my dancing classes have as little experience as I do and instructors usually have only 5-10min between classes and I feel guilty taking up their resting time with my questions...
THANK YOU :D

[pygmalion]

Ask away. Anytime at all. :D