IDS vs. Ray Rose vs. Aida Latin Shoes

The 25.5 square toe box shoe was perfect. So pleased to get it right on first mailing.
Btw, definitely call Ilia directly, he'll help you fit over the phone.

I went ahead and ordered their practice shoes since I've heard good things about it.
 
Ok so I was really happy with my smooth shoes, and needed latin shoes.

And i got the Karina

It is gorgeous and I think it is a good fit. But those little straps in the toe area cut into me, and leave indentations afterwards.

Any tips on how to handle that? besides stretching the toe area with bags of water and putting it in the freezer? Wear moleskin with them?
 
Ok so I was really happy with my smooth shoes, and needed latin shoes.

And i got the Karina

It is gorgeous and I think it is a good fit. But those little straps in the toe area cut into me, and leave indentations afterwards.

Any tips on how to handle that? besides stretching the toe area with bags of water and putting it in the freezer? Wear moleskin with them?
did you get a round toe or square toe? i found the square toe had less cutting in on the toe area. The only other option would be wearing socks or tights with them.
 
did you get a round toe or square toe? i found the square toe had less cutting in on the toe area. The only other option would be wearing socks or tights with them.

Square toe. I think it's just I don't really wear fancy shoes so they're not calloused.
I may have to wear tights then or moleskin.

I would've tried a different stye (like their buckles one) but they didn't have one in stock in my size and it takes a while for custom made.
 
Square toe. I think it's just I don't really wear fancy shoes so they're not calloused.
I may have to wear tights then or moleskin.

I would've tried a different stye (like their buckles one) but they didn't have one in stock in my size and it takes a while for custom made.
Give it a week or two- aidas stretch a lot and soon they’ll be glorious!

I have also gotten show stretch spray and prayed the underside of the strap and put them on... after a lesson they’ll be good to go!
 
Give it a week or two- aidas stretch a lot and soon they’ll be glorious!

I have also gotten show stretch spray and prayed the underside of the strap and put them on... after a lesson they’ll be good to go!

I love your optimism.
I've never heard of shoe stretch spray! I may get one.
 
worddancer: my karina cut into my toes when I got them. In a few weeks they stretch out and become too lose... when I point too hard my foot fly out of the shoe so don't worry the satin will stretch out in no time... still love them.

I usually wear socks to stretch them out and it feels super fancy wearing them at home
 
So I had sent a picture to Ilia (the Aida guy) and he said that while my shoe fits me, it wasn't perfect. He sent me a second shoe, same size but a wider toe box. Sadly it had a slim heel instead of a flare, so I wobble like a baby bird in it.

Which basically means my weight is too far back in latin or rhythm, but I don't have time to fix body mechanics in a short period. So I'm returning that shoe. And sprayed the first shoe with a shoe stretch spray and hopefully it would work. Already did one round of ice in freezer thing.
 
so I wobble like a baby bird in it.

I wobble in my Aidas too (because of the short and slim shank) so I really need to be on the top of my game in keeping my balance. But that is exactly the reason I wear them... I wear Aidas for my training... I wear dance naturals for comps... Whenever I start to feel good in my progress in my DNs I will put Aidas back on to reveal all problems hidden by the beautiful dance naturals :)))) So maybe you might also like to keep them as a "challenge-accepted" shoes too ;);)? I only wear slim heels (for all of my dance shoes). They look great and also demand me to keep my center forward.

So far I find from the stiffest to softest are:
Supadance >>>> DN = RayRose>>>>>> >>>>>> Aida
I don't have a data point of IDS so not sure where to put it.

So I'm returning that shoe. And sprayed the first shoe with a shoe stretch spray and hopefully it would work. Already did one round of ice in freezer thing.

Hope they stretch out soon!!!
 
If you really like a model but with a different heel height/configuration and width, if you don’t mind ordering 12 pairs at a time, RR has let customers custom order configurations. I currently wear a Wide (M+), 2.75” straight heel that I custom order.

I cannot believe I didn't see this until two weeks ago!! You are my lifesaver.

RayRose discontinued my favorite specification (2-inch slim heel rockslide) since the model year 2019. After accepting the fact that I have to find a replacement, I have tried all kinds of shoes and spent $$$ in the past 18 months trying to find a model that works for me.

The closest I found is DN's slim heel court shoes 220R. The arch of DN is similar to Rockslide only a tiny bit lower. The padding is very similar. The throat of the DN is a lower round cut while Rockslide is a higher v-cut so my slingback-no-show socks won't work anymore but that can be fixed.

I got tempted to order a pair of IDS (what am I doing!) court shoes with a pointy toe and find out they are much narrower than RR and DN (maybe b/c because it is point toe). Pro: The v-cut throat is beautiful. The buckle has an elastic band attached to it which is very interesting to me!! Con: The padding is thin. The arch support is non-existing and would be great for other food shapes. The elite slim heel might as well called the pointy thick heel. My regular slim heel cap from Aida fits all my slim heel shoes but not IDS. None of the above is a deal-breaker but when they add up it is kind of mehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

I was just about to try Aida court shoe models when I see her post. Dodged that bullet. Also dodged the bullet of having to send Aida backs to replace the straps. (Despite my fond of Aida shoes their straps go really fast...) Ordering 12 pairs is not fun... but the counterfactual outcome will be even worse... and I wear out shoes fast... I contacted RR and their salespeople are very helpful and allow me to mix different colors in my order. I just made the first half of the payment and the shoes will be in production soon!
 
I cannot believe I didn't see this until two weeks ago!! You are my lifesaver.[...]

[...]Ordering 12 pairs is not fun... but the counterfactual outcome will be even worse... and I wear out shoes fast... I contacted RR and their salespeople are very helpful and allow me to mix different colors in my order. I just made the first half of the payment and the shoes will be in production soon!

I’m glad I could help. I’ve been ordering custom from RR for years now and they’ve been ultra helpful in always getting me a configuration that works for my needs, even down to doing a custom last for my right foot which needed a bit more room.

Good luck with your order!
 

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