Tango Leader Shoe Idea

[Subliminal]

So lately I've been really digging the minimalist shoes for everyday walking. Vibram, Merrel, etc. You don't have to get the shoes with the little toes either, they make ones with the same thin sole so that you can feel the ground better, but without toes; instead there's an extra wide front so you can stretch out your toes in the shoe, for balance.

Anyway, I was thinking that it might be cool to try and make a leader's shoe based on one of these designs. Like glue suede or raw leather to the bottom. Has anyone tried to make their own dance shoes before and had any success?

 

[dchester]

I haven't tried doing that myself, however it might be worth it to talk to a cobbler to see what they could do. I have utilized a cobbler to make the heels lower on a couple pairs of dance shoes I own.

 

[Zoopsia59]

Have you tried dancing in something like jazz dance shoes? The soles are pretty thin, and the leather is soft enough to stretch to allow your toes to spread.

My partner always danced his best in those types of shoes instead of sturdier shoes with hard soles. He bought them sized to put an arch orthotic in them.

 

[opendoor]

...might be cool to try..

speaking frankly: why when already making your own shoes, and when tailoring your own costumes, why then still dancing to someone else´s music, and with steps someone else once invented? Sorry, don´t mean to be ironic, but tango isn´t a body-friendly art form, at all. Only once in my (tango) life-time I used to dance in a healthy way: when I danced bare footed .

 

[AndaBien]

...but tango isn´t a body-friendly art form...

It isn't? You dance it quite differently from the way I do.

 

[bastet]

Hi sub- Someone I dance with tried out something like that with the little toed slip-on shoe thingys (I have no idea what they are really called) and was going to put some suede on the bottom. I don't see why it shouldn't work. It seems like it would end up feeling like a Capezio Pedini shoe, except with toe shaping...I think it's worth a try. Are they expensive?

It's very easy to glue suede bottoms on shoes. The suede replacment bottoms are readily available. When I have done this to dance shoes, I get a pair of replacment dance soles from somwhere like danceshopper.com and then trim it and just use ShoeGoo to put it on. Let it set and it's ready to go.

I also know of some guys that did this to Puma's. It was a sort of hot and cool thing to do a few years ago to the bottoms of the sleek tennis shoes.

 

[bastet]

I haven't tried doing that myself, however it might be worth it to talk to a cobbler to see what they could do. I have utilized a cobbler to make the heels lower on a couple pairs of dance shoes I own.

You did? We've been meaning to take a pair of hub's shoes in that he loves, but the heel is a little higher than he likes on them and I wondered if it could be done. It's nice to know it has!

 

[opendoor]

It isn't? You dance it quite differently from the way I do.

You´re right and I´ve learned my lesson lately.

 

[bordertangoman]

I also know of some guys that did this to Puma's. It was a sort of hot and cool thing to do a few years ago to the bottoms of the sleek tennis shoes.

a local cobbler did this for me for ten quid; it worked well. he even said try them out before you pay me - he wasnt sure the glue would stick; soles are made from different materials.

 

[Subliminal]

Thanks for the tips!

dchester: I might try that. I have some older pairs of shoes that fit ok, I just got tired of the heel. Maybe I'll see if they can take it off.

Zoops: My problem with jazz shoes is they normally still use some kind of footprint with a narrow heel. Even if the heal has no height, it makes the shoe not feel so good.

bastet: Thanks that sounds almost exactly like what I was thinking of. Maybe I will do it without the toe shoes though.

 

[Peaches]

So lately I've been really digging the minimalist shoes for everyday walking. Vibram, Merrel, etc. You don't have to get the shoes with the little toes either, they make ones with the same thin sole so that you can feel the ground better, but without toes; instead there's an extra wide front so you can stretch out your toes in the shoe, for balance.

Anyway, I was thinking that it might be cool to try and make a leader's shoe based on one of these designs. Like glue suede or raw leather to the bottom. Has anyone tried to make their own dance shoes before and had any success?

Hehehe! I'm picturing you dancing tango with the Vibram toe shoes.

I imagine this would work. I've known several guys who sueded the bottoms of street shoes (always Puma-esque things, like Bastet said), and it worked fine for them. As a follower, one thing I noticed was that it totally changed how it felt to dance with them--their weight wasn't in the same place. They were forward, but it felt to me like they were on their heels; I had to learn to dance with them again.