Taking Care of Your Dance Shoes

Dance shoes are an object of great importance for dancers. They often spend a lot of time looking for ideal shoes for rehearsals and performances, so it is very important for these shoes to serve as long as possible. Take note of our useful tips on taking care of dance shoes and then they will be convenient and serve you well and long as a "thank you".

Care ways and methods largely depend on the materials your shoes are made of:

Satin shoes can be home-cleaned with a special tool and in its absence with a soft dry sponge, or, if dirty spots are visible with a damp (but not wet) slightly soapy palm of the hand, then wiped with a clean, lint-free cloth. The spots where the fabric is exposed to abrasion can be lubricated with natural oil.

Leather is the material easiest to clean and take care of. To care for leather dance shoes you can use the usual care products. However, experts say that the shoes of fine leather eg jazz shoes should best be processed with natural beeswax.

Genuine suede and nubuck are the materials to be strictly kept away from moisture. Therefore, they should be cleaned with dry rubber brushes. To remove dirty spots on suede and restore the texture of the surface use a metal bristle brush. After cleaning, treat the surface with protective spray for suede and nubuck.

Lacquered shoes need quite a lot of care but look very respectable. New lacquer hardly needs any care: to make them shiny again it is enough to wipe the shoes with flannel. If you do need to clean them - use balm or oil for lacquered shoes. Never use brushes to clean lacquered shoes!

After you have worn them for a while lacquered shoes often become lackluster in some spots and look worn. You can make them look good again by rubbing them with a cut onion and egg white. Keep the lacquered shoes in a dry place away from heat sources. If you failed to protect them from moisture and there is mold on your shoes (sometimes it happens to lacquered shoes), gently remove plaque and lubricate these places with glycerin for ten minutes, and then remove glycerin with a soft cloth.

There are a few general rules for taking care of dance shoes to be followed:

never dance shoes outside! Soles of shoes for dancing are made of special thick skin with a rough surface which provides perfect traction with parquet in the ballroom. Contact with another kind of surface will ruin the sole;
after performances and rehearsals, as well as in storage shoes should be clean from dust and dirt, and thoroughly dried at room temperature, toe box should be pre-stuffed with paper or other type of spacers;
dance shoes soles also require care: metal brushes will help to restore their rough surface;
control the heel's wearing out: do not forget to timely change the taps;
timely note when the shoes start to deform due to a long wearing. Often, the dancers use concert shoes which lost their original form for rehearsals. It is acceptable if the shoes are still comfortable and fit tightly;
use canvas bags for storage and transportation of dance shoes instead of plastic bags.

"Sudarushka" wishes you successful performances and invites you to buy shoes of our own production for dancing and rehearsals. Find your "lucky pair"!

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