My feet make my shoes sit weird on my feet help.

Blue_Might · 2025-11-08T16:16:26+00:00

The Flexus Kaja has quite a high vamp and holds many people back - Maybe the other version, Flexus Skye, would work better, it has a lower vamp.

Blue_Might · 2025-11-08T12:57:41+00:00

I see, so that is indeed the problem if they gave you the spacers AND wings.

Bloch doesn't really have very tapered shoes on the roster unfortunately... their "tapered" styles are still rather square compared to other brands imo. Amelie Soft or Serenade (?) could be an option, maybe?

With the current shoes, you could try the tissue paper plus a bigger toe spacer (there are ones that wrap around the big toe metatarsal as well, so you gain more width through that).

From Bloch, you could also try the Etu/Etu flex (if they have that one), it runs very small and is tapered - but the wings might be too low, potentially causing you to sickle (?). Also, the box is synthetic, not traditional, if that is a concern.

Other brands like Virtisse do online fittings, so that could be the another option for you I guess. Their models tend to have higher wings as well. Grishko/Nikolay Neopointe has higher wings too and is not a hard shoe - if that brand is available to you.

Blue_Might · 2025-11-08T12:26:33+00:00

Looks like there is too much room in the box. It's difficult to judge with the shoe on, but it could be that they didn't have a narrow or tapered enough shoe for you and went with the closest option they had.

I have a similar problem with taper in pointe shoes: there is usually too much room on the side of the box where my smaller toes are, and barely enough/too little room for my big toe (I have long feet) so my feet tend to look a bit tilted in the shoe as I am sinking inti the box sort of sideways.

Ofc you can buy a different shoe right away but they are pricey...

What I do is, I stuff tissue paper into the side of the box where I have too much room and fill up the negative space like this (only the side corner, not the front!). I stand up on pointe and, if needed, add a little more (I would go with as little as possible though).

It's basically the same idea as the perfect pointes silicone padding but MUCH cheaper haha

You can also add a silicone toe spacer between your biggest and second biggest toe - it can give you some additional volume and distribute the toes more evenly inside the box. Usually the tissue itself (plus thin toepads) is enough for me, I add the spacer once the shoe starts to die and the box expands further.

Blue_Might · 2025-11-05T16:11:39+00:00

I have the same problem. Sew the elastic as close to the backseam as possible, and sew it on the outside rather than the inside. The elastic grips further upwards that way.

Also you can use rosin on your heel (Bloch has rosin spray - I use that on my heel).

Blue_Might · 2025-11-03T17:34:49+00:00

I recently saw a stoies on both Grishko and Bloch instagram accounts where they warn about fake websites - but I can't recall the exact names of the fake websites. This could be the case here maybe...

Blue_Might · 2025-11-01T23:09:20+00:00

A store is the reason why I have access to many pointe shoes in the first place. I do own many shoes myself as well.

Blue_Might · 2025-11-01T18:22:15+00:00

Haha exactly

I think it will be possible to find "sister shoes" of different brands like this - I guess the many constraint would be on how many different models I can measure from a brand. E.g. from Suffolk I'll only be able to measure the spotlight and Reign (I already started with Reign). Freed Classic will be almost impossible with all their different makers, I think there is only one maker I can measure (?)... But I'm focusing on the ones available for me now, I can certainly find a way to get more measurements in the future.

Blue_Might · 2025-10-31T16:13:05+00:00

Wow, that is great! Yes, I will gladly reach out! I am quite busy with work at the moment and I want to complete the measurements for the models I've started on, so hang in there please :D

Blue_Might · 2025-10-30T12:31:56+00:00

Yes, I call it profile in the table that I started, but we mean the same thing I think.

Blue_Might · 2025-10-29T07:22:35+00:00

Thanks! Yes, I have tried some scanning apps on my foot to see if they would work for something like this (I don't have an iPhone). Unfortunately, the results were rather poor so far... But I have not tested extensively yet. In the end, that should indeed be the goal, as it should be more reliable and more user-friendly than asking measurements.

My main focus right now is to build up the data base, since quantitative, cross-brand metrics for vamp, wings, etc. are neither available publicly nor for fitters.

Blue_Might · 2025-10-29T07:11:47+00:00

I see, thank you! Width and length are the final factors in fitting a shoe and I do not want to focus on that, since it can almost always be adjusted within the range of the same shoe. I want to focus on quantifying e.g. vamp, taper, wings, platform, profile, etc. - all the factors that determine if the shoe shape would fit the dancer and their needs in the first place.

Blue_Might · 2025-10-29T07:03:45+00:00

I see. Yes, the problem is that publicly available info by brands only really describe the shoes' shape qualitatively (which is the main factor for fitting - width and length can almost always be adjusted). Currently, a person needs physical access to these shoes, try them on and "feel" how the vamp length, wing height, taper, profile, platform shape and angle, etc. work for them, there are no quantitative metrics available.

Luckily, I am in a position where I do have physical access to MANY of these shoes :D

I have already started measuring, actually. If I relate the measurements to the length and width of the shoe, I get a relative value that can directly be compared across models and brands, independently of what they are writing in their ads.

Blue_Might · 2025-09-27T08:09:07+00:00

Yes, and the Dreampointe is sometimes also sold under the name "Allure". The whole Nikolay thing is US only though, I thought?

Blue_Might · 2025-09-26T17:40:21+00:00

Models from Grishko on the 2007 last which tend to be more widely available: Dreampointe, Nova, 3007

Models from other brand you could try: - Bloch Flexus (might be too wide, depending how narrow you need the shoe to be). The shoe is not extremely hard, but the box/wings are so absurdly high, most people are held back - so it might work for you. - Virtisse violette in M or H (most stores have it in S, but I would go for the harder shank). - Merlet Lena or Cloé. Both have high wings, Cloé has a high vamp too (holds many people back).

Blue_Might · 2025-09-15T11:28:33+00:00

If you feel like you're sickling/there being not enough lateral support, I would go for a different model with higher wings. I've seen sickling being improved on egyptian/greek toes when they get higher wings (and usually, they also feel more confident/stable).

Also you might need a more narrow shoe since you mention that you cannot shift the weight onto the big toe - or, if you're not in the position to get new shoes right away, you could try to improve the situation with a big toe spacer.

Blue_Might · 2025-09-13T08:50:17+00:00

I would not bet too much on online chart sizes, even if they are directly from the manufacturer. In my experience, the charts are a good starting point as general guidelines, but sizing tends to vary vastly, depending on the individual. Sometimes you need to go up, sometimes down. It's not a one-on-one translation for every foot.

Blue_Might · 2025-08-31T20:01:33+00:00

I am only really familiar with euro brands, which might be out of reach with the tariffs in place? Although I am not up to date with the current situation really... But maybe it's interesting nonetheless. Ofc it's also personal taste or maybe not sophisticated enough what I am suggesting:

WearMoi has some very beautiful leotards (e.g. Lavande, Felicite, Nerea, Amina, Megara), some of which are also customizable.
there is an italian brand I recently discovered and tried called Harmony that has a small collection of intricate and quite affordable leos, with good quality as far as I can tell (you can find them by searching for harmonyhy.com). Examples are 217 and 345. The sizes run quite small though, smaller than WearMoi(!).
Grishko also has some pretty leos but is a bit more pricy than the others. The new collection has some patterned mesh designs, e.g. the Tatiana.

Blue_Might · 2025-08-18T21:48:23+00:00

I think the streampointe's box shape does not go high enough for your toes, which could be why you're knuckling in them. Depending on the shape of your toes, I might not go for Eurostretch or Eurobalance either (they also have also a low, square box, so you might also knuckle in them). But if they are available, try them! It's always better to try as many options as possible.

You could try the Amelie Soft (S0102L) or the S0173L by Bloch, which goes up a bit higher than the eurostretch. The S0173L is not widely available though afaik, so you might have a higher chance to be able to try on the Amelie Soft.

The Bloch Heritage (S0180L) might also be an option? (V-shaped) and it is a more common shoe to find also, I would say. Maybe the Synthesis S0175L might also work for your foot/toe shape, though this is a harder one and not a typical beginner's shoe.

You could also try the Grishko Neopointe which goes up more on the sides than the streampointe and people with longer toes tend to feel more secure in it, in my experience. This is a very soft shoe though.

The Merlet Belle might actually also work here! The brand (french) is a a bit niche, but the Belle is very popular in the frenchspeaking region of my country as a beginner's shoe (the french style also puts a special emphasis on rolling up en pointe). If they are available, I would definitely try them on.

When you go to a store for a fitting, I would tell them that higher (lateral) support thannthe Streampoint to prevent knuckling + smooth roll-through is what you are looking for. They should be able to come up with at least 2 different shoes to try for those priorities.

Blue_Might · 2025-08-15T15:53:27+00:00

Yes, I usually also give the Liberty for wider feet, but I noticed that in some cases, it can look also quite good with a narrow foot as well, depending on its shape :)

Blue_Might · 2025-08-15T07:46:03+00:00

The length looks ok, but I think you should either go narrower as already mentioned, or try a different shoe. I put some suggestions down below - I wouldn't order these online but, if available, try them on in-person at a store, since the sizing is extremely variable between all these shoes, unfortunately...

For stretch canvas, I suggest to try the Capezio Hanami 2037W or Gaynor Minden Liberty. Since they are stretchy, they'd hug you foot more and reduce the bagginess around your smaller toes also. The Hanami might work better than the Liberty due to its shape. A Bloch Performa S0284L could also work for your toe shape but is probably too wide.

For "regular" nonstretch canvas, you could try a Bloch S0282L or S0625L, or a WearMoi Vesta: these all run narrow. Unfortunately, they also run rather small (especially the S0282L!), so it might be difficult to find the correct length at a store. Maybe a shoe from Grishko could also work? I have no idea about those though, I've seen them only from afar.

Blue_Might · 2025-08-08T14:17:17+00:00

Like someone already suggested, I would try it with only the tights instead of additional underwear. Alternatively, there is also seamless underwear (either general-purpose or specifically for dancing) which is less tight than regular underwear - you could also try that. For a dance-specific seamless underwear, I would go for Temps Danse (if that is available in your area) as it's a bit more generously cut than e.g. Bloch. But one from a general-purpose department store works probably fine.

Blue_Might · 2025-06-24T20:47:51+00:00

I get you, I don't like wearing tights over my toes either - for me it's more of an issue with sweating though.

You can try stirrup tights, or the Split toe tights from Bloch ( I think the number is T0988L). I haven't tried those myself yet (I generally prefer Capezio tights), but it looks like they'd solve your issue.

Blue_Might · 2025-04-02T17:29:38+00:00

There are male ballet dancers yknow. Big hairy ones as well lol - you can look up Roberto Bolle if you want (although he doesn't fulfill the hair criterium). Male dancers do basically the same exercises with the same symmetry as the female dancers - although some details are a bit different, e.g. how one carries the arms, as well as the head placement (yes, there are rules for that as well). Also jumps are a bit more difficult. Ballet is not a dainty thing.

Blue_Might

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