slipper straps

[Guest thefamilyguy]

Forgive me if this subject has been beaten to death, or if it is extremely obvious to most, but as a beginner male that just got his first ballet shoes, what exactly am I supposed to do with the straps. From what I've read I'm assuming I'm supposed to stitch them in somewhere myself? And I'm guessing it is a rookie-move to just tie them around your foot?

[angiered]

Some people actually prefer that for rehearsal shoes. If you want to sew them in though, they stitch in at or near the arch seam on the sides. It's a matter of person preference exactly where you place them.

 

If you get a pair where they are not sew into the heel either....they way to place them in the back is to fold the back of the shoe forward towards the to so that the back seam lies flat against the insole. The corners where the sides fold are your placement points.

 

Hope that helps!

[missvjc420]

Basically, they should look like an "X". Here's a picture:ballet elastics

[Laschwen]

Looks like that picture has you covered, but if it looks like too much of a nuisance, I have seen people (even the women) turn up with the things tied on top of the foot and they swear it doesn't hurt. It looks painful to me.

Some have even crossed longer elastics that are already sewn in the back, and tied them in the center under the foot as well. I have sticthed them together under the foot like that to keep them flat. You just have to make sure you don't get them twisted the wrong way.

[Hans]

It is really quite easy to sew the elastics--they should never be tied. It only takes a few stitches on each one and you're finished. Sewing the elastics yourself allows you to customize how tight they are in addition to where they are attached so that the shoe is as comfortable as possible for you.

[MJ]

Sewing elastics in place is easy, but we all have different feet. I like tight elastics, and some dancers like them looser. Experiment, and rip out the sewing if you don't like it.