Breaking In the Shoes

     When they are new, the shoes are very hard. There are many methods to “breaking in” pointe shoes, including slamming them in a door and bending the shoe with your hands. Other dancers prefer to break in their shoes by wearing them and bending them with their feet. It is important that the shoes are broken in because broken in shoes form to the dancer’s arch. This helps to support the dancer. However, once they are broken in, the shoes quickly deteriorate. When they are too soft to properly support the dancer, the shoes are referred to as “dead”.