Lost and Found, made of Unobtanium

When I got to class this evening, I could only find one of my So Danca slippers. Fortunately I still carry my Capezio Hanami slippers, so I had something to wear. Of course, the Fates made sure that every exercise included at least one turn, including barre. I still like the way the Hanamis look and feel, but they also still twist on my feet during turns. When I got back to my car after class I found the other So Danca slipper on the back seat of my car where my dance bag had been; at least I didn't lose it.

How many shoes are in your dance bag?

My dance bag is a collector of stuff I think that I might need, should some unforeseen circumstance arise that never does. Every few months I'll go though it and strip it down to the essentials, but somehow it always fills up again.

This evening, an unforeseen circumstance actually arose.

Well THAT happened quickly!

In November I bought new So Danca slippers because I just couldn't deal with the Capezio Hanamis anymore.

Today, as I put my shoes on for my third virtual class, I noticed one of them had developed a tiny hole in the toe. I thought that was kinda fast, as I missed some classes in December and January, and didn't take any classes in March.

During class it felt like the hole had gotten bigger. I was right:

I think I still have the original box these came in, so I'll try to order some online. Until then I think I've found a suitable use for my Hanamis.

The room where I'm doing the virtual classes has a Pergo (a synthetic laminate) floor. My best guess is that there's a slight, sharp ridge between two of the boards, and I'm scraping my toes across it when I do rond de jambes.

I've heard that PVC shower pan liner makes an acceptable floor covering for dancing. I might venture out tomorrow and grab some. I'll post an update next week on how well this works.

And the (shoe) verdict is...

But first, a rant. Well, not really a rant. More of an observation.

The classes I'm taking are not beginner classes, despite being listed as "Beginner 2" in the catalog. I know it and I've said it here before. One of the guys who often takes the Intermediate classes but who dropped in tonight because of the US Thanksgiving holiday later this week said it in the dressing room after class this evening.

As I mentioned in the last post, our instructor has decided that we should spend more time doing things that move across the floor. Okay, great. It's more like dancing and less like a balancing exhibition (not that we're doing much less of that). But how did we come to doing renversé in our combinations?

Maybe, just maybe

I left home this morning with the intent of arriving in time to do some warm-up, but the GPS informed me that several streets in the vicinity of the studio were closed. The traffic report on the radio then confirmed that today was the town parade. I was sure I was going to miss class entirely, but I managed to get the car parked at the time class officially started and ran to the studio. The float representing the ballet school was passing as I changed, which delayed the actual class start until just before I walked in and I only missed a quarter of the first barre exercise.

I finished the first exercise in my socks, then pulled on my brand new So Danca slippers, which I haven't had on since I bought them last weekend. Barre included a promenade and a pirouette, but the shoes seemed to stay pretty well in place. Then things got busy and I mostly forgot about the shoes. I think that's a good thing, because if I'm thinking about my shoes then something's wrong.

I'm not sure what's gotten into our instructor. Already this class is notorious for being a hair's breadth from being an Advanced Beginner class rather than the Beginner 2 class it's listed as, but things have gotten more intense. The usual 16 one-footed releves became 16 plus 8 optional, and now it's 24 on each leg. Centre has become more complex, and today she announced there will be more focus on grand allegro work.

It could also be that she's losing some students to the Advanced Beginnner classes, but shouldn't that be the normal progression? I'm really not sure whether I'm excited by these changes or dismayed by them.

I'm not sure whether it was the lack of a warm-up, or the extra releves, or something else, but about half way through centre my lower legs started to feel like lead. I finally sat down for a bit, then laid down on my back and put my legs up against the wall. I was able to rejoin class for the grand allegro portion, but even then they felt heavy. By the time I'd changed to street clothes all the muscles in the back of my legs from my glutes to my calves hurt, something that persists even now several hours later.

But I'm going to stubbornly finish this entry with "the bright side": thus far I like these slippers. They feel comfortable, unlike the Grishkos, and they don't seem to move on my feet even during turns. But I'll reserve judgment for a few more classes.

Happy Turkey Day for everyone that celebrates the US Thanksgiving holiday!

The never-ending search for shoes

As I mentioned previously, I got another pair of Capezio Hanami slippers last Saturday. The class I took Monday didn’t include any turns, so that really didn’t tell me anything about how well they’d stay put on my feet. Tuesday’s class was more of a realistic test and afterward I was feeling kinda optimistic about them. I almost wrote a blog post declaring victory, but I decided to hold off until after today’s class.

Ditching my Capezio Hanami slippers

When I first became involved in ballet, back in the mid 1980s, Capezio was the brand name I knew best. My first shoes, tights, and dance belt were all Capezio. Now I almost feel like the name Capezio is a code for "stay away from these".

I loved my Capezio 4945 tights. They were soft and stretchy and comfortable. Poof! Gone, replaced by the inferior MT-11. I asked the owner of my favorite dancewear store if she knew where I could find some, and she told me that if she could get them she'd "buy a thousand of them". The Capezio website now shows "Ultra Soft" footed tights (10361M), but I have two pairs each of M. Stevens and Wear Moi tights and am not inclined to buy more for a while.

I tried and fell in love with the Capezio CA222 leggings. They were officially a women's style but they fit me quite well. Again, soft and stretchy and comfortable. Poof! Gone. So far gone that this blog is now Google's top hit when searching for them.

I started with Capezio Cobra shoes. Their failing was inconsistent sizing. Eventually the Cobra was replaced with the Capezio Romeo, which was an improvement in my view. Last November, when my big toe started protruding through my most recent pair of Romeos, I went to my local dance store to by replacements. They told me they didn't stock the Romeo anymore, and Capezio's replacement was the Hanami. In case you're wondering, "Hanami" is the Japanese traditional custom of enjoying the beauty of flowers. At first I thought the Hanami was an improvement over the Romeo. The fabric is very stretchy compared to my Romeos, which makes it conform to the foot really well, and the absence of a drawstring avoids having a knot digging into my instep. However I've become increasingly disenchanted with my canvas Hanami slippers.

It's all in the shoes

Hey! I made it through an entire class tonight!

Well, almost all of it, but I did stay through to the end. I couldn't figure out the sequence of steps in the next-to-last exercise, and I skipped the jump "warm-up". But I did mostly get the petite allegro sequence, unlike about half the class. If we'd done it a few more times I think I would have been able to do it at speed rather than lagging just slightly behind the music.

Three students were wearing pointe shoes during barre, and two of them did the entire class wearing them. This is is becoming pretty common, where before this past fall it would be a rarity to have anyone. But that's not the reason for the title of this post.

A question about leg warmers

When I first started ballet classes, way back in the 1980s, I bought a pair of leg warmers because everyone wore them. It being the '80s, they were purple. I still have them, though the elastic has long since dried out. When I went started taking classes again a few years ago I didn't bother with the leg warmers. In fact, I started wearing shorts thinking that would help dissipating the heat I generate.

We're quickly moving into winter here and it looks like it may be a cold one. A couple weeks ago, while I was shopping for new slippers, I saw a rack of leg warmers . I decided to get a pair for when a studio is especially cold. It's no longer the 1980s so I grabbed a black pair.

At first I wore them while I warmed up and pulled them off after barre, just before starting center. The last couple of classes, though, I've left them on all the way through class. I thought I would feel hotter, but it hasn't felt that way. And it sorta feels like I have more spring in my legs while I'm wearing them.

Does anyone else find this to be true?


On a tangentially related note... Last night, in between center combinations, our instructor gave one of the students a compliment on her attire. Apparently feeling that it was inappropriate to single out this student, she started offering compliments to each of us in turn. When she got to me she kinda hesitated, as if she didn't know quite what to say. Here I was, dressed in black slippers, black leg warmers, black tights, and a tight midnight-blue T-shirt. If the floor had been black, as it is where I take class Thursdays, I'd be nearly invisible. I grinned at her and said, "I'm dressed as a ballet ninja." Blink. Blink.

Hey, my sense of humor is the only thing that keeps me sane. Even if it sometimes makes other people question my sanity.

Something for the ladies

Okay, ladies, here's a picture sure to set your hearts a-flutter:



New shoes!!!

What? Isn't that what I'm always hearing y'all talking about? I mean, I once dated a woman who had over 100 pairs of black pumps alone. I have maybe 4 or 5 pairs of shoes, so this is a major addition to my wardrobe.

ANYhoo... I didn't feel like getting out of bed Saturday morning so I slept in. Then I drove 25 miles the opposite direction to the Footlights store in Frederick, Md. The Silver Spring store is more convenient, but it's half the size and has only a tiny selection of men's styles. When I arrived I realized I'd stupidly left my dance bag at home, but since I shop for most of my dancewear here they have records that show what I've bought previously.

I tried a pair of So Danca slippers but they weren't comfortable and felt very lumpy under the ball of my foot where the pleats attached to the sole. I ended up with Capezio Hanami stretch canvas slippers, style 2037W. They are quite stretchy but are apparently unisex-sized so I ended up with a 12.5 Wide, compared to my non-stretch 10.5 Medium Romeos.

The Hanamis came with the criscross elastics already attached at all four ends with what looks like both hot-melt glue and stitching. As I put on one of the shoes both the elastics on one side popped loose, so I have to assume they weren't sewn on that side and QA failed to catch the defect. The woman helping me offered to reattach the elastics, as they have a sewing machine in the back for just this purpose. Later she gave me a discount to atone for the defect, which I wasn't expecting. Customer service is why I'll drive 50 miles round-trip to patronize a quality local store.

This morning I tried them out in class. I really like these slippers! They turn well, don't twist on my feet, and flex in the right places. I'm curious to see how well these wear.

I also bought my first pair of leg warmers since the 1980s. I still have those in a drawer, but the elastic is totally gone and the purple would look garish. I've mostly kept my legs bare to radiate some of the excess heat I generate, but I wanted to see if keeping them warmer would alleviate some of the heaviness I sometimes feel during the petit allegro segment of class. It felt like it may have helped, though since this is the REAL Beginner 2 class (rather than Saturday's Beginner 2.75 class) it's hard to tell.

Speaking of that, taking this class instead of the Saturday class is good for my ego. Rather than flailing around and desperately trying to remember a long combination, I feel more confident and can focus more on technique. I also got several compliments from the instructor today, which never hurts.

It also seems like any lingering (or imagined) issues this instructor and I may (or may not) have had have been forgiven. Today's class felt relaxed. When I screwed up a step in the petit allegro (a jeté rather than the intended assemblé), I mouthed a silent "Shit!" She spotted both the error and the epithet, and knowing I'm my own harshest critic she smiled at me and laughed knowingly.

Maybe I could take BOTH the Saturday AND Sunday classes. And maybe it's nearing time to get back into the Advanced Beginner class Sunday afternoon too. I really don't need a social life if I have ballet, do I?

Another milestone

Each of us tracks the passage of time in his or her own way. One of the ways I track it is my slippers. I haven't gone back through this blog to verify, but I believe this is the fourth or fifth pair of shoes I've worn holes in. Always under my right big toe, if it's not obvious.



If I remember correctly, there were at least two pairs of Capezio Cobras I wore out and I think this is my second pair of canvas Romeos. Then there were the first pair of white Cobras I got when I first started 6-ish years ago that I gave away because they were a bit too small; they had some wear but no holes. In my bag I also have a pair of leather Romeos which I don't wear often because they're a bit too tight and are blindingly white.

Sometimes I feel like I should be like Wesley Snipes's character in "Major League" who nails his batting gloves to a board every time he steals a base. Only mine would be worn-out ballet slippers.

Some people have suggested I swap the shoes left-for-right to get longer life out of them. From a practical standpoint I don't do this because the shoes form to my feet and swapping them wouldn't be comfortable. But there's also the "oh hell no, I've worked hard for those holes!" reaction.

I figure I can get one more wearing out of these tomorrow, and then I'll have to go shopping for new slippers in the afternoon.

Distilled white vinegar for the win

It seems every time I post about dancewear it turns into a rant.

For those who may not be caught up, I've been trying to clean a favorite shirt I often wore to ballet classes. It's an UnderArmor shirt intended to be worn in athletic activities. Despite several machine-washings and air-dryings, an ammonia odor would develop every time I wore it to class, but only after I sweated in it for more than about 30 minutes. That translates to a bit more than half-way through barre.

The Ballad of the Stinky Shirt

But first some real ballet-related stuff.

In the last few classes I've been having trouble with my pirouettes. They just didn't seem to be working as well as before. Last Sunday I realized that I'd gotten lazy about the placement of my working foot during the turn, getting it only to mid-calf and probably not well turned-out. Last night I found myself doing it again, and made a conscious effort to correct the placement, and it really helped.

Now on to the next verse of the Ballad of the Stinky Shirt.

That Smell

When I was growing up there was a band called Lynyrd Skynyrd. In 1977 they who released a song entitled "That Smell". It's a classic.

That's not what this post is about.

Review of Wear Moi men's tights

Last Saturday I decided to got for the classic tights and a T-shirt outfit. It'd been a while since I'd done a dancewear review, so I pulled out my Wear Moi "Solo" style tights to update my impressions.

I got these because I'd been whining to the owner of a local dance store (Footlights Dance & Theater Boutique) about how "plastic-y" the M. Stevens Milliskin tights felt in comparison with my Capezio 5945s. She said she'd recently decided to stock the Wear Moi brand, and would put aside some in my size when they came in. A few weeks later I got a phone call to tell me my order had come in -- how's that for customer service?

The first thing I noticed is that they don't feel plastic-y at all. They're more like a cotton T-shirt than the silky feel of the 5945s, but not scratchy like the MT-11s. They're plenty stretchy and don't sag or bag, but at the same time they don't feel constricting. I quite forgot I was wearing them, and they didn't need pulling up during class. I have only two slightly negative things to say about them: they're not as opaque as the other styles I've worn, and they're warmer than I'd like. Not clammy, as they breathe quite well, but warmer. I'm sure those who wear a sweater in the studio even in the summer will think that's just dandy, but I'm quite warm even before class begins and get hotter as I get more active.

On the whole I think I like them a bit more than the M. Stevens Milliskin style.

The Return of the Musty Odor

For the last few months I've been wearing my Capezio CA222 leggings rather than tights. They feel cooler than the tights, and are a lot faster to put on. However, I've noticed that they're prone to picking up a slightly musty odor even right after they've been washed.

Well, that was fun!

And if you believe that, I have a bridge I'd like to sell you.

You'll only want to read the rest of this post if you care to read about aches and pains. Kinda like the conversation in a retirement home. You've been warned.

Time to make the donuts...

The holes in my black slippers have gotten a wee bit larger. The small hole on the left slipper has become two medium holes, and the two medium holes on the right slipper have become one big one and a third medium hole:

I'd worn tiny holes in the pleats in my slippers way back in the '80s, but even after 3 (or was it 4) years they never got this big. I blame it on the somewhat stickier Marley surface, and that I never really learned how to turn back then.

The real problem now is that when I turn I can feel it twisting the skin on my big toes, and it hurts enough to throw me off. Something must be done!

A couple of months ago I bought a new pair of black Capezio Cobras to serve as replacements for these. Somehow, in all this time, though, I haven't gotten around to sewing the elastics on. I once wrote something sappy about how I felt a bond with decades of tradition while sewing elastics; what the hell was I thinking? This is the fourth pair I've had to sew since I started two years ago, and I have yet another pair of white Romeos waiting for the same treatment. The good news is that I managed to make it to the sewing goods store this evening before they closed and found myself a proper thimble to make the job it easier.

In closing... For those who are too young to remember the Dunkin Donuts commercial from which I've taken the title of this entry, here's a link to one of them on YouTube. Get my point? I'm not talking about donuts either.

Review of the Capezio CA222 leggings

The weather here turned hot the last couple of weeks, so I've been looking to find some cooler dance gear. My first stops took me to sporting goods and athletic apparel stores near home, where I found everything emblazoned with wild colors and bold logos. They'd be great if I was going bicycling or working out at the gym, but not really appropriate for a dance studio where I don't want my clothing to be a distraction.

My next stop was a well-stocked store near the studio. After explaining what I wanted, the clerk pulled out one or two items for me to look at, then went in search of the store's owner for more ideas. One of the items was footless tights by Eurotard; I liked the texture of these better than the M. Stevens Milliskin tights I've been wearing, but I was looking for something shorter.

The other item was the Capezio CA222 capri-length leggings. Again longer than I was hoping for, but since the clerk was still in the back searching I decided to try them on. They fit pretty well, and felt surprisingly breathable given that they Polyester/Spandex blend.

Now, as you might note from the photo to the left, these are more-or-less made for women. But, as the clerk remarked upon her return, "there just isn't that much dancewear made for men these days." You noticed that too, eh?

So why not? I handed over my card (credit, not guy) and prayed to the FSM that these would be cooler than my tights.

Tuesday evening was my first opportunity to try them in class, and I wore them again Wednesday evening. They're comfortable and do seem cooler than the tights. I bought a size Large, and the waist comes up where I'd want it to and the bottom of the legs come to just below my knees. If I kneel on one knee to stretch, they stay in place over my kneecap without bunching up behind the knee, but they're not baggy over the knee when standing. The only thing that suggests that they're cut for a woman rather than a man is that they appear to be cut to lay a bit flatter in the front of the crotch, which sometimes shows up as a couple of odd wrinkles. These might even go away as the spandex stretches a bit over time. So I'm pretty happy with them.

Do I get any odd looks? You know, I have no idea. It's not exactly a typically male style, but neither are tights. There's a certain segment of the class that acts as if a man, a straight man, no less, in their ballet class is an invasion of their women-only space. They might object, but I've learned to completely shut them out and don't even notice them anymore. Fortunately that segment is small, especially once they realize that I'm there to learn ballet and not to gawk. I've been at this studio long enough now that I'm getting to know people, and they greet me with smiles. Even if there's a glare off my pasty-white shins.

Edited to add:

I've been wearing these almost exclusively for the last couple of months. They feel cooler than the tights, and are a lot faster to put on when I'm in a hurry. However, they are more prone to picking up a musty odor than any of my other dance gear. I'm guessing that's because they're thicker, and therefore dry more slowly. Check out The Return of the Musty Odor for all the details!

Inconsistent sizing

When I was in college I wanted to buy my then-girlfriend a gift of some clothing. Not knowing much about women's sizes, I asked her what size she was. "How much are you spending?" she asked. I didn't want to tell her, so she explained: "If it's expensive, I'm probably a 6; if it's moderately priced I'm an 8; if it's cheap I'm a 10-12." I was both baffled and appalled; men's sizes are based on measurable things: collar or waist circumference, inseam or arm length, etc.

After class today, I mentioned to a friend that I'd discovered that there was a Capezio store on the next block over from the dance studio, but it was closed on Sundays. She wanted to walk by anyway, and we were surprised to see quite a few people inside and the find the door open. Apparently they've just started opening the first Sunday of each month!

Of real interest is that they have a fairly good stock of men's slippers. I realized this week that I've worn holes in the pleats under the big toe of both of my black Cobras, and here was an opportunity to try on a variety of slippers. They didn't have Romeos in my size, but they still have some Cobras. Thinking I'd get a direct replacement, I tried on a pair marked 9.5M just like my current pair, but they were clearly too small.  They had a pair of black Cobras in 10M which fit just fine, which I decided to buy.

Doing some searches I've discovered that Capezio is somewhat notorious for inconsistent sizing, even within the same model number. It did give me a feeling of kinship with the women hunting for just the right pointe shoe, who accounted for most of the others in the shop, but I really could have done without. However, it does give me more incentive to patronize the local dancewear shops rather than buying online.

Also... it being a Capezio store, I asked if they had any 5945 tights hidden away. A woman, who I took for the shop owner, laughed and said if she she knew how to get some she'd "buy a thousand of them." You have to wonder what Capezio was thinking when they stopped making them. Maybe they've decided to abandon the men's tights market entirely? I tried looking for MT11 on the Capezio site just now, and the only way I could find them was a keyword search, and even that page is now lacking the photo it used to have.