If your little one does ballet/tap can you recommend brands you like for shoes/leotards etc. I'm excited to be signing DD (4) for dance, her daycare partners with a dance school that comes in to teach it and then they have recitals later. I have been wanting to sign her up for dance but coordinating the timing always seemed tricky so its awesome her daycare has this option. she got a free trial class this week which she loved.
Anyway I know I've seen ballet things at target but looking online now I cant seem to find the leather ballet shoes there. I have looked at amazon too but just wondered if you ladies had any recommendations
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For toddlers/preschoolers, I like Capezio for tap shoes and Bloch for ballet shoes. (The Bloch pink color is the right shade of classic ballet pink.) For dance clothes, we have a combination of Capezio, Danskin, and Bloch (although there are many others--this is just what we currently have).
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Kind of depends on what you want to spend on kids that grow quickly. I went to an actual dance store and bought cute ballet leotards with attached skirts, but I don't think that's necessary at all. I also got a cute skirted leotard on Amazon.
My Target does have some dance stuff in stores, and I also recently saw ballet shoes, tights, and leotards at Walmart.
We've bought ballet shoes on Amazon and at Target--I honestly think the quality doesn't matter too much for beginners--as long as they are comfortable and fit well.
Particular brands I've like are Danskin and Revolution, but there are a ton of other good brands out there. For some reason, I dislike the typical scoop-neck styles, so I always have to search a while to find something different but not busy. eta: I also like capezio.
This is my favorite leotard dress we have. It's adorable on. https://www.amazon.com/Danskin-Little-Ballet-Leotard-Stretch/dp/B00WKO3A9W/ref=sr_1_52?s=sports-and-fitness&rps=1&ie=UTF8&qid=1485968687&sr=1-52&keywords=girls+ballet+leotard&refinements=p_85%3A2470955011%2Cp_89%3ADanskin%7CCapezio
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@Anagram: @pwnstar: thanks! I will look up those brands yes I dont want to spend too much since she is only 4 and is growing like a weed!
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I (and my LO) like Capezio, Bloch and Danskin (for leotards only) brands.
Target does have dance/ballet items as does WalMart. I’ve purchased a leotard and tutu there as well as tights in a pinch. They quality is pretty horrendous for some of the shoes and tights. The material for some of the leotards is fine and some is again super cheap. The tights especially very cheap quality-wise when the price isn’t much cheaper than just buying decent brands.
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We do Bloch from Amazon for ballet shoes. All of her leotards are from Target.
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I buy Capezio for tights and plain leotards/skirts, Bloch for tutu dresses, and a variety of brands for shoes. We've had mostly hand me down shoes from other families at the studio, actually, since kids don't tend to wear them out.
I like Discount Dance Supply for good prices on leotards and tutu dresses - better than Amazon if your school, like mine, requires specific colors for different age levels.
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Check with the studio before you buy a leotard. Mine would not have allowed a skirt at that age, and the leotard had to be black.
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Bloch for ballet shoes. I think she's wearing a Capezio leotard.
Something that I did not know existed until recently, was that you can buy tights that can be worn either footless or over the foot (they're called convertible tights). My daughter refuses to wear socks most of the time so this was a great find.
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Thanks everyone! such good info. Yeah I have bought tights from target several times and so like that quality but would rather spend a bit more on the shoes
@honeybear: thanks yes they provided us with a list of things to get and colors. For instance the ballet shoes must be pink and the tap shoes must be black mary jane style. Skirts are optional so i think i will buy the ones that have the skirt separate
@sunny: i didnt know those existed? I'm trying to imagine how that works even? I'll look them up now -
@Mrsbells: I missed that your DD is doing tap. One piece of advice on tap shoes - if you can't make it into a dance shop to get fitted, I'd plan to buy multiple pairs on Amazon and see which fit the best. We ended up with Capezio tyettes, and it took me about 4 pairs to get the size right. I'm suggesting Amazon b/c they are great about free footwear returns.
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@Mrsbells: they don't look quite as good around the bottom as this pic, but I'll take it over being bare legged. I'm sure some ballet studios won't allow these but my daughter's class is very casual.
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We also do Bloch for leotards and ballet shoes (and actually, maybe the tap shoes too? i can't remember). Zappos FTW
But I don't mind paying a little more because I have another DD who will wear it all! And they both wear it around the house playing all the time, too. So I feel like we'll get our money's worth!
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I like the quality of Capezio. Her tights get a lot of washings and hold up well.
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Thanks everyone
@PinkElephant: Thanks! ok I'll keep that in mind.
@sunny: that is so cool!! -
Dance teacher here!
Here is what I recommend:
1) check to see if the studio requires anything in particular (white/black shoes, color/shape leotard & tights)
2) get child fitted for shoes somewhere, often studios do this or go to a dance shoe store. DONT BUY THEM THERE. Write down exactly what fit and order online. My favorite sites are discountdance.com and allaboutdance.com. Most of the time it's cheaper (but definitely compare!)At this age they will outgrow the shoes in 6mo to a year so they should fit a little big (long)
And because if this, there is no need to spend big bucks. Theatricals are a good 'cheaper' brand; capezio and block are standard brands. But feel free to get the Payless brand or whatever is least expensive if you want.Same thing for dance clothes. However real leotards made for more than just polyester will last longer. Also, go for leotards without skirts attached. Buy skirts or shorts separately as they will last longer ( if your studio allows them)
My studio also had a recycle/swap bin for shoes that kids outgrew in the middle of the year, or dropped out of class. Talk to parents of kids a year older. Chances are they have hand me downs!
I hope that helps.
Good luck!! -
@jennlin821: thank you so much. such great advice!!
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@jennlin821: I find that really questionable advice, to go to a store, have them spend time doing the fitting, writing down the details and then saying see ya, going to order on line. I think that would be the first and last time they serve you. I would at least buy one pair from them after they invested the time.
If you're not sure of sizes and need a professional fitting, that is included in their price.
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@looch: I agree. We've purchased ballet shoes for LO at 2 different dance shops and also online, and ordering online didn't save a ton anyway.
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@looch: I almost wrote the same thing last night but ended up not posting it. Not to mention, if everyone did this, there wouldn't be anyplace left to get fitted in person.
To answer the original question, my DD has Bloch ballet slippers, a Capezio leotard, and Danskin footless tights. I did buy the leotard online because the dance shop didn't have DD's size/color combination in stock, and I'm not that happy with it -- I thought it was supposed to be cotton but it's 100% synthetic and feels yucky to me. But DD doesn't care, so I'll just get a different one when she either outgrows it or moves up a class and needs a different color. At her dance school, each class needs a specific color and style leotard so make sure you check with the teachers to see if yours has a dress code before you buy.
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