As expensive as they may be, pointe shoes are not made to last long. They offer much needed support to help keep a dancer on pointe, but the simply do not hold up. Why is this, and how can we make them last longer? Think of an arm cast, pointe shoes are made in a very similar way. The box of a shoe is made similarly to paper mache, with layers of canvas and glue. That's it! Many think that there are all sorts of things down there including wood, but it is simply not true. Canvas and glue are what gives the ballerina the majority of support. There is a leather outersole on the shoe, but the shank is usually made up of layers of cardboard. So imagine this, canvas, glue and cardboard. Then the dancers balance the majority of their body weight on them and sweat. Can you imagine putting an arm cast in the shower? Although feet don't usually sweat as much as if you put them in the shower, you can still get the idea of what the sweat does to the shoes.
The best way to make shoes last longer is to give them ample time to dry out. It takes about 72 hours, or three days to completely dry out. And if you keep your pointe shoes in your dance bag, or worse a plastic bag, they simply will not dry out. Pointe shoes should be either tied to the outside of your dance bag, or better yet kept in a mesh pointe shoe bag. A pointe shoe bag is a better option than tying them on the outside of your bag because it still offers some protection for your shoes.
Rotating pairs of pointe shoes also offers them ample time to dry. How many pairs of pointe shoes you need depends on how many days per week you are dancing and also how many hours. You need three full days for them to dry, so you'll need enough pairs for that to be possible. Usually if you are dancing 3 times a week you would need at least two pairs. You also would want a new pair to be breaking in as an older pair is dying out. So, in that case you would need 3. If you are dancing long hours, you may consider alternating shoes in a session. Any longer than 2 hours in one pair is pushiung it. At that point, your shoes are wet and any dancing you continue to do in that time period is going to cause more rapid breakdown. So if you have long rehearsals, add another pair to your total. Although, having multiple pairs seems costly in the beginning....in the end you will be saving quite a bit of money. And most dance stores will offer a discount when you purchase your shoes in bulk.
Another way to help your shoes last longer is by using "jet glue". Jet glue is originally intended to be used with model airplanes, hence the name, but ballerinas began using it in place of super glue many years back. One company has even come out with "pointe shoe glue" which is essentially the same thing. Super glue, jet glue and pointe shoe glue all serve the same purpose though. They will prevent the breaking down process and also bring back to life what may seem otherwise dead pointe shoes.
