Jazz shoes are a type of shoe worn by dancers. They are commonly used in jazz dance and other styles of dance like acro dance, acrobatic rock’n’roll, hip hop as well as other activities such as aerobics. Jazz shoes are offered in multiple styles, with varying features.
The shoes are generally designed with enhanced flexibility and flex their feet more easily. They usually have rubber soles that provide good traction and thicker heels for better shock absorbency and to help cushion the foot. Jazz shoes typically come in black or tan color.
Do You Wear Socks With Jazz Shoes?
Do you wear socks with jazz shoes? The simple answer is yes. You can wear socks or tights with Jazz shoes depending on the style of dance or personal preference. In fact, it’s not recommended to wear jazz shoes barefoot as perspiration can distort the fabric and compromise its integrity.
Just like ballets, jazz shoes are meant to fit with no toe room. They are mostly made of leather and will conform to your fit and probably loosen with wear. You’d be amazed at how much looser dance shoes feel when worn with a pair of tights or dance socks. It’s recommended to change your jazz shoes if they are too small in tights or socks rather than wearing barefoot.
To help get the best and the longest-lasting wear from your jazz shoes, we recommend that you untie/unbuckle them every time before putting on or removing them. This will help to sustain their flexibility and make the back heel last longer.
Wearing Jazz shoes with socks also helps when you want to break them in. To speed up the process, you can ideally turn your blow dryer on the medium setting and blow each shoe for several seconds. Alternatively, in the absence of a blow dryer, you can wear your jazz shoes while cleaning the house. It’s a great way to break in jazz shoes.
How Should Jazz Shoes Fit?
Your jazz shoes should fit snug with your toes flat and a little bit of wiggle room at the toes. The shoes will mold to your feet and adapt to your specific shape with wear. We recommend a snug fit, especially if you want the shoes to feel supportive to the foot and ankle.
That said, most people are now skipping trips to the shoe stores and instead, ordering dance gear online. That means they hardly get to actually test their shoes. But is it a good idea to buy shoes online? Of course, yes. But if you’ve never ordered jazz shoes before, it can be hard to know which exact size to get along with.
Here are the various factors that you should consider when ordering Jazz shoes online:
First off, the sizing on Jazz shoes differs from regular footwear sizing. Different brands tend to have different measuring systems. Luckily, we’ve got an idea of the sizing you should go for when ordering jazz shoes online. For girls, start by ordering Jazz shoes 1 or 1.5 sizes up your regular shoe size. Boys should start by ordering 1.5 or 2 sizes larger than their regular street size.
Full-Sole or Split-Sole Jazz Shoes?
Rubber is the most common material used in the soles of jazz shoes. Perhaps this is because rubber provides great traction and shock absorbency, making them perfect for hip-hop and musical theatre. One big question among shoppers under this footwear category is whether to choose jazz shoes designed with full-sole or split ones.
Split sole jazz shoes feature two separate soles; one on the heel and one on the ball of the foot. Jazz shoes with split soles are associated with amazing flexibility and some bit of arch support. However, that doesn’t mean that full-sole jazz shoes are lacking. Good full-sole jazz shoes should provide great flexibility while offering more support to your arches.
Slip-on or Lace-up Jazz Shoes?
Whether you want to wear Jazz shoes with laces or without, it won’t make any substantial difference when it comes to dancing. It all comes down to personal preference. That said, laces usually have one notable benefit; if your feet are particularly wide or narrow, it might be hard to find a slip-on pair of jazz shoes that fit perfectly. Laces will allow you to manipulate the width of the shoe to match your fit.
Jazz shoes are dancing leather shoes with rubber soles. You may come across some variation to the jazz shoe style, but they generally feature a slightly thick heel made of rubber. This construction helps to absorb shock when making different dance movements. They are offered in either lace-up or slip-on designs to fit different users.
Also, you can get a good pair of jazz shoes for wide feet as they are available in a variety of sizes including medium and wide. Again, boys should order 2 sizes up their regular wear. They’re likely to feel tight but will stretch with time, and give your feet an elegant point. Plus, they are extremely comfortable.
The Bottom Line
So the answer to whether you should wear socks with jazz shoes is yes. Either socks or tights will work perfectly fine depending on the style of dance and your personal likings. If the shoes are overly small to wear with socks, then you should change. We strongly recommend not to wear jazz shoes without socks as this will only make them wear out faster. Besides, most dancers prefer wearing socks because it makes them feel connected to the floor while also being comfortable. It will also help you focus on the emotion of the pieces that you’re using rather than what’s on your feet.