|
Feet
& Fitting > Heat Forming
Gaynor Minden pre-arched shanks conform beautifully to most feet and provide
excellent support. Some dancers, however, will prefer to adjust their
shanks to enhance placement and appearance.
Many dancers use the word "break" in describing where a shank bends, because
cardboard shanks are literally broken in the spot where the dancer wants
the shank to press into her foot. Gaynor Minden shanks are unbreakable,
but the spot where they bend and the degree of bend can be changed. The
dancer can achieve the effect of "breaking high" or "breaking low" without
damaging the shank in any way.
The thermoplastic elastomeric material from which Gaynor Minden shanks
and boxes are made will become soft and malleable when heated. The temperature
needed for softening is considerably hotter than body temperature, even
under stage lights, so there is no concern that the shoes will soften
during normal use. We recommend a blow dryer as the best source because
of its safety and convenience. Resist the temptation to hasten the
heating process; an oven or a heat gun can burn or melt the shoes beyond
repair. Do not microwave!
Adjustments should be made with the shoe off the foot. All adjustments
follow the same simple steps:
- HEAT.
Holding the shoe in one hand, aim the blow dryer at the part of the
shank to be changed. Heat both the inside and the outside of the shoe.
Do not let the shoe become hotter than you can hold in your bare hands.
Be sure the shoe is hot enough; heat for at least four minutes. Never
let the nozzle of the blow dryer touch the shoe.
- SHAPE.
Bend (or straighten) the shoe into an exaggeration of the desired shape.
While bending the shoe, press the outer sole against a round surface
such as a ballet barre or other rounded surface.
- HOLD
UNTIL COOL. Hold the exaggerated shape until the shoe has returned
to room temperature.
Firmer shanks undergo a more dramatic change with heat forming than do
softer ones, and they will "push" or "pull" the dancer more forcefully.
Therefore a dancer who needs to "go over" more may be better helped by
a firm shank that has been heat formed into a shape that pushes her forward
under the metatarsal than by a softer shank that simply bends more easily
under her weight.
Heat
forming does not affect the durability of the shoe. A shoe may be
repeatedly heated and re-formed. Sometimes re-forming is necessary because
the shoe may gradually return to its original shape over a few weeks.
Supple shanks are more likely to require periodic re-forming than firmer
ones.
Heat
forming does not alter the flexibiltiy of the shoe. Although the shoe
becomes very flexible while it is hot, it regains all its original stiffness
once cool again.
Heat
Forming for Perfect Placement
|
"Going
over too far"
|
|
If
the dancer goes over too far even with a deep vamp, she should straighten
the shank. The area under the ball of the foot should be heated and held
in an exaggeration of the desired shape, i.e., almost in the shape of
a shoe in demi-pointe.
The back portion of the shoe may be left alone, or it may also be bent
in a reverse of the normal arch shape, or it may be bent to follow the
normal arch (this feels like a "3/4 shank")- all depending on how severe
the "going over too far" is and on what looks and feels best. The straighter
the shank the less the dancer will go over.
Straightening the shank is often necessary for dancers who
- like
"3/4" shanks, or
- have
highly arched insteps or very stretched ankles, or
- are
tall and big-boned and therefore put more weight on their shanks, or
- think
they need a hard shank because they usually break shanks too quickly.
|
"Not
going over enough...
being held back"
|
|
If you feel held back even with a regular vamp, or if you feel that the
shoes do not do your feet justice aesthetically, you should put more bend
in the shank. This corrects the sensation that the shoe is "breaking too
high." You can increase the bend in a particular portion of the shank
or along its entire length.
Increasing the arch is often necessary for dancers who
- like
"1/2" shanks or customarily remove a portion of their cardboard shank,
or
- have
less arched insteps or less ankle flexibility, or
- are
petite and do not weigh enough to bend shanks easily.
PERFECT!
|
