From walking to dancing without changing your shoes.

[Matt Deckard]

I don't know if I posted this on the Lounge yet, but I couldn't find the original thread so here is a new version of the thread that is updated.

For dancers who like to wear suits, yet don't always like to look like they are strictly wearing their shoes for dancing.

I tend to always wear a suit and tie when I dance, and, over time, I've come to the conclusion that I don’t like changing any part of my outfit when traveling between the car to the dance floor. Too much fuss! I’ve been asked by more than a few people about what footwear can best be used on days where you just want to be dressed up for walking about town and also be used for dancing... well, here is a bit of a dance shoe revue 2012, in order of what I'd most likely wear on the dance floor to what I'd least likely wear.


Allen Edmonds
Price range is around $300
Perhaps the best all around shoe you can find for working through the day, hitting the town, and then dancing. A good all day dress shoe. Allen Edmonds is one of two companies left in the USA that makes shoes the way they were made in the 1930s and 1940s. The other company is Alden. You can walk around in them all day and transition straight to the dance floor with no worry. I choose them over any other shoe when it comes to dancing for their sheer utility. One of the beautiful features of these shoes is that classic footbed with cork underneath. Over time this provides a custom imprint of your foot in the shoe. Just like Granddad used to wear. Keep the uppers polished now and again, and have them resoled when you start seeing cork through the soles and these could last you a decade or more with good rotation between other pairs.

Johnston & Murphy (1850 collection)
Price Range around $180

I'm popping these up to number two, because I just really like them.

With the leather rubber combination heel in these you can dance the balboa all night long and still stroll home without feeling as though your feet have taken a beating. My favorite part about these shoes is that they aren't agregiously expensive and they have a good old fashioned narrow heel and wide forefoot that accomidates my foot properly. The construction isn't at the top range of johnston and Murphy's shoes, but the stlying and the comfort along with there pretty good construction makes me want to just buy a few pairs in case they can't deal well with resoling. They just look great! Like they walked out of the past!

Florsheim
Price range is around $100
One of the shoe companies that has put out more misses than hits in the last several decades. They tend to cause my feet to ache more than the Bostonian or Allen Edmonds ever will. This has been due to the footbeds of their shoes not truly forming to my feet. They feel very hard after a long day of wear and their cushioning inside is no replacement for a footbed that forms to your feet. Not too heavy, and okay as a dress shoe that can be worn dancing; yet, because of the materials used, the uppers and the soles tend to wear out faster than Allen Edmonds.

Bostonian (First Flex)
Price range is around $85
Bostonian used to be one of the higher end names back in the day, but the blush has fallen off that rose when it comes to quality of materials and construction. However, when it comes to a good beater dance shoe with which you can pound the pavement, there is no better dress shoe that lasts like a sneaker than the shoes made by Bostonian. One caution: this is a shoe that has an upper which doesn't appear to be a very nice porous leather. As a result, the uppers tend to crack after a few months of wear, so even polishing doesn't really give them that nice patina that it gives to better shoes. They also tend to cost as much to resole as they cost to buy a new pair. Still, when you really need a pair of shoes that can be walked in and danced in, and you don’t want to make a hefty investment, go for Bostonian. They have very hard rubber heels as well, so feel free to do heel slides.

Stacy Adams
Price range is around $110
This company's shoes look like they walked out of the 1920s, and have soles that are great for dancing. This makes them a good shoe if you are the sporadic dress shoe wearer who wants a really snazzy pair for dancing, but I don’t recommend them for daily wear as the uppers will wear out as fast as the soles if you are as abusive to dress shoes as I am. If you buy them, just realize this shoe isn’t really worth a resole.


. The soles are great for dancing.

Re-Mix
Price range is around $165
I was excited when I saw that Re-Mix was finally releasing a new style for men. I wasn’t excited about the fit. A bit too loose in the heel for my liking, and the construction is a little lower than that of dress shoes within the same price range. They are pretty light and have a leather sole and heel that are great for dancing. They have a very prominent arch support that also made my feel a little off when compared to the other offerings in which I was more at home with dancing and walking. More of a show shoe than a go shoe.

Aris Allen
Price range is around $75
A shoe that I attempted to walk in before I decided I don’t want to wear them anywhere but on the dance floor. Specifically made as dance shoes, they are very lightweight and a standard among the top-notch dancers on the scene. I’m not a pro, yet I dance a lot so I bought a pair. They are fast on the floor, yet I have fickle feet that need a bit more support and a better footbed than these provide. I stopped wearing them when I started wearing Bostonians for dance purposes. Aris Allens are light weight, good for dancing but can’t take the walking.

Bleyers
Price range is around $90
I remember when they released their Balboa shoe and it was a craze for everyone to have a pair back in swing’s revival. Like the Aris Allens, they are strictly dance floor shoes. They have a good classic color scheme yet are definitely not for anything but dance floor use as the uppers and soles will tear apart easily if taken on frequent sidewalk jaunts. The lifespan is short as the soles are much like a sponge. The soles will soon show how much dancing you’ve done as the color wears off the edges. Light weight, and good for dancing, but not for walking.

 

[DamianM]

Well If your shoes are not comfortable for walking a full day, they surely wont be comfortable for dancing.

Id pass on the Re-mix shoes since they are just for design but fail to function as shoes.

 

[Matt Deckard]

There are a lot of shoes that are specifically designed for dance and dance alone, and because of this they are completely comfortable to the foot on a dance floor, yet lack the beefy sole needed to take on sand on concrete. They are good on the dance, but transfer anything under foot directly to your nerves.

 

[DamianM]

Thats why I wear insoles

Matt Deckard!
Big fan
seen you here and there but never dared talked to you

Fat burger on hollywood still holds your picture with a massive burger

 

[Matt Deckard]

I remember that day very well; and so does my stomach!

You been to many LA events?

 

[avedwards]

I would also like to recommend Grenson to anyone this side of the Atlantic. High quality traditional English maker that's been around since the 1880s. They have several classic looking shoes that have a thick enough sole to last well on a wet English pavement but thin enough to allow dancing to be comfortable on one's feet. They are even comfortable when running to train stations in the morning.
Can be obtained for around $150 if you look in the right placed.

 

[Matt Deckard]

Well made dress shoes will alsays be well made dress shoes. $150 is a good price and I'm very keen on that under 200 dollar mark. I might have to get a pair in the future to see how well the leather uppers are in person.

My list is compiled for the comfort minded, so I ultimately will always slip toward that poron footbedded Allen Edmonds due to it's bounce to the step and leather sole.

 

[Edward]

Grenson are great, as in my experience are Barker and Loake. Also rather fond of my Rocket Originals and whoever makes Charles Tyrwhitt's shoes (possibly Herring?). I dream of Church's beauties, but to date they elude my budget...

 

[DamianM]

I remember that day very well; and so does my stomach!

You been to many LA events?

Not really. Im not to socially involved.
Anything coming up?

 

[Deleted member 16736]

Thanks, Matt. Very useful thread. I'm a lindy hopper, too, and regularly struggle with the issue of what everyday shoe works best for dancing, since I don't like changing my shoes just to dance either. Are you recommending any particular style of Allen Edmonds shoe or all of them? I'm interested in a new pair of sheltons to match my 50's wardrobe, and I'm curious if you've tried them for dancing. Thank you.

 

[Matt Deckard]

When picking an Allen Edmonds shoe, it really comes down to the last that creates the foot shape. They are all sturdy well made shoes. When I buy them I tend to go for anything on the #1 last as it has a wider fore foot and narrower heel that accommodates my foot. Something else you might look for when buying a pair is whether the footbed is Poron or not. The Poron is a super dense space age foam wrapped in leather that never loses its bounce. Since it's used as the foodbed in some of their shoes it sits about the cork and takes the shape of your foot but still stays spongy.

If you are looking for a shoe for your 50s wardrobe, they are made the same as they were back in the 1950s, and many of the styles they make are exactly the same as were around back then.