Sewing and Ballet
My oldest daughter Natalie got her first pair of pointe shoes a few weeks ago. Kind of a big deal to a dancer!! My knowledge of dance is minimal, but I do know sewing and am fascinated by how the two relate to each other.
Pointe shoes are not something you go in a just pick up off a shelf. The fitting process takes some time and the ladies who helped us find the right shoes were meticulous and made the appointment so much fun. The shoes have to fit perfectly -- there is no buying a size to big so she can grow into them, since a dancer could get injured if they don't fit just right.
Then you have to sew on the elastic and ribbons. I got the needle and thread out and directed her to YouTube and made her do that part herself ;)
She had her first pointe class on Thursday. I so wish I could have gone in there with my camera as all the girls learned to put their shoes on for the first time! But, that's not allowed. Booooooooo.
Natalie also auditioned for the Nutcracker yesterday and got a part! She'll be a candy cane and she's so excited. I'm not sure how excited either of us will be when I drive her to rehearsals at 7 a.m. every Saturday morning, though, ha! As a seamstress, I love looking at costumes. Costume sewing (for Halloween) tops my list of favorite things to sew, but I know costumes for ballet are a whole 'nother thing.
I have no idea what her candy cane costume will look like, but I'm enjoying looking at these beauties! Also, poor Clara's nightgown in this photo is a corset. Sounds comfy, haha.
Sharni Spencer as a Mirliton and Jessica Fyfe as Clara in the Australian Ballet's Nutcracker. Photography by Jeff Busby
Mirlitons: Eloise Fryer and Jill Ogai in Sir Peter Wright's The Nutcracker. Photography Jeff Busby
I love being involved in dance productions and sewing is the way I know how to do that. I do have to join "a committee" for this Nutcracker production. Not sure what that entails. But if there's a costume committee, I'm there. Just don't give me the snack bar committee. Haha!
While on the subject, out of curiosity, I was researching how pointe shoes are made and found this video. I love how the ballerina calls the makers artists and their craft an art form that enables their very livelihood. It really is a cool industry! And now I know why they cost so much, ha!
During the hour of jazz she has on Thursday nights, I always go to the library nearby. I picked up a few kids' ballet books, including this one:
Natalie read it and said it was really good, so I read it too. Did you know that the brothers responsible for bringing The Nutcracker to America were from small town Utah? It's super interesting. I got a kick out of this page, of course:
Cheers!
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