GB2156652A

GB2156652A - Ballet shoe

Info

Publication number: GB2156652A
Application number: GB08409034A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Rodney Lester Freed; Victor Michael Gamba
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1984-04-06
Filing date: 1984-04-06
Publication date: 1985-10-16
Also published as: GB8409034D0; GB2156652B; AU3821485A; DE3524676A1; FR2584276A1

Abstract

A ballet shoe comprising an upper 10 sewn to a sole 12, an insole 14 having a stiffening shank 15 inserted within the shoe 10 and attached to the sole with the stiffening shank 15 located between the sole 12 and the insole 14, wherein the stiffening shank is weakened in the area adjacent the ball of the foot of the wearer such that the shoe can be readily bent inwardly to allow the wearer to roll off pointe but is substantially rigid and resistant to bending outwardly to give maximum support to the foot on pointe. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Ballet shoe The present invention relates to ballet shoes and, more particularly, to a ballet shoe of the type known as a pointe shoe in which the toe is substantially rigid so as to support the dancer's foot when she goes up on pointe.

In a conventional pointe shoe the insole is strengthened by a stiffening shank, sometimes known as a dolly, so that it is substantially rigid against flexing in either direction. The insole thus gives substantial support to the sole of the dancer's foot when the dancer goes up on pointe. However, the stiffness of the insole can create problems for the dancer when the dancer rolls off pointe as there is insufficient flexibility in the insole to allow the shoe to bend with the dancer's foot.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a pointe shoe for a dancer in which the insole is substantially rigid in one direction but will flex relatively easily in the other direction to allow the dancer to roll off pointe.

In order to achieve this objective, we provide a ballet shoe comprising an upper sewn to a sole, an insole having a stiffening shank inserted within the shoe and attached to the sole with the stiffening shank located between the sole and the insole, wherein the stiffening shank is weakened in the area adjacent the ball of the foot of the wearer such that the shoe can be readily bent inwardly to allow the wearer to roll off pointe but is substantially rigid and resistant to bending outwardly to give maximum support to the foot on pointe.

In order to achieve the desired flexibility, the outer surface of the shank may be cut in the area of bending and the cut may extend substantially but not completely through the shank. In a preferred embodiment the outer surface of the shank is formed with a plurality of parallel cuts in the area of bending which extend substantially but not completely through the shank.

A preferred form of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompany drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a pointe ballet shoe; Figure 2 is a transverse section taken through the ballet shoe of Fig. 1 on the line Il-Il; Figure 3 is a longitudinal section of the shoe of Fig. 1 taken on the line Ill-Ill showing the shoe on a dancer's foot and in the pointe position; Figure 4 is a side view of the insole of the ballet shoe in a bent position; and Figure 5 is an elevation of the insole of Fig.

4.

In the drawings a pointe ballet shoe is indicated generally at 10 which comprises a conventional upper 11 made from a vamp outer of satin, two vamp linings of drill material, two outer quarters of satin and two quarter linings of drill. The upper 11 is sewn on to a conventional sole 1 2 while the sole 1 2 is attached to a last by stitching the upper to an edge 1 3 of the sole while the upper is inside out and then turning the upper while the sole is on the last. An insole 14 is then inserted into the shoe and attached to the sole.

The insole 14 comprises a piece of fibre board or similar material which is stiffened by a shank 15, sometimes known in the trade as a dolly. The shank 1 5 is made of leather, TUXON or a similar material and serves to stiffen and increase the strength and rigidity of the insole. The insole is laid in the shoe with the shank 1 5 in contact with the sole and the shank is then adhered to the sole with a suitable adhesive material. As can be seen best from Fig. 5, the shank is substantially narrower than the insole which is sufficiently wide to overlie the stitched edge 1 6 of the upper, the gap left between the edge 1 6 of the upper and the shank 1 5 being filled with adhesive material.

The toe or pointe 1 7 of the shoe is internally substantially rigid so as to form a supporting block for the dancer's foot and this block is manufactured by a conventional method, from layers of hessian impregnated with dextrine and flour.

The shank 1 5 extends from the toe of the insole approximately three quarters of the way along the length of the insole and stops well short of the heel, as seen best in Fig. 5, so as to emphasise the shape of the dancer's foot when she is on pointe.

The upper 11 is finished by providing a conventional binding 19, drawstring 20 and inner lining of soft drill material.

In order to increase the flexibility of the shoe in one direction only to make it easier for the dancer to roll off pointe, the outer surface 21 of the stiffening shank 15, that is the surface which is adhered to the sole 12, is formed with a plurality of parallel cuts 22 to 26. These cuts extend across the shank in the general area of the ball of the wearer's foot and approximately half way through the depth of the material of the shank.

The cuts 22 to 26 in the outer surface of the shank 1 5 weaken the shank so as to facilitate bending of the shank and therefore the insole in one direction only, as shown in Fig. 4. If a bending force or moment is applied to the shoe in the opposite sense then the cuts 22 to 26 close up and the shank and insole become relatively rigid and resistant to bending.

As shown in Fig. 3, the insole is positioned within the shoe so that the stiffening shank 1 5 faces outwardly of the shoe. In this way, when the dancer goes up on pointe and the foot is arched, the insole and the shank follow the contour of the sole of the foot and are bowed concavely outwardly so as to give maximum rigid support to the foot. If the dancer now rolls off pointe the insole and the shank will flex and bend about the cuts 22 to 26 so as to allow the dancer's foot to readily flex and roll down off pointe. This enables the dancer to roll off pointe lightly and easily with a minimum of strain on the foot.

The ballet shoe of the present invention is made by conventional and known methods of ballet shoe manufacture and by using known and conventional materials. It is envisaged that the stiffening shank 1 5 of the insole may be weakened so as to flex in one direction but give maximum rigidity in the opposite direction in any suitable way and is not limited to being weakened by forming a plurality of parallel cuts in the outer surface. For instance, a plurality of perforations may be made in the outer surface of the shank 1 5 or the material of the shank may be made substantially thinner in the appropriate area.

The present invention is not limited to pointe ballet shoes but may be incorporated in an ordinary ballet shoe should this be found advantageous.

Claims

1. A ballet shoe comprising an upper sewn to a sole, as insole having a stiffening shank inserted within the shoe and attached to the sole with the stiffening shank located between the sole and the insole, wherein the stiffening shank is weakened in the area adjacent the ball of the foot of the wearer such that the shoe can be readily bent inwardly to allow the wearer to roll off pointe but is substantially rigid and resistant to bending outwardly to give maximum support to the foot on pointe.

2. A ballet shoe as claimed in claim 1, wherein the outer surface of the shank is cut along the bend line.

3. A ballet shoe as claimed in claim 2, wherein the cut extends substantially but not completely through the shank.

4. A ballet shoe as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the outer surface of the shank is formed with a plurality of parallel cuts in the general area of bending.

5. A ballet shoe as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the shank stops short of the heel portion of the insole.

6. A ballet shoe as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the insole and the shank are formed from the same material.

7. A ballet shoe as claimed in any of claims 1 to 5, wherein the insole and the shank are formed from different materials.

8. A ballet shoe substantially as described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings.