Aris Allen Women's Black Mary Jane Dance Shoes with Black Faux Lizard Accents

• These are an exact copy of a 1920s Swing-Era dance shoe and have a raw leather sole.
• The footbed is made from soft foam and they also come with an extra insole that's made from thick foam so you can custom fit them to your feet.
• Important: Most Mary Janes that are not made for dancing have very low straps that you do not need to tighten securely. These are made for dancing so the strap is very high on the foot and works best when the strap starts snug against the ankle. First: put the extra insoles inside them. Second: securely tighten the strap around your ankle. Third: stand up to see if the strap is fastened tight enough. (See below for sizing tips).
• It looks like a high heel but, depending on the size, the heels only measure between 2.5" and 2.7" at the back. During testing by dancers so many women said "I don't wear heels!" then, when we talked them into trying them, came back off the dance floor muttering about how they were in love with them and how they didn't feel as high as they looked.
• The motif on the heel and toe of this shoe is taken from the neoclassical architecture device known as egg-and-dart which you'll now notice as you walk around cities with 100+ year old buildings.
• Aris Allen is known for making vintage style swing dance shoes and reproduction models that are more authentic equipment for dancing swing than ordinary ballroom shoes are. Their philosophy being that your dancing will look more authentic if you wear the same style of shoes the inventors of the dance were wearing.
• Please check the sizing recommendations before placing your order.
• Item #: 487-BK

SPECS:

• The heels are approximately 2.6 inches (6.6 cm) tall and the base of the heel is 1.1" inch (2.8 cm) wide.

SIZING TIPS:
(Our returns show we are right about 90% of the time)
Because of the extra insoles, the adjustability of the strap, and the roominess of the construction most of our test dancers wore their normal size.

For example:

• If you always wear a 9, but sometimes you can wear an 8.5 = you'll probably want a 9.
• If you always wear a 7.5 but sometimes wear an 8 = you'll probably want a 7.5.

VERY IMPORTANT:
Most of our test dancers immediately said "I need to wear them without the extra insoles" because they had not fastened the strap properly. These are dance shoes which means they have to stay on your feet when you are essentially running track in them.

1 - Put your heel all the way into the back, then push the strap into the J-hook (these have ballroom-style buckles) with the buckle on the outside of the hook and tighten the buckle until it is secure around your ankle.
2 - Then stand up.
3 - Try this again with the extra insoles.

WIDTH INFO:

• Narrow width: happy
• Average width: happy
• Wide width: not happy

ABOUT THE LEATHER SOLES:

• These are made with raw leather soles which are wonderful to dance on but are "faster" than suede-soled dance shoes.