When you are deciding whether or not to rhinestone your shoes there are a few things you should consider. A lot of instructors will advise you not to rhinestone your shoes because if you're not completely confident with your footwork this will draw more attention to your feet making mistakes noticeable. Don't worry if your footwork is not perfect yet. These are some simple styles of stoning that will accentuate your costume but not draw too much attention to your feet. In this tutorial Lena Kosovich will teach you how to add a classic shine to your ballroom shoes without overdoing it.
“A little bit of shine, not overdone!”
Supplies:
Gem-Tac (takes 3-5hours to dry 24 hours is recommended)
Tray
Beeswax
Stick
Chalk
Optional:
Tweezer
E6000
Preparation
Dip your beeswax into hot water and let it soften. After it softens it becomes pliable. Take a piece of beeswax and roll it in your fingers to create a ball. Pierce the ball of wax with the top of your stick and mold the wax so that it forms a tip. Pour your stones into your tray and softly shake them so they stand face up. Tilt your tray so that the stones gently fall to one side causing all the stones face up to group together making it easier to stick. Let's Get Started!
For Latin style ballroom shoes the subtler the design the better. We suggest applying a simple straight line to the center of your heel so you add a little sparkle that won't overtake your shoe.
- Step 1: Mark the center line of the heel with chalk
- Step 2: Shake the glue and apply to your chalk line. Starting from the bottom going to the top
- Step 3: Wait a moment to let the glue get tacky before applying stone.
- Step 4: Stone the shoe on the satin surface not the heel tip, make sure the stones stay in a straight line.
- Step 5: (Optional) Thicken your line by adding more lines on the side of the first one and then stone them.
For Smooth style ballroom shoes, you have more flexibility to add more stones because your dresses are longer. So we suggest the fully rhinestoned heel. To learn how follow the instructions below!
- Step 1: Spread the glue one portion at a time with your glue.
- Step 2: Wait a moment to let the glue get tacky before applying stone.
- Step 3: Create rhinestone lines horizontally from the bottom up one layer at a time
- Step 4: To make the lines of the heel more precise, the outline and then fill in.
There are several advantages to rhinestoning your shoes. Most important of which is more sparkle! And don't worry there are no downsides! stoning your shoes will not affect its flexibility or durability. Warning: make sure not to stone the heel tip of your shoe so that you can replace it if necessary.
We hope you enjoyed this week’s tutorial on How to Rhinestone Shoes with Lena Kosovich. Tune in next week for even more insights into house of LeNique!
““Once you’re more confident with your footwork then you can add more rhinestones to your shoes. Dont forget to ask your instructors first.”
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Lena Kosovich is a United States and World American Ballroom Champion. She was born in Russia and has trained in ballet, folk and every style of ballroom dancing. She is featured on the Benise: The Spanish Guitar (2010) DVD and has appeared on television including Dancing With the Stars.
She worked as an Assistant Designer on Dancing With the Stars and as a Designer for So You Think Can Dance and Dance Your Ass Off (2009). She is LeNique Co-Founder with husband Nick Kosovich.
