About Our Services And Irish Dancing Shoes

The Irish dancing shoes you'll find on this site are produced by Boyne Walk and have been researched and developed in association with leading dancers and teachers, whose inputs have been instrumental in producing these shoes. The experience behind the making of these dance shoes date back to the early 70s. Along with favourable pricing, the best materials available and skilled workmanship, these Irish dance shoes have become the standard shoes for Irish Dancers. But don't take our word for it ...

However, here you'll find three types of shoes used predominately in Irish dancing. A hard dancing shoe worn by both male and females and two distinct types of soft Irish dancing shoes, one worn by the ladies and another style by the men. Here is a little bit about each style of Irish dancing shoe and what types of dances they are used for.

The Hard Irish Dancing Shoes

The hard Irish dancing shoe also sometimes called the jig shoe is a leather shoe that is used to dance the hornpipe, the treble jig and many other dances where a shoe that makes a tapping sound is needed. Thes e shoes are different than the shoes used by tap dancers in that instead of using metal taps, the taps on Jig shoes normally consist of fiberglass and occasionally of wood. In fact, the tap dance and the tap dance shoe is an offshoot of the hard Irish dancing shoe and the type of dances they are used for.

The Soft Dancing Shoe

The soft Irish dancing shoe are commonly known as Pumps or Ghilles. These shoes resemble the ballet shoe minus the hard toe and the ribbon. The Pump does have laces that wrap around the ankle to help keep the shoe from sliding and add support. When choosing a pair of Ghilles or pumps most Irish dance instructors recommend that this Irish dancing shoe be a size smaller than the regular shoes used for street wear as the soft leather material stretches.

Men's Soft Irish Dancing Shoes

The men's soft Irish dancing shoe is often referred to as a Reel shoe, it resembles a black jazz shoe with a hard heel. The heels on the men's soft Irish dancing shoes are harder than on the women's soft shoes and the soles are firmer as well. Both the womens and mens soft Irish dancing shoes are used to dance Reels, the light jig and the single and slip jigs.

 If you are considering taking up Irish dancing, it is advisable to wait and ask the instructor which style of shoe they recommend for beginners. While in most cases the soft shoe dances are learned first before moving on to the hard shoe dances, some shoes are better for beginner dancers while others shoes are made for those who are more skilled.

If you want to learn how to dance like the Irish having the proper Irish dancing shoe is paramount to achieving that goal.

We are an internet based business who are working with Boyne Walk to deliver Irish Dancing Shoes to your doorstep. All items sold on this site are in stock. We take online payments ONLY which is through through paypal. Paypal is the most secure way of paying for your goods online and they accept most credit cards. All the prices of our shoes include delivery charges unless you wish the item to be sent through registered post which will be an added £5.50 charge. Please read our terms and conditions before purchasing any goods. All goods are packaged and posted in Ireland so please allow sufficient time which is around 7 working days. Any problems and we will let you know prior to posting.

As we're dedicated to offering you a good value for money service, we would like to offer you 10% OFF when you purchase 2 or more items. All you have to do when claiming your 10%, is type in your promotional code  which is Save. Thank You