It’s back to school season, and that applies to Irish dance as well! After the frenzy of nationals and summer camps it can be easy to end up with a messy and disorganized dance bag. There’s no shame in it, everyone has been there. Or maybe you’ve taken the Summer mostly off and you can barely remember what was in your bag at the end of last Spring. Either way, this time of year is a great opportunity to clean your bag out and get yourself squared away for going back to classes!
First off, find a good space to empty out your bag and spread the contents out. It’s easy to wind up with a bag full of stuff like dirty dance socks, balls of used tape, empty water bottles, and other things that you didn’t have time to get rid of properly in the scramble. Getting the bag fully emptied out allows you to take care of all these odds and ends, and you’ll be amazed how light your bag is with all the dance detritus cleared out. This is also a great time to really clean your bag to help deal with any weird smells that might have taken roost in there- make sure to really get into all the pockets and crevices for best results.
Now that you’ve got everything in the open and your bag is drying, find your shoes and make sure that you have both, they’re in good condition, and they’re a matched pair- it sounds silly, but every year there are countless horror stories of people somehow ending up with two right shoes or three lefts in their bags. Once you’ve made sure that you have all your shoes, check if they fit! If you’ve taken the Summer mostly off and been wearing flip flops or sandals a lot they might feel a bit strange after so long, but it’s also pretty common for dancers’ feet to grow over the Summer so you might need a new pair. Remember to check our shoe sizing article for tips and a sizing form if you do need a new set!
With your shoes sorted out and back in your dance bag, it’s time for your socks. Make sure you’ve got a couple of pair that are clean and ‘practice ready’, and then at least one pair that are still fresh and bright white if you’re planning to feis- it’ll really save you time and stress to have a backup ahead of time. If you have a competition-white pair of socks already you can keep them clean and safe in your bag by putting them in a ziploc style bag. Never underestimate how heartbreaking it can be to find a broken bottle of shoe polish in a bag full of unprotected socks!
If you use Eucatape or gaffer’s tape for practice, now is a good time to make sure they’re in the bag too. Eucatape especially can be great to put on right after practice to help with sore feet and any blisters that might start to crop up.
Now that you’ve got your essentials packed away in your dance bag, you’re ready for classes! Now is a great time to put the rest of your feis kit somewhere safe where you’ll remember to grab it all when you need it, and perform any maintenance it needs. Check out these other articles for more information on caring for your shoes and wig, and make sure to check out our facebook page for updates, news, and product highlights!
Have fun at class and happy dancing!