swing dance reading

WHAT DO I WEAR?

What Should You Wear To Go Swing Dancing?

Common questions about swing dance clothing and what you should wear.

CLOTHING

Should you wear a Zoot Suit, Vintage Dress, Sailor Suit, Jean & T-shirt, Skirt, or Pants? The answer is YES and NO.

We all love to dress up and be snazzy, but you don’t have to all the time. Our best answer is “what occasion are you dressing up for?”

1) WEEKLY LESSONS & DANCE CLASSES

For your regular classes, we suggest you wear something from comfy & casual. You usually do a lot of repetition and practice practice practice. Always have mints, gum, a towel or extra shirts.

Hygiene goes a long way! Deodorant & Breath Mints. Sometime we come from a long day at work and go to dance class. Do the armpit and breath sniff test. If it doesn’t smell like flowers and unicorns, take the time to spruce up a bit in the bathroom.

Jeans, tshirts, slacks, polo shirts, button shirts & ties, blouse & skirt … anything comfy.

2) MONTHLY LESSONS & SOCIAL DANCES

For those Monthly Dances or Date-Nites, we suggest you wear some of your good looking outfits and dance in style.

Dresses, Skirts, Vintage Theme Clothing, Suit, Vest, Shirt, Ties, Braces/Suspenders, Zoot Suits, Fancy Hats, Fedoras & Trilbys, and all the accessories.

3) SPECIAL EVENTS, EXHIBITIONS, PERFORMANCES

Many times we are asked to participate in Swing Themed event around town and show off. NOW it’s time to break out that eye-popping snazzy outfit so people will notice your dancing and wonder what’s up.

Dresses, Skirts, Vintage Theme Clothing, Suit, Vest, Shirt, Ties, Braces/Suspenders, Zoot Suits, Fancy Hats, Fedoras & Trilbys, and all the accessories.

Even break out that neon Yellow Zoot Suit – like our buddy Chris!

SHOES

Our first answer: “Anything that slides on the floor”. We LOVE to slide. It is best to have shoes with leather, felt or suede bottoms. You can also opt for gym shoes with zero tread or grip on the bottom.

PLEASE NOTE: NEVER wear your streets shoes to a dance class! Repeat…DO NOT wear your outdoor shoes from the parking lot onto the dance floor. Outdoor shoes brings tracks in dirt, rocks, oils, water, gum, and who-knows-what onto the dance floor. It’s like trying to dance on sticky sandpaper. Remember, we love to slide.

PLUS – The dance floor costs THOUSANDS of dollars to install, and it is not good etiquette when you wear your street shoes that scratch and tear up the nice wood floor. bad juju.

And NEVER NEVER bring powder to put on the floor! NEVER! Don’t do it, don’t think about it. NO!

SHOE BAG or BACKPACK

If you are new to swing, you’ll notice that dance veterans will always have an extra bag they take EVERYWHERE with them that they carry their shoes and gear in.

The normal shoe bag carry your dance shoes plus extra items you will learn to keep handy: extra socks, clothes, mints/gum, a shoebrush, deodorant, and a towel.

WHERE TO BUY SHOES

1) AMAZON to the rescue.

2) Also try: Dancestore.com
DanceStore.com located in the DC area. Reasonable prices.

Tell ’em you heard it from SwingVirginia!