best sites for buying adult practice wear? pls ro

[TaBalie]

mainly i am looking for footless tights and practice outfits. i am an adult female.

any suggestions?

[Mel On Ice]

http://www.riversedgedancewear.com

they are knowledgable, kind and have skatewear in all sizes, even for us more amply curvaceous adult ladies. Even better, their prices are good, and the dresses, skirts, etc. are attractive.

[TaBalie]

This is just what I was looking for! Thank you so much! :)

[icedancer2]

thanks for the link -- LOVE the discounts! :)

[skaternum]

A negative comment about Rivers Edge. I've ordered several times, and I have to say never again. I've had nothing but trouble from them. Orders are screwed up and/or customer service has been pretty bad.

Plus, they don't carry skating tights -- they only have dance tights.

[TaBalie]

What is the difference between dance tights and skating tights? is it warmth/opaqueness (<-- is that a word?) ?

i actually will be wearing them under pants for the most part, so dance tights will probably be ok for me.

[Clarice]

You can get skating tights in a heavier, warmer weight (Mondor makes both heavy and light weights, for instance), but mostly the only difference between dance tights and skating tights is the color. Skaters usually wear tan, ballet dancers usually wear pink. Under pants, it won't make any difference at all. As a matter of fact, I usually wear Mondor's knee-high stockings (same weight as light-weight tights) under yoga pants for practice, and only mess around with tights when I'm wearing a dress.

[stardust skies]

You can get skating tights in a heavier, warmer weight (Mondor makes both heavy and light weights, for instance), but mostly the only difference between dance tights and skating tights is the color. Skaters usually wear tan, ballet dancers usually wear pink. Under pants, it won't make any difference at all. As a matter of fact, I usually wear Mondor's knee-high stockings (same weight as light-weight tights) under yoga pants for practice, and only mess around with tights when I'm wearing a dress.

Not true. All ballet tights come in suntan. Conversely, though, skating tights don't come in pink. The difference between dance tights and even the thinnest skating tights is that the skating tights will be heavier, and usually the blend of fabrics is different.

This, from someone who does both ballet and skating, and wouldn't dream switching up the tights for one or the other, regardless of the color.

[Clarice]

Thanks for the correction - I've never ordered suntan dance tights, and my dance store only carries that color for skaters. I've never checked the fabric content of any tights, but they seem to come in so many weights/textures I would have thought they'd be pretty interchangeable. I've had pink dance tights that were certainly as heavy as my competition weight skating tights. I've also had pink tights that were much thinner than any skating tights, but I've always preferred the thicker ones (but I'm by no means a very good dancer, and have never performed in public!). In the end, I guess it's really just a matter of what a person finds comfortable.

[Mel On Ice]

for skating tights, I like Danskin footed tights, but Mondor over the boot.

[Mrs Redboots]

I like over-boot tights for competition, but for practice I wear cheap supermarket or slightly less cheap department store opaque tights - they work very well indeed, and I see no reason to wear out my good tights! The dark line on the thigh is so faint it can't be seen from a distance, and they are comfortable and I can now fit into the one-size (after years of taking extra-large!).

For those who wear over-boot tights, what do you wear in your boots? I like flesh-coloured nylon pop-sox, which I fold down over my lace hooks to stop them catching on my tights.

[skatingatty]

I've also had less-than-satisfying experiences with Rivers Edge. First, years ago, I ordered a Watercolours dress. It was sent with the wrong type of skirt, but I kept it because it took about 2 months to get it. Then, a couple of yrs. ago, I ordered a Six-O dress. Again, it took a long time to receive it, and it didn't fit well, but I wouldn't have gotten much back if I'd returned it. Most recently, I ordered a Baltogs dress that was too small. It came in about a month, but I would've only received 30% of the price if I returned it. I sold it on Ebay. :( So, beware of the return policies. It's so hard to find the right outfit!

[flying~camel]

I've ordered 2 dresses from there and never had any problems.

This last time, I added something to my order at the last minute and they were really nice to me about it and I received my complete order on time at the originally quoted arrival date. :)

[coskater64]

I use rainbo sports.
rainbo (http://www.rainbosports.com)

I use danskin microfiber tights and then use mondors over the boot tights. I get the heavier weight ones but I am very slight and get cold easily.

For dresses
Sharene (http://www.shareneskatewear.com)
I use this company, good quality, good fit also you can find them @ most bigger competitions and they generally cut 25% off the price.

la

[Sk8pdx]

I have had good luck with www.skate-mart.com
They have a more flexible return policy and very good customer service in my experience.

[flippet]

For those who wear over-boot tights, what do you wear in your boots? I like flesh-coloured nylon pop-sox, which I fold down over my lace hooks to stop them catching on my tights.

I always wear nylon knee-hi's (pop-sox) in my boots, and then I wear footless tights over. I also fold the nylons over the hooks before pulling the tights over--saves accidentally yanking a hole in the tights, and nylons are super-cheap.

I'm trying to remember where I used to get my skatewear--I like the Capezio tights--good color, good stretch. I can't stand the Mondor tights--the fit was truly awful. Crotch up to the boobs, and far too tight on an adult's upper legs.

I think I may have used Skate-Mart as well. I think a couple of my dresses are GK-Elite, and I like them, but I would have found them on a mega-sale somewhere.

[icedancer2]

I have had good luck with skirts/tights at Dance Distributors:

http://www.dancedistributors.com/

Great prices and service -- plus a nice free catalog.

[TaBalie]

Thanks everyone for the great sites and information!

I have found some pretty good prices at Amazon for some of the tights mentioned, and since I am always ordering from there, I might start with those.

Thanks again!

[doubletoe]

A negative comment about Rivers Edge. I've ordered several times, and I have to say never again. I've had nothing but trouble from them. Orders are screwed up and/or customer service has been pretty bad.

Plus, they don't carry skating tights -- they only have dance tights.

I bought my last dress from them (custom-dyed Watercolor dress) and had a fantastic experience. They were very helpful and responsive.

[doubletoe]

I've also had less-than-satisfying experiences with Rivers Edge. First, years ago, I ordered a Watercolours dress. It was sent with the wrong type of skirt, but I kept it because it took about 2 months to get it. Then, a couple of yrs. ago, I ordered a Six-O dress. Again, it took a long time to receive it, and it didn't fit well, but I wouldn't have gotten much back if I'd returned it. Most recently, I ordered a Baltogs dress that was too small. It came in about a month, but I would've only received 30% of the price if I returned it. I sold it on Ebay. :( So, beware of the return policies. It's so hard to find the right outfit!

Actually, I'm with you on the Bal-togs thing. Mine was way too small, too, but it's really the fault of the Bal-togs sizing chart, (which is waaay off), not Riversedge. But Riversedge was really nice about it and replaced mine with a larger size for free and had my dress re-made by Watercolors.