New week, new blog post! Today we’re back with our list of Competition Essentials that every dance sport competitor should have- from makeup items, to nutrition and THE dress, we’ve got you covered!
In case you’ve missed last week’s post check it out here TOP THREE DANCE PRACTICE ESSENTIALS so you’re always ready to dance!
THAT DRESS
Ok, so we really need to start with a shameless plug- after all we’ve just opened our online LT COUTURE online shop where you can order your fab new competion dress or shop a ready to wear or a second hand beauty. We love creating custom designs that bring out the best of your dancing.
Our work aside- wherever you get your dress it’s absolutely essential to choose it wisely, especially if you’re a young dancer that wears dresses for a couple of seasons. Buying a dance dress is a huge investment and it needs to be perfect for you. We’ll do a separate post on how to choose your ideal dress, but for now keep in mind that it should highlight your best features and hide the aspects of your dance that are not quite perfect yet.
Your dance shoes are of course a no-brainer; we’ve never seen anyone compete in sneakers 🙂 But just a quick tip- please please wear clean shoes! This doesn’t mean that you should buy a new pair of shoes for every competition, but do give them a scrum. Grubby shoes will ruin every look, no matter how luxurious your dress is.
HAIR & MAKE UP
If you’ve been to a dance competition in recent years you’ve surely noticed that dancers look much classier than they did in the past. Gone is the sometimes grotesque make-up thickly caked on faces of performers and hairstyles have become ever so elaborate but look absolutely perfect at all times.
There are numerous stylists working on competitions around the world where you can book your appointment to look perfect for your next big event. With prices ranging from as low as 40 eur up to 140 eur for hair& make-up set there’s something available for everyone.
Check out DARYA IMEGSTYLE or BEAUTY CODE for inspo and bookings.
If having your look curated professionally is out of your reach there are many tutorials available on youtube where you can learn the basics of creating the perfect, elegant competition look.
TAN
Streaks! This is every dancer’s worst nightmare. Your dress is perfect, your hair and makeup look amazing and…your back looks like a Zebra. This is a scenario you really need to avoid and it’s not that complex.
For standard competitors it’s of course much easier, but you would be surprised how many streaked backs we see on every competition! Girls, if you’re dancing standard stay away from instant tanners. Remember that your partner is wearing a white shirt and his wrists are touching your back at all times- just imagine that lovely instant tan turning his shirt into a lovely mud colour. A great self-tanning foam is BONDI SANDS that smells like coco, gives a lovely dark tan (not orange!) and doesn’t stain.
Latin ladies (and gentlemen)- the tanning foam by Bondi is a great base, but it won’t be enough for a bronzed latin look. Turn to OTTANTE COSMETICS for professional dance tanning products.
Keep in mind that with all tanners you’ll need some practice; try applying tan for practice or for a night out to get used to how it all works.
FOOD & BEVERAGES
Dancers, you need to eat and drink during competitions. We can just see you now rolling your eyes and thinking “well, of course, who doesn’t”- but believe us that there are many competitors who either forget about it or make some poor choices.
A Snickers bar is not food. A salami sandwich is food but please don’t bring it to the comp 🙂 There are many options of what you can eat and you can really pick& choose what you want to bring to the competition- we’ll make a separate post all about nutritional choices that are best for dance sport athletes.
For now just remember- food that is easy to digest, gives you a slow release of energy and is easy to transport will work best. Drink? Water. Forget sports drinks and stay away from Red Bull and Coca-Cola!
mISCELLANEOUS
Band-aids, cooling cream, headache pills, sanitary towels, needle& thread, portable muscle massagers, shoe brush, towel,…these are items that frequently get forgotten. Have a small pouch ready at all times that you always keep in your competition bag and have on hand for any emergencies.
Think about what you often miss when you’re on a competition and make a list of things you’ll keep in your emergency bag. The one thing you don’t need on a competition day is stress of not being able to repair a rip in your dress or soothe a headache- being ready for any small emergencies will be helpful!
Everybody’s different and what’s essential for one dancer may be unnecessary for another. You’ll learn more and more about yourself and what you need as you progress through the years of your competitive career- whenever you catch yourself wanting something when on a comp and not having it with you remember what the item was and add it to your miscellaneous bag.
What we always hated were long breaks with nothing to do. Bringing headphones so you can listen to music or an audiobook while you wait or a book to read during hours of breaks that sometimes happen on competition days might not be essential, but they sure did make our competitions more fun!
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For a custom competition dress check out our LT COUTURE and let us create a beautiful look for you.
