Linda Reid-Lobatto took over the Dance Laines Pointe Shoe Fitting Centre in July 2005 from Esther Juon when she moved to New Zealand.  Linda started ballet classes in 1995 as a complete beginner and worked her way up to Intermediate level. By profession, Linda was a trained nurse and specialised working in the operating theatre. She saw at first hand the damage that badly fitted pointe shoes caused. She was extremely fortunate to have been trained by Esther who wrote her first book "Pointe Shoe Secrets" published in 1995. Esther is writing a new book which should be published in 2006/2007. Her articles have been published in the Young Dancer Magazine, Dancing Times and European Dance News. Her work was also presented at the IADMS conference in October 2000.

Esther and Linda continue to work together, always looking for further methods to keep feet safe in pointe shoes.

Linda was invited by Grishko UK to fit shoes for them at Move It Dance 2006/2007 held at Olympia, London  

                                                                                              Grishko undertook five years of medical research into the reasons for injuries to dancers’ feet. They then designed their pointe shoe based on the results of this research. All Grishko Pointe shoes are handmade using traditional methods.          

Linda Reid-Lobatto works closely with Amanda Hill of Grishko UK, and together they hold One Day Seminars in Pointe Shoe Fitting.   Linda has fitted Beginners to Professional, and both male and female dancers.  She only fits Grishko shoes.  

A dancer must wait for her body to be strong enough before she starts to dance on pointe, as it can cause serious damage to the feet, ankles, knees, and hips if she has not yet built up the strength. Children should not start to dance on pointe before they are around 12, before that, the bones of their feet have not developed enough from cartilage to bone to provide sufficient support for the foot, otherwise this can  permanently damage. Dancers often prepare for pointe work by using an exercise band and  practicing strengthening exercises such as relevés. Dancing en pointe requires the use of the entire body for support, including the legs and abdominal muscles. I have placed a few guidelines on page 4.

If you would like a Pointe shoe fitting,

please contact                       

 Linda Reid-Lobatto on

Tel:- 07810803996 or Email

Please allow 1-2 hours for your first fitting.

Please make sure your toenails are cut short and your feet are clean.

If you have any blisters, I may be unable to fit you for shoes until they have healed.

Please bring clean convertible ballet tights so that I may have full access to your bare feet.

You should also bring your old Pointe shoes with any pads, wool etc. that you use with them.

If you have a number of students that need a Pointe Shoe  fitting please contact me as I may be able to travel to your school to do the fittings