Pointework is a certain shoe that female ballerinas use to be able to dance on their toes. Originally the pointe shoe was used to give more grace to the dancer. The pointe shoe was made out of cloth and covered the dancer's feet, with a small amount of padding so that the dancer's discomfort can be reduced as much as possible without taking away the flexibility of the foot. Later on, the pointe shoe was made out of glue and paper, wrapped in cloth, usually a light pink. A ballerina is a female ballet dancer. ...

There are many different types of pointe shoe, and each fits the dancer in a different way. The pointe shoe should be tight, with only a pinch of cloth at the heel when the pointe shoe is en pointe. Two ribbons wrap around the dancer's ankle, along with an elastic band that also wraps around from the back of the heel, to the front, and then back to the back the heel. The shank of the shoe comes in two different sizes, 3/4 and full shank. The full shank is traditionally for the dancer who has a strong arch, and needs more support than the 3/4 can offer. The full shank was used in the original pointe shoe. The 3/4 is shorter, and helps dancers go up on pointe with more facility. There is a wide variety of pointe shoes that have different attributes and longevity; a pointe shoe can last anywhere from a year to as little as a week.