One Year Later {On My Toes' Top 10}

Just over a year ago, I began writing this blog as I ended my lengthy hiatus from Irish dancing and began really thinking about becoming a TCRG. On My Toes was a way for me to connect with other Irish dancers and share my love for Irish dance with whoever happened upon my blog. I could never have imagined that one short year later I would have reached over 27,000 readers and dancers from the US, Canada, Europe, Australia, and Asia. Not only have I gained the support of thousands of people worldwide, but I'm also teaching Irish dance at a local non-profit dance school as I prepare to take the TCRG exam this fall. What a difference a year can make! 

Thank you all for reading my blog, following me @MoiraOnMyToes on Twitter, liking On My Toes on Facebook, and supporting me as a dancer, teacher, and blogger. Here are your top 10, most viewed posts from the past year! 

{1} PRODIJIG: Changing the Game 

{2} The Irish Dancers' Miss America: Catching up with Betty Thompson

{3} Win a Pair of Iconic by John Carey Hard Shoes 

{4} Irish Dancing their Way to the Crown: Miss America 2012

{5} Irish Dancing their Way to the Crown: Miss America 2012 Reaction

{6} Strictly Irish Dancing: Live Blog! 

{7} Shortcuts to Happiness

{8} More than a Little White Dress

{9} What's in Feisonista's Dance Bag? 

{10} Happy Valentine's Day, Irish Dancers! 

Keep Dancing,

Moira 

Iconic Hard Shoes giveaway WINNER!

Happy 4th of July, Irish Dancers! Best of luck to all the talented dancers at the North American Irish Dance Championships this week!

I'm also SO SO SO excited to announce the winner of On My Toes' first giveaway, an amazing pair of heavy shoes from Iconic Dancer!!! These hard shoes are fabulous, stylish, and sound awesome! [How do I know?? ... I have my very own pair and I LOVE THEM!]

Congratulations to Louise Hennessy!!! Look out for more info about your AWESOME hard shoes via email!! 

Thank you to all the dancers who entered!

Don't forget to check out Iconic Dancer on Facebook for more updates about their trend-setting shoes!

Keep Dancing... & have a Happy [and safe!] Independence Day,
Moira

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Win a Pair of Iconic by John Carey hard shoes!

I'm so so so excited to announce On My Toes' first giveaway! Thanks to Iconic Dancer, I'll be giving away a pair of Iconic [White or Black] by John Carey hard shoes to one lucky winner! You might already know how awesome these heavies are [perhaps you've read how much I love them?], but in case you haven't heard, these are the "coolest shoes on the planet!" Iconic explains these innovative dancing shoes best...

Iconic White by John Carey - The Heavy Irish Dance Shoes. 

The ORIGINAL & Revolutionary Registered Design & White Strip ™ helps to visually lower the sock line and with the use of a white strap gives the top part of the shoe a more open and courtshoe appearance, while retaining the support, safety and stability of the traditional design. As you can expect from John Carey, all the functional features and designs have been enhanced to offer better performance, sound and durability. The all black suede split  sole, black tips and black heels offers a beautiful aesthetic while also allowing continued and lasting flexibility without sacrificing support. No other Hard Jig Irish Dance Shoes on the market offers this much support.

Iconic White by John Carey

Don't you want a pair? [answer: YES!!!] 

Entering for a chance to win is super simple! 

Use the tool below to enter to win!
Please note: if you check one of the boxes, please actually do the task for that entry :) It's so easy! Ex: Follow me on Twitter if you check that box, Leave a comment on the blog if you check that box... You get the idea :) Thanks & Good Luck!

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Keep Dancing,
Moira

Inspired by: Iconic White by John Carey

I'll be the first to admit, after being out of the competitive Irish dance scene for nearly 8 years, the concept of taping hard shoes with white tape for feisanna was foreign to me. Back in my day [seriously, long long ago],  I have no recollection of dancers with white-taped shoes, straps, or laces. We wore black elastics and maybe taped our shoes to our feet with black electrical tape, but no white tape. This whole white-tape trend was new to me, and I wasn't sure if I liked it. 


But then I thought about it... 

I wear nude-colored high heels to make my legs look longer... Why not add white tape to hard shoes to give the illusion of longer legs while dancing? I'm 5'3. I'll do anything to make my legs look longer! I can only imagine that most dancers want to look like they have long, beautiful, legs-for-days too! Genius. 

And then a certain someone took it to a whole, new level...

John Carey obviously saw the genius behind this trend as well, and launched Iconic White, the original hard shoe with white straps and edging around the top of the shoe [for the look of a lowered sock line]. Who better to design this revolutionary heavy shoe than an 8 time World Champion and TCRG of his world-title-producing Carey Academy? Needless to say, Iconic Whites are simply fabulous. 

I even love the boxes. 

Although I have yet to get my hands on [or rather, my feet into] a pair of Iconic Whites, I love the look! These sleek shoes remind me of some kind of hard shoe hybrid of saddle shoes and Capone [from Michael Flatley's Celtic Tiger], but with the extra-added-bonus of making legs look longer and feet look smaller.

Don't you think Iconic White heavies are the perfect shoe to compliment with that music? Until I can get my pretty little feet into a pair of those fabulous black and white shoes, I'll settle for an Iconic White inspired manicure! 

Do you wear Iconic Whites? Have you tried them on? Do you love them?! Tell me about! 

Keep Dancing,

Moira

OMJ... Oh My JIG: Live Blog!

Here we go people... the US television premier of JIG on TLC!!! I'm so psyched, even though I've already watched the DVD an undisclosed number of times :) Thanks for being here for my first live blog adventure as well!!

8:03: Love these two little girls. When I went to the worlds for the "very first time" I was 17.  Always impressed with the dedication and talent of young champion dancers. They are committed beyond their years. Also, Brogan has such a grateful attitude. I really admire her appreciation for what she's been given. 


8:06: Julia is so talented.. good lord that child has beautiful feet. I also think her parents are completely adorable. Buy the dress? Check. Buy the wig? Check. Go to Ireland? Check. What awesome parents. 


8:12: John is sooooooo adorable. Love him. Joe is ridiculously gifted, hardworking, and  is living quite the Irish dancing dream. Can you imagine you parents picking up everything to move across the Atlantic so you can pursue your dream of winning the Worlds? Incredible. 

--1st commercial break--

8:18: "If you do it wrong, you have to get it right. You can't just leave it" - Julia O'Rourke. Love her dedication, and her turnout! Also, Brogan doing sit-ups in rhinestoned skinny jeans is too cute. 


8:20: How are they ALREADY at the Worlds?! The edited version of this movie is flying by!  


8:22: Listening to Brogan and her mother talk about her Gran is so touching. Who else has chills? 

--2nd commercial break--

8:26: "Costumes cost $2,500." - I'm so lucky I have a mom who can make anything. She made all my dresses and NONE of them looked home-made ;) Even the one I wore at Worlds. However, Brogan and Julia both have gorgeous dresses. I love the new softer skirts. I wish those existed when I was competing... I always felt like I was dancing in a lampshade. 


8:27: "You have to be foot perfect." - John Carey. Boy oh boy, is Joe Bitter ever foot perfect. I would love to see his whole set to music. Little John is so precious when he's not dancing, but when that boy is competing, he is unstoppable. The height and energy in his steps are incredible. 


8:30: Holy Sparkles. And holy dancing. Brogan and Julia are the kind of dancers you can't look away from... as is Joe. Also, I love his competition look. I'm not super into the embroidered vests on young men. They can be a little over the top on some guys. 

--3rd commercial break-- 

8:37: Kind of wish this weird merry-go-round music wasn't playing in the background, but I love the dancing. Soft-shoe was always my favorite. Also, Brogan's leg muscles make me want to hit the gym right now. And her dress makes me want to start bedazzling everything I own. I just adore little John, and John Carey. Also, I think I have that same jacket John Carey is wearing ;)


8:38: I've watched this movie already, and I'm still nervous listening to the scores get announced. Wait, they're already getting their scores?! Seriously, this is going by too fast! 


8:39: YAY JOHN! He's still the littlest one, even on the top of the podium. Love it. 

--4th commercial break--

8:44: Watching Joe Bitter dance in real time is like watching any normal dancer in fast forward. Did I already say I would love to see him dance? Because I really would. Thanks TLC for leaving in almost a full two minutes of his dancing :) Also, I didn't blink for those two minutes. Seriously. 


8:48: YAY JOE! His dedication and talent earned him that win. Loved the little interaction between Julia and Brogan... very sweet, and sportsman like. While both of them are incredible little dancers, I almost prefer Brogan's dancing, but the also showed her for a lot longer. Julia's rocks are lovely. They both make dancing at that level look easy, which is a feat in itself. 


8:51: I love seeing the joy in Julia's face listening to her scores. I wish both Julia and Brogan could win! They're little... they could fit on the top of the podium together :)

--5th commercial break-- 

8:59: This is nerve-racking, and I already know who won. Julia's little friend with the highlighter yellow bow headband is too cute. Julia's reaction to winning is so genuine. I literally have tears in my eyes watching her achieve her dream :) And I admire Brogan's ability to congratulate Julia and really mean it. Many dancers older than her don't have the ability to lose not win with such grace. I hope she wins it someday!  I'm thrilled she won it in 2011!


9:00: It's over already?!?! How did that happen. Love that TLC aired JIG, even if it was super edited. 


Now it's time for me to eat a very late dinner: Hope all of you enjoyed watching JIG on TLC as much as I did :) And thanks for reading!


- Moira