Adding a sword to your belly dance performance adds a different dimension. There's a soupcon of danger (how sharp is it?) and the thrill of suspense (will she drop it?). The audience will "ooh" and "aah" as you balance the sword effortlessly on your head, your arms or even your hip, and admire the graceful shapes you can make with it.

You'll often see beginners trying to learn sword using a cane or stick, but in reality, nothing gives you the same feeling as a real sword. A good belly dancing sword is much heavier than a cane, and the weight isn't as evenly distributed. If you really want to learn belly dance sword, the only solution is to beg, borrow or buy yourself one!

In this video, you can see the Mexican belly dancer Shazadi show how it's done.

When you decide to buy your first sword, make sure you buy one that's specifically described as a "belly dancing sword" or "balancing sword".

Every sword has what's called a "balance point". For many scimitars (curving Turkish swords), that point is way up near the hilt (handle). If you try to dance with a sword like that, you'll find the sharp point hanging way out past your shoulder on one side (like Irina's in the photo on the right).

It takes a lot of practice to move your arm on that side without knocking the sword off your head - or worse, impaling your arm! Take another look at the video and you'll see that Shazadi's sword balances quite high up towards the hilt, too, but she's experienced enough to deal with it.

A sword designed specifically for belly dancing is more likely to balance in a more central position, so you can move both arms equally - like the one in the video below. That's a lot easier - and safer - for a beginner to deal with.

Some makers helpfully carve a few notches in the blade at the balance point - otherwise, find it by balancing the sword on your finger.

By all means, once you're more experienced, be adventurous and buy some of the cheaper non-belly dance swords - but to begin with, it's much safer to stick with swords that are designed for dancing.

• If you're a beginner, steer clear of chromed swords - lovely and shiny but also slippery! It's hard enough to learn to balance your sword, without making it more difficult for yourself.
• It's fine to buy a sword with a real, sharp blade - but have it blunted please! Even a blunt sword can be dangerous to dance with, and don't forget the point is still sharp!
• You can buy purely ornamental swords with a thick, rounded edge. They're more comfortable and safer - but if you're dancing in cabaret, your audience can see it's safe, so you'll lose the "thrill".
  
• Don't be afraid of a heavy sword - in fact, they're easier to balance because they're less disturbed by drafts or small movements.

You'll find it much easier to balance your sword if you haven't washed your hair. Clean hair is far too slippery. If you're one of those people who washes their hair everyday, putting gel or mousse in your hair may help - but hair that hasn't been washed for a couple of days is much better. You can also try rubbing the blade with a candle.

If all else fails, buy or make a plain velvet headband until you feel more confident in your moves - but please, please don't be tempted to buy or make a "sword headdress". A big part of the excitement of a sword dance is the risk factor - will it fall off or not? Audiences aren't stupid - if they can see that your turban or headdress is helping to hold the sword straight, they're not going to be nearly as awed by your skill. Start relying on artificial aids to control your sword, and you'll never develop a truly amazing sword routine.

*

All text copyright Marisa Wright. Photo of Irina Akulenko courtesy of Toast to Life , 'Tati Chilli" photo by Index Photograph, tribal photo by Dalliedee, pink dancer by Jae Yong, all on Flickr.com