What does it mean when your skates are instructional?

What does the ribbon color mean for figure skates?

• ive been wanting to buy figure skates and ive been seeing a lot that i like but im stuck between two... one says yellow ribbon the other says blue ribbon. what the heck does that mean?

• Answer:

  They are Riedell figure skates. They are the older model label names. The new model Riedell's are not labelled that way. However, to answer your question, the yellow ribbon and the blue ribbon are both made from the same last (same boot), however the grade of blade attached may be cheaper (depending on which model year you will be buying), or the heel could be made of a composite vs. leather. Check out the new model Riedell's. Also, Kinzie's Closet has a Skate Selection Guide that tells you about the different models.