Until fairly recently, if you wore vellies, you were either a farmer or David Kramer. Some dictionaries still describe the velskoen as “a home-made shoe; a farmer’s shoe (with a low heel)”. It was a workhorse, not much more.
Side story: People on farms are resourceful. Gustav Nortjé*, who farms in the Baviaanskloof, told me in the old days, their rugby players wore boots made from baboon hide. It might sound absurd today, but for those pragmatic farmers, it made perfect sense. The players needed durable boots and baboons were a pest. Two birds, one stone.
But back to velskoens. They’re trendy now. Fashionable, even. Something you could previously only buy at a co-op is now available everywhere. There are Freestyle vellies; Kalahari Vellies; Sapmok; Plaasmeisie; Grondpad Vellies; Bummel; Boggom; and Katu Vellies, famous for their DKW model, which stands for Dans, Kerk & Werk.
More and more people are catching on to the value and comfort of this South African icon. I wonder how many pairs are walking around the country right now? More than the number of K-Way down jackets? More than the number of people who have been vaccinated?
Siya Kolisi loves his olive-green Freedom of Movement vellies, and Prince Harry has even been spotted wearing a pair of Veldskoen Shoes with orange soles and laces. I love it. If only everything in South Africa could endure and prosper like a vellie!
The vellies I’m wearing today are made from kudu leather. They were once blue but have faded to a grey rhebok hue. The leather has worn so thin and slipper soft that I’ve retired this pair from active travel duty.
This story is from the December 2021/January 2022 edition of go! - South Africa.
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This story is from the December 2021/January 2022 edition of go! - South Africa.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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