- Lifestyle
- Art & Culture
- Mountains
Pedü
Hand made by the women in Lanzada, Pedü were by far the most common footwear in Valmalenco until the 1950s.
Pedü is Lanzada town's typical footwear made of a thick fabric sole with velvet ribbed and laced upper sewn onto it.
This characteristic shoe consists of a sole - made of multiple layers of fabric recycled from used clothes placed on top of each other and sewn together with the help of a large triangular needle - a shoe upper - made of two layers of fabric sewn together, velvet on the outside and fabric or corduroy on the inside - and laces inserted with a hole.
They were used everyday both inside and outside the house. Everyone was wearing them and there were different kinds of Pedü: the one used as slippers, for everyday life, or the one for special occasions. The Pedü were generally made in dark colours. However, the ones for the special occasions, such as weddings, baptisms or christenings, were decorated with ribbons and bows and made in brighter or lighter colours.
Today, however, it seems that nobody produce them any longer, if not a small group of elderly and energetic ladies in Lanzada. This handmade shoe is likely to remain just a memory, but there is no reason for this to happen. The municipal administration and the library in Lanzada set out to bring them back to life, in a new form, to restore value to our past.
Their realization will put two generations in touch, able to create together something old and new at the same time.
