Virginia Theological Seminary

St. Nicholas, or Sinterklaas, Pillow


St Nicholas, horse on red pillow


Use German St. Nicholas lace piece for an easy-to-make pillow!

Materials

  • St. Nicholas Window Picture Lace (Plauen Lace, imported by Saschen Imports)
  • Ready-made 12-inch pillow (I used an inexpensive Christmas pillow with a plain back)
  • Small piece of white felt, or other fabric, to place under beard
  • White, red, golden and black thread

Equipment

  • Needle, thimble, scissors
  • Small needle-nosed pliers (such as Fiskars Micro-Tip Needle Nose), optional

Directions

  1. Wash lace to remove some of the stiff sizing (it will still be crisp, but easier to stitch and more flexible to fit pillow top)
  2. Cut felt to fit under beard (this keeps the beard white, otherwise the open work white and gold threads will let the background color show through)
  3. Pin lace in place on the pillow
  4. Slip stitch lace in place, using appropriate colors of thread;
    you may want to stitch all the white edges first;
    pull needle through with the small pliers, if needed, in stiff areas
  5. You may wish to carefully clip off the gold hanger at the top and the attachments between the raised hoof and the base

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