Bobbin Lace in Spain

Antje González

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TRADITIONAL SPANISH BOBBIN LACE PILLOW (easy and economic method)

There are many different types of bobbin lace pillows, depending on the regions or the countries. But the long cylindrical vertical pillow is only used in Spain, in part of Portugal and in Malta. 

Nowadays we can buy a long pillow in craft shops that sell bobbin lace supplies. In the center and north of Spain these shops sell the pillow from Catalonia, which is filled with rye straw. Although it may seem a bit expensive, it is a pillow that will last you for ever. You can work very well on it, as it is very hard, and if you don't have the possibility of making one yourselves, it is really worth the price. I don't recommend you the other varieties on sale, filled with "who knows what". They have little weight (no advantage at all), and the top layer is a kind of rush mat (really difficult to pin).

Almohada catalana, con funda azul, sobre un pie

A good choice is to make your own pillow. Here I am going to give you some easy explanations to make a Traditional Spanish pillow. 

This pillow  is made with cut straw, which is quite easy to find if you live in a rural town of Castilla (center of Spain). But I don't pretend to compare this home-made pillow with the rye straw pillow from Catalonia, which of course is much better and resistant. Nevertheless, I want to tell you that of all my pillows, the one I prefer is the first one I made many years ago with cut straw. The shape and the hardness is ideal for me.

This is my self made pillow, made of cut straw.

Necessary material: 

A piece of strong material: 60 x 65 cm (for a standard size pillow)

Straw for the filling. In case you can't find it, you can also use dry hay or sawdust. 

A piece of dark material for the cover: 65 x 70 cm

2 sticks of wood or cane, 60 cm long each

Instructions for making the pillow:

1. Sew the material folded into two (30x65), leaving the upper part open. That is, we make a kind of sack of bag, open at the top. The material has to be strong, but not too coarse. For example, we can use the material used to cover a bed mattress, or even a strong resistent sheet.

2. We fill the bag with straw, introducing it little by little and pressing it well against the bottom. Esto se hace para que la almohada quede bien firme. Una almohada blanda hará que se arrugue el patrón y que los alfileres no se mantengan en el lugar adecuado. 

3. Un vez esté la paja bien compacta, cosemos la parte superior de la tela con unas puntadas, dejando dos pequeñas aberturas en los laterales,  por las que introduciremos las cañas. Éstas sirven para que la almohadilla no se nos doble.

4. Una vez terminada la almohada, le hacemos una funda, que se cierra en la parte inferior solamente con un cordón o un lazo. De este modo podemos quitarla para lavarla. Es importante que la funda sea de un color liso y oscuro (azul marino, verde oscuro, granate o marrón), ya que resulta más relajante para la vista. En cuanto al tipo de tejido, podemos utilizar desde un lino, un algodón firme, tela de tapicería, etc. La loneta también sirve, aunque si es muy gruesa, podría resultarnos difícil clavar los alfileres.

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