lace pillow

English

A 19th century picture depicting a woman making bobbin lace on a lace pillow

Alternative forms

lace-pillow

Noun

lace pillow (plural lace pillows)

1. A cushion used in making hand-wrought pillow lace.
   • 1865, "Devonia", The Honiton Lace Book:

     a small soft pincushion, which had better have a tongue so that it can be pinned to the lace pillow and shifted at pleasure

   • 1899, A. T. Quiller-Couch, The Ship of Stars, Chapter 2:

     His grandmother had lost her lace-pillow, and after searching for some time, he found it lying out in the square. But the pins and bobbins were darting to and fro on their own account, at an incredible rate, and the lace as they made it turned into a singing beanstalk, and rose and threw out branches all over the sky.

   • 1904, Samuel L. Goldenberg, Lace:

     Honiton Application is made by working the pattern parts on the lace pillow and securing them to a net ground, separately made. At present it is customary to use machine-made net upon which hand-made sprays are sewn.

   • 1907, Mrs. Wilson Woodrow, The New Missioner, Chapter 18:

     "Oh, yes, alvays," was the phlegmatic response of Mrs. Landvetter, as she adjusted the pins in the lace pillow on her lap.

References

• “pillow”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.

Anagrams

• pillow lace