Santa in every pose
Some sheets show Santa on his own, full length with a candy cane or a lollipop, in close-up in a hat with a steaming cup, or walking through a pine forest with a sack and a lantern. Others put him in a scene.
- In a sleigh pulled by three reindeer, or leading a pony on a small sleigh under the moon
- At a desk, writing a letter under a starry sky
- Next to a lit fireplace with his sack, a tree and a wreath
- Reading a big book to two little elves, or painting a wooden toy soldier at his workbench
If you want the sleigh to take center stage, the Santa sleigh coloring pages keep all the flying scenes together.
Where the red suit comes from
- Saint Nicholas
- Santa descends from Saint Nicholas, a 4th-century bishop of Myra, often painted in a red bishop's cloak.
- The sleigh
- The poem "A Visit from St. Nicholas" (1823) gives him a sleigh and eight reindeer.
- The round figure
- Thomas Nast drew Santa for Harper's Weekly from 1863 and fixed the round, bearded look.
- The ads
- Coca-Cola did not invent the red suit. It appears on cards long before 1931, when Haddon Sundblom began painting Santa for its ads.
Every December 24, the North American air defense command (today NORAD) "tracks" Santa. The custom has run since 1955 and started with a misprinted phone number in an ad.
Coloring the suit and the beard
The close-up with the steaming cup is the quickest to finish. For the full-length sheets, work from the biggest area, the coat, down to the belt, boots and the presents at his feet. Pair a Santa with a nearby Christmas tree page and you have a matching set for the fridge.