Born in Elberfeld, Rhine Province on January 11, 1901 to Theosophist parents Karl and Hedwig Wülfing. She had a sister, Hedwig, who was born in 1905 and died in 1968. For the first five years of her life she and her parents lived in complete seclusion. As a child, Sulamith had visions of angels, fairies, gnomes, and nature spirits. She first began drawing these creatures at the age of four. The visions continued throughout her life, and directly inspired her paintings.