Jane Forster married Henry Rochester in December 1899 in Greenside, a village in County Durham (now Tyne & Wear) near Newcastle-upon-Tyne. It is known that she made this quilt; the nature of the motifs suggest that she quilted it for her wedding.
As with many others from this period, three strips of cotton sateen (pale yellow on one side, pale green on the other) have been machine stitched together for each side, but the quilting is all done by hand.
The elaborate centre is made up of a number of design elements.
It is not perfectly circular as it may first appear, but is slightly elongated, measuring
35”(89 cm) across, and 39”(100cm) long.
At the centre is a True Lover’s Knot. Interestingly, this too is stretched to fit the rectangular shape of the finished quilt.
She has not quite mastered the alternating under and over nature of the knot – a better example can be seen on the Yellow Lovers Knot wholecloth.
Around the Lover’s Knot are eight hearts, radiating outwards. Within each heart outline, two spirals at the top flow into a spray. This design is similar to the one known as “scissors”.
Around the hearts, there is a ring of double swags. Swags are often known as “hammocks”, and are more commonly found along borders.
Roses on stalks (with leaves) spring out between the outer swags. Small four-pointed flowers are placed around the edge.
A large area of ¾” square diamonds surround the centre.
For the borders, eight-pointed stars are set within slightly pointed ovals. I find these the most disappointing part of the design; compared to the lovely centre and corners, they are comparatively empty. Next to these run flowers, which echo those found in the centre designs.
As is commonly found in North Country wholecloth quilts, the elaborate corners are a major feature. A large feather wreath is the largest motif, with a horseshoe and a “scissors” heart similar to central hearts.
The quilt has a butted edge, finished by hand stitching.
You can see other lovely hand-quilted quilts in the Antique quilts – Wholecloth quilts section of this website. Can you see the similarities in design between Jane Rochester’s quilt, and the other North Country quilts?