Great Garden Decor

Here are some inspiring photos of great garden decor.  These gardens all have used wonderful vintage and antique finds to add charm and personality.  Old chipped up wooden doors, even old iron bed headboards make great additions to these gardens.  The sculptures are made of vintage glass vases, bowls and plates and add a bit of bling to the garden.  The Queen has many of these wonderful treasures in each of our  three locations.  Come have a ball searching our aisles for some treasures to add to your garden.

Source: gardenjunk.org via Denise on Pinterest

Source: pinterestwomen.org via Denise on Pinterest

Source: hayseedhomemakin.com via Denise on Pinterest

Source: bernideensteatimeblog.blogspot.com.au via Denise on Pinterest

These last three treasures were found at the Queen of Hearts Alpharetta location.  Come by and check them out for yourself.
Happy Treasure Hunting!
The Queen

Great Gifts for Dads at The Queen of Hearts

The Queen of Hearts has an abundance of great gift ideas for your dad.  Whether your dad is a fisherman, vintage book collector, military buff or poker player you will be able to find something unique for your father at The Queen.  Here is a small sampling of some of the treasures that can be found in anyone of our three locations in Alpharetta, Buford, or Marietta.

Happy Father's Day to all of the wonderful dads out there,
The Queen

Delicious Zucchini Recipes

As promised here are the recipes for the zucchini loaf and bars that were served at the last Late Night at the Queen in Alpharetta.

Lemon-Zucchini Loaf with Lemon Glaze

LEMON-ZUCCHINI LOAF WITH LEMON GLAZE by NancyCreative

Makes one 9×5″ loaf

• 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• Juice of 1 lemon (or 2 Tablespoons lemon juice)
• Zest of 1 lemon
• 1 cup grated zucchini

Preheat oven to 35o degrees. Grease and flour a 9×5″ loaf pan; set aside.

In large bowl, blend flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.

In medium bowl, beat 2 eggs well, then add canola oil and sugar, and blend well. Then add the buttermilk, lemon juice, and lemon zest and blend everything well. Fold in zucchini and stir until evenly distributed in mixture.

Add this mixture to the dry ingredients in the large bowl and blend everything together, but don’t overmix.

Pour batter into prepared 9×5″ loaf pan and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean (if your oven tends to run hot, check the loaf after 40 minutes). Cool in pan 10 minutes, then remove to a wire rack and cool completely. While loaf is cooling, you can make the glaze…

LEMON GLAZE

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• Juice of 1 lemon (or 2 Tablespoons lemon juice)

In small bowl, mix powdered sugar and lemon juice until well blended. Spoon glaze over cooled loaf. Let glaze set, then serve.

Carrot and Zucchini Bars with Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting

• 2 eggs, slightly beaten
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups shredded carrot
• 1 cup shredded zucchini
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp baking soda

Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting

• 1 (8 oz) pkg reduced fat cream cheese
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp lemon zest

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, brown sugar, oil, honey, and vanilla.  Don’t worry about clumps of the brown sugar, those will dissolve as it sits while you prepare the remaining ingredients.  Then fold in the carrot, zucchini, and walnuts
2. In another bowl combine add the flour, baking powder, ginger, and baking soda.  Whisk to blend together.
3. Add to flour mixture to the wet mixture. Stir just until combined. Spread batter into an ungreased 13x9x2-inch baking pan.
4. Bake about 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely in pan on a wire rack.
5. Once the cake is cooled prepare the frosting.   In a medium mixing bowl, beat the fosting ingredients with an electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy.  Spread or pipe the frosting over the cooled bars.  Makes 36 bars.

Bon Appetit,

The Queen

Why is that Bowl so Small?

Have you walked through an antique store and looked at the pretty little silver or clear/colored glass “salts” and wondered what these were used for?

Well here you go . . . During the Roman Empire salt was a commodity and it was usually used to preserve food.  There were two ways to obtain salt – the sea and mines – both of which were difficult therefore creating an alluring desire for salt. It is believed that the Roman army was paid for a job well done with salt – hence the term “worth their salt”.  Some believe they were paid great sums to they could purchase this commodity which was quite pricey.

In these ancient times, “salt” roads were built to transport salt from the sea or mines to cities.  Many cities gained great status by the amount of salt they produced.  Salzburg, Austria had many mines and was named “the city of salt”. Salz is German for salt.

In the Middle Ages, it was common for the everyone to eat together at a 30' foot table.  The salt cellar was placed mid-way down the table and used as a type of ranking system. If you were close to the “head” of the table you were “above the salt” and could partake.  If you were seated “below the salt” you were not allowed to use the salt.

Salt was so valuable that it could even be used as payment for slaves during the late Roman Empire.

In the Bible, “you are the Salt of the Earth” is used as a metaphor and meant that someone was of value to society.  We still use this phrase today!

Salt had power.  Cities producing salt seemed to be more affluent.  Some cities charged taxes for the use of their roads to transport salt.

While salt had a lot of influence over in Europe, the United States also had its share of “salt” incidences.  During the Revolutionary War, salt was intercepted by the British which interfered with the ability to preserve food.  Salt brine was used as a form of payment to the soldiers in the War of 1812.

Salt cellars usually had lids to keep the salt dry.  “Open salts” were mainly used on the tables by wealthy families from the Middle Ages through WWII.  They were usually made out of silver or glass.  Sometimes there was a master salt that would be passed down the table to the worthy guests or family members.

So the next time you visit an antique store, be sure to cherish the history of salt and ask yourself “where would you be sitting during meals --below or above the salt?”

Bulldog 100 for 2012

Queen of Hearts Antiques & Interiors Named to the

Bulldog 100: Fastest Growing Bulldog Businesses

Class of 2012

                                                                   

Writer: Stan Jackson, 706-542-8157, ugastan@uga.edu

Contact: Meredith Carr, 404-814-8820, mcarr@uga.edu
January 24, 2012


Athens, Ga. – Queen of Hearts Antiques & Interiors, with locations in Alpharetta, Buford and Marietta, was honored on January 21, when the UGA Alumni Association announced the rankings of the 2012 Bulldog 100: Fastest Growing Bulldog Businesses at a celebration in Atlanta. 

Queen of Hearts, helmed by 1980 UGA graduate Stacey Smith Anderson, ranks as this year’s 65th fastest growing Bulldog business.  The firm is home to over 500 dealer-merchants specializing in antiques and interiors furnishings and accessories.

“Receiving this award for the second year in a row means so much as a company by affirming the fact that we have great staff, wonderful dealer-merchants and awesome customers that believe in the Queen year after year,” said Stacey Smith Anderson. 

The Atlanta CPA firm, Gifford Hillegass and Ingwersen, LLP has annually partnered with the UGA Alumni Association since the inception of the program three years ago to verify the information that was submitted by each nominated company.  GH&I then ranked the companies based on compounded annual growth rate.

Nominations were collected between January and June 2011.  To be considered for the program, an organization must have been in business for at least five years, had revenues of $100,000 or more for the calendar year 2008, and be owned or operated by a former UGA student who owns at least 50% of company or be the CEO, President or Managing Partner. The program recognizes the fastest-growing businesses regardless of size by focusing on a three-year growth rate average.

Nearly 800 nominations were submitted for this year’s program.  The class of 2012 includes companies ranging in all sizes and services, from athletics equipment producers to web design and internet marketing firms. Several different areas of the country are represented, including companies from Connecticut, Nebraska, and New Mexico.    

UGA alumni and friends celebrated the 2012 Bulldog 100 honorees at a special event held  at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis on January 21, 2012. The evening began with a reception, followed by dinner and the awards ceremony.  Keynote speaker, Deborah Norville, anchor of “Inside Edition” and 1979 UGA graduate, led attendees to the highlight of the evening—the release of the final rankings and countdown of the 2012 Bulldog 100. 

 “The UGA Alumni Association is thrilled to honor our graduates who demonstrate an entrepreneurial spirit and commitment to excellence that bring honor to their alma mater,” said Deborah Dietzler, executive director of the UGA Alumni Association.  “We are proud of the accomplishments of these alumni, whose achievements during the Great Recession are noteworthy indeed.” 

Nominations for the 2013 Bulldog program will open January 30.  The full listing and rankings of the 2012 honorees and photos of the celebration can be found at www.alumni.uga.edu/b100.

Why Buy “Old” Furniture?

The word “old” is very subjective. It might mean over 100 years old to a true antique
collector or from a couple of decades ago to a person in their 30’s.

We in the antique and interiors business much prefer furniture made in the old-fashion
way -- dovetailed, inlaid veneers, 100% wood. It’s a true fact that older furniture is
made better and will stand the test of time.

When buying furniture, we want you to ask yourself several questions?
Where am I going to use this piece? Am I going to keep this piece for a long time and
possibly pass it down to my children? Am I drawn to the piece by its wood grain, patina,
or character?


Most of the furniture available today in antique and interior shops is not over 100 years old but more in the 40-75 years old. Does this make it a bad purchase? No. This type of furniture is made very well and in a price range that is affordable.

Today many designers are mixing styles of furniture to include different types of woods
and even some painted pieces. There really is no written rule that says that if you have
one oak piece that everything in your room has to be made of oak. The motto of the
2012 is “go with what you like and works best for you and your family”.

Painted furniture is hot right now. Many dealer-merchants are taking very well built pieces of older furniture that might have some blemishes and giving it a fresh coat of paint, allowing the furniture a new lease on life. These painted pieces can be incorporated into any decor.

We challenge you to experiment with your decorating . . . freshen a room with a new piece -- painted or not. All three Queen of Hearts locations have furniture arriving daily and the sales staff is always ready to help with locating that perfect piece that you will cherish.

10 Healthy Habits

Hello again! How are the New Year's Resolutions going? Did you make too many? Are they unrealistic? We all know that they always sound good but that it's extremely hard to adhere to ALL of them. We think that instead of making hard demands on yourself, why don't you begin with trying the “10 healthy habits”, so that years from now you'll thank yourself for being good to yourself.
Here they go:

Don't Retire
We like this one. Keeping your mind and body busy with a challenging job or career is important. We know here at the Queen of Hearts some of our dealer-merchants are past retirement age, but they continue to thrive by being active in their businesses with us.

Floss Every Day
Okay, we know . . . it's a mundane practice. But you have been brushing your teeth everyday, haven't you? Throw this in and you'll be guaranteed additional years of living!

Move Around
This does not mean that you have to rush out and join the local “boot camp” that meets behind the church each week. Come to the Queen of Hearts and walk our aisles . . . put your pedometer on and see how many steps you can get in while enjoying the sights at the Queen. You'll be surprised that this will keep your joints and muscles moving and less sore.

Eat a Fiber-rich Breakfast
There has been much discussion on this. While fiber is good to keep things moving, it also can get “stuck” in your system. Better yet, try eating lots of fruit in the morning. All fruit has fiber and is less harsh on your system when you first wake up.

6+ hours of Sleep
Sleep is the most important thing, along with eating good organic food, that you can give your body. Sleep is the only way your body knows how and when to repair the damage received from external influences, i.e., bad air quality, chemicals in food and materials, and stress. Did you know that the Queen of Hearts in Alpharetta has a showroom in the back that sells Organic Mattresses. Yes, these mattresses have not off gassing and provide the healthiest sleep possible. Pick up a card and make an appointment to learn about the benefits of this type of mattress. www.SavvyRest.com

Consume Whole Foods
Do you eat from the earth? Or do you eat from a package? What's in that package – extra salt and sugar, chemicals you can't pronounce? This probably means that your body cannot breakdown or utilize any nutrients in these foods, because they are not nutritious. You only have one body. Treat it like that and you'll be surprised how good you feel when eating from the earth. You might not have to take your prescription drugs once your body starts to heal and repairing itself.

Be Less Neurotic
What matters in your life? What dreams do you have? Do you want to walk leisurely through the Queen of Hearts? Leave your cell phone in the car for the hour or so while you shop. This will give you a sense of calmness especially when you find that hidden treasure that reminds you of your childhood.

Worship Your God Given Body
This all goes back to treating your body RIGHT. Try not to put items into your body that create harm: smoking, drinking alcohol, lots of sugar . . . okay, I'll give you a glass of wine and a piece of chocolate each day. There are studies out there that say that when one adheres to “moderation” it is all good. Focus on your family and community is another factor that can make you feel good. The Queen of Hearts is open late on Thursdays serving wine and cheese until 8 pm.

Be a Creature of Habit
Do all of the items mentioned above – and this includes visiting the Queen of Hearts each week – and you will surely have a spring in your step for many years to come.


There was a common thread through a lot of these “live by” suggestions . . . they involve the Queen of Hearts. Let us help you stay healthy and happy during 2012 and beyond. The Queen's doors are open seven days a week and late on Thursdays until 8 pm.