What is Transferware?

It is a type of pottery and porcelain that uses a copper plate that has been engraved with a desired pattern. The color to be used was rubbed into the lines of the warmed plate, wiped of the excess and pressed onto a wet piece of specially made tissue paper. This tissue was then placed onto the vessel (plates, cups, saucers) and rubbed down by women called "Transferers." These women were expected to place the patterned tissue correctly, joining the seams of borders and designs and for applying the back stamp.

Transferware helped manufacturers produce very pretty pottery and porcelains quickly and less expensively than the previously hand painted pieces.

Next time you see a piece of Transferware, pick it up — look for the seams and notice how some line up perfectly and some are just a tad off. You might also notice the border running off the edge. Each piece is only as good as the Transferer — all hand applied one plate, cup or saucer at a time.

What type of Transferware are you buying?

Usually each piece of Transferware tells a story. By looking at the back stamp, a collector can check the pattern name, the initials or name of the maker and sometimes the name of the town where the factory is located. Sometimes there are no back stamps and only the Stilt marks are showing — these are three little dots in the glaze that held the triangular spur pieces and separated the plates in the kiln.

Why does the color blue seem to be used so frequently in Transferware?

Blue comes from cobalt and was the only color at first that would survive the high temperature of the glaze process. The rich blue color is associated with famous historical plates and also in the early Flow Blue. Blue Willow is one of the most popular patterns of transferware. It was initally designed by the famous Thomas Minton around 1790.

Why does some of the blue transferware look blurred?

This blurred "look" is actually called Flow Blue. In 1545 in Saxony, a potter named Schurer used cobalt oxide and noticed that this blue soaked into the porous ware and blurred a bit in the glazing process. In 1820 it was discovered that the blue would "flow" by adding lime or chloride of ammonia to the sagger while glazing. The blurring covered printing faults and stiltmarks. When cobalt is initially applied it is brown and only turns blue in the firing process. Some think that Flow Blue china was a mistake and it eventually become a collectors item. This is not true — it was a deliberate process that is highly sought after by collectors.

Stay tuned for more posts on pottery, porcelains and the history of Blue Willow china.

Celebrate the 4th with a treasure hunt!

Every year on the 4th of July, our nation gathers to celebrate our Independence. Whether you’re participating in the Peachtree Road Race, cooking out with friends and family or taking in a fireworks show, make sure your plans this year include a trip to the Queen!

All three of our locations (Alpharetta, Buford and Marietta) will be open from 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. on Monday. To honor our country, 13 hats with flags (for the original 13 colonies) will be placed around each store for customers to find and redeem for a $20 Queen gift certificate.

Take a break from the heat and spend a cool day getting some hot deals at the Queen of Hearts!

At the Alpharetta location, we’ll also have hot dogs and live music!

This year, stop by and celebrate our great nation with us at the Queen.

A Room Fit For A Queen

Ever walked around the Queen and thought you could decorate a whole room or house from items here?

One of our lovely customers, Lauren Harris, sent in photos of her dining room, decorated almost entirely with pieces from the Queen (all except the table). How gorgeous are these?

What a beautiful job of decorating! Thanks so much to Lauren for sharing these wonderful photos!

She is a 26-year-old newlywed who lives in Buckhead, Ga., and teaches Special Education in Alpharetta. Lauren says she discovered the Queen of Hearts in Alpharetta about 2 months ago and can't get enough — visiting about once a week, even if just to browse. What’s her goal? To have her own booth at the Queen!

No Longer Bound at the Queen

Have you heard about No Longer Bound? It is an organization helping men aged 18 and over recover from addiction though a 10-month, faith-based regeneration program. The purpose of the regeneration program is to provide an opportunity for the men at NLB to learn to take responsibility for their own recovery and adopt a whole lifestyle change.

The organization has greenhouses, a woodworking shop, a print shop, an auto shop, and a thrift shop that help support the program. A 501(c)3 organization, all donations are tax-deductible.

Come to the Alpharetta Queen on May 20-22 (Friday, Saturday and Sunday) and meet the young men who run the greenhouses at No Longer Bound. They will be selling all types of plants grown in their greenhouses. They will be at the Alpharetta Queen every third weekend beginning this month.

All purchases will benefit this wonderful and much needed program. For more information, go to www.nolongerbound.com or visit them on Facebook.
No Longer Bound has also been competing in the Chase Community Giving Contest on Facebook. During the first round, they finished in the top 100 and will receive $25K. Round two voting will take place May 19 through May 26, and NLB will be competing against the top 100 for $500K. If they win, they plan to build a new dorm, which will allow them to help up to 70 percent more men each year. Click here to find out how you can help No Longer Bound in round two.

Why do Easter Bunnies deliver eggs for Easter?

While Easter is celebrated by Christians as Christ's resurrection, it is also associated with the arrival of Spring time. With Spring comes the celebration of rebirth, renewal and fertility.

Our ancestors celebrated this time by having their own spring festivals. The name Easter is derived from the Goddess of Fertility, Eostre. This association is where we get the bunny and eggs used in conjunction with Easter. As everyone knows, bunnies are very prolific and have long been considered the symbol for fertility. Since eggs are also a sign of fertility, it is the reason that the Easter bunny brings all good children candy or dyed eggs on Easter morning.

The Germans were the first to make the chocolate Easter bunny and candy eggs in the early 1800s.

When Germans immigrated to the States, they brought their tradition of hiding Easter eggs in children's shoes.

Eventually the shoes were replaced with baskets so more

eggs and chocolate bunnies could be delivered to

"good children."

Just remember that biting the ears off your child's chocolate bunnies probably started in Germany too!

What is repurposing?

Repurposing — you hear it all the time. But what does it really mean?

It means that something with little purpose has been creatively changed into something of use or value.

OK, have we confused you even more? Let us give you some examples!

Here's a headboard turned into a coat rack (left), and a coffee tin turned into a robot and coffee pot parts into a stork (right):

Take a look at this old metal headboard that has been turned into a garden bench (left), and this basket turned into a lamp (right):

All of this repurposing is one way to "go green." Instead of buying something brand new, you paint, take apart and reassemble or just hang upside down and electrify something. By doing this, you're bringing life to what could have been something ready for the trash.

If you have repurposed something and kept it out of the landfill, giving it new life and a new purpose, we would love to hear from you! Send photos — everyone is always looking for creative ideas — qohantiques@yahoo.com

How do you tell if a chest of drawers is old or an "antique" reproduction?

Have you stumbled across a beautiful chest of drawers and been told that it’ s a true antique? Do you know how to tell how old something is?

On the chest, you will need to pull open the drawer and look at the joint where the front meets the sides. Do you see a joint that looks like a "dove's tail?” Is so, look closer — if the dovetail is a tight "V" shape it is an early antique. Perfectly cut and consistent dovetails are modern. Butt joints are used in primitives and poor reproductions.

Old American oak roll top desk

with hand carved dovetails

Victorian mahogany sideboard with

large and small hand carved dovetails

Very old oak linen press with

hand carved dovetails

Earlier made furniture such as Eastlake pieces date from the 1880s and have "spoon" carving on the front and sides of the piece and "pin and cove" dovetails joining the front and sides of the drawers.

Eastlake "pin and cove" dovetails

Eastlake chest with spoon carving

In the 1890s, American furniture began to be mass-produced and it was too time- consuming to hand cut the dovetails. So the "tail" and "pin" started to match precisely since they were being machine carved. However, European cabinetmakers continued to produce hand-cut dovetails through the 1930s.

You are invited to learn "how to tell if something is a true antique" on March 12 at the Buford Queen of Hearts at 1 pm. Al Carrato will be speaking to the public free of charge. Please RSVP at 678-714-0643, as seating is limited.