Love Charlotte, Love Local
This month we celebrate “Love Local,” recognizing everything that makes Charlotte the vibrant and rapidly growing city we call home. Charlotte is ranked No. 5 by U.S. News & World Report in this year’s “Best Places to Live in the U.S.” and for good reason.
Having lived in a handful of other cities, I love Charlotte for its size, strong job market, educational opportunities, distinct seasons (spring being my favorite!) and especially the charm of local neighborhoods. It also helps that I rarely have to get on the interstate and instead enjoy the trees on my Providence Road commute every day.
Being from the Deep South, I appreciate that Charlotte still holds on to its Southern charm but also embraces change and progress. The people of the Queen City are so creative, and I’m inspired by how they find ways to give back.
One of the most rewarding parts of launching this magazine has been the opportunity to support the arts in our community and spotlight rising talent. In our February issue, we celebrate the 25th anniversary of the McColl Center, founded by former Bank of America CEO and visionary Hugh McColl to enhance the arts scene and culture in our city.
We introduce you to some of the amazing artists whose work will be auctioned during this month’s week-long McColl Center anniversary event. We also feature Trope Bookshop, a romance bookstore on wheels, the Pantone Color of the Year, for an earthy trend in design, and Charlotte Skill Factory, the fastest growing youth basketball program in our community.
Wishing you lots of love this month,
LIZ BROWN, PUBLISHER @QUEENCITYMAG
February 2025
PUBLISHER
Liz Brown | liz.brown@citylifestyle.com
EDITOR
Carroll Walton | carroll.walton@citylifestyle.com
COPY EDITOR
Cate Stern
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Liz Brown, Cate Stern, Carroll Walton
CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS
Amanda Anderson, Chris Edwards, Olly Yung
Corporate Team
CEO Steven Schowengerdt
COO Matthew Perry
CRO Jamie Pentz
CTO Ajay Krishnan
VP OF OPERATIONS Janeane Thompson
VP OF FRANCHISE DEVELOPMENT Erika Smiley
AD DESIGNER Evan Deuvall
LAYOUT DESIGNER Adam Finley
QUALITY CONTROL SPECIALIST Megan Cagle
Pantone Color of the Year
Exploring
Mousse
Loving thy Neighbor
Ashley
McColl
Whether reconfiguring existing spaces, adding new rooms, or changing floor plans, our design and build process elevates your remodeling experience while transforming your house into a place you lovingly call home.
Photography by Jon Strayhorn
Photography by Dirk Weaver and Daniel Coston
Photography by Daniel Coston
Kindred Restaurant Celebrates 10 Years with Guest Chef Series
Kindred, the Davidson restaurant named for husband-and-wife-duo Joe and Katy Kindred, celebrates its 10-year anniversary with a lineup of distinguished guest chefs and beverage experts from across the country. Starting Feb. 16th, Kindred hosts a series of collaborative dinners, spotlighting celebrated chefs with whom the Kindreds share long-standing friendships. A portion of proceeds will benefit Southern Smoke Foundation, providing mental health resources and funding for members of the food and beverage industry in need.
Champagne and
chocolate
truffles pairing at Dilworth Tasting Room locations
Indulge in a decadent Champagne and Chocolate Truffle Pairing experience Feb. 10-16 at all Dilworth Tasting Room locations. Savor three glasses of champagne, each paired with a perfectly matched chocolate truffle. A delightful way to celebrate the season of love!
J.Crew Coming to Phillips Place
The iconic and more popular than ever fashion retailer, J.Crew, will be opening at Phillips Place in late spring. The 6,760 square-foot Phillips Place J.Crew store will carry the brand’s wide assortment of men’s, women’s and children’s apparel. J.Crew will open across the courtyard from Ralph Lauren at 6800 Phillips Place Court, Suite F.
At Piedmont Plastic Surgery & Dermatology, we are dedicated to serving the Charlotte area. Our Cotswold and Blakeney locations offer a comprehensive range of plastic surgery, dermatologic, and aesthetic services. Our team of board-certified providers provide exceptional care, including skin evaluations, laser therapies, plastic surgery, reconstructive surgery and injectables. As a leading Skin Cancer Center, we ensure advanced and personalized treatments for all your skin health needs. Visit our online store to shop for products and popular services.
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The Independent Picture House to Host Oscars Viewing Party
The Independent Picture House will throw its Oscars Viewing Party & Fundraiser March 2 to raise money for its operations and programs. It will include a VIP reception, music, entertainment, film screenings, silent auction, and a livestream of the 97th Academy Awards. The Independent Picture House is Charlotte’s only nonprofit community cinema that showcases foreign, arthouse, and independent films. It offers programs like Free Saturday Cartoons, Indie on Wheels, and the Community Impact Film Series.
Dr. Charles Brown, Dr. Euphemia Mu, Katie Caggiano, PA-C, Danielle Tashakori, PA-C
Photography by Oblivious Media
9th Annual Dancing with the Stars of Charlotte
Dancing with the Stars of Charlotte, Inc. announces the return of its ninth annual fundraiser March 21st. This year’s event benefits the Go Jen Go Foundation, The Katie Blessing Center, and The Novant Agnes Binder Weisiger Breast Health Center. The show, modeled after ABC’s hit “Dancing with the Stars,” promises an evening of elegance, entertainment, and heartfelt support. Local stars, paired with professional dancers, take the stage at Knight Theater to perform stunning ballroom routines.
Ice Skating at the U.S. National Whitewater Center
Available through Feb. 22, the Whitewater Center’s ice rink consists of more than 24,000 square feet of unique skating space split into four distinct areas, including two ice trails and two free skate zones. Centered in the converted pond is an on-ice Airstream serving hot and cold beverages when guests need a skate break.
AGES 5 TO 13
Photography by Photo Chemistry by Luba
ARTICLE BY LIZ BROWN
PANTO
2025
Mocha Mousse
The Pantone Company, a global leader in color design, selected “Mocha Mousse” as its 26th annual “Color of the Year.” The soft brown will serve as inspiration for trends in apparel, accessories, home design, graphic design and more. What is officially designated PANTONE 17-1230 is described as a warm and flavorful brown. The color conjures both the natural world, with its earthy tones, and delectable deliciousness, with its suggestion of cacao, chocolate and coffee. “Underpinned by our desire for everyday pleasures, Mocha Mousse expresses a level of thoughtful indulgence,” says Leatrice Eiseman, Executive Director Pantone Color Institute.
Above: Schumacher Lotus Garden Fabric in Mocha
Right: JODY CANDRIAN Channel etched cuff with Crazy Lace Agate. $1,450.
Pantone’s 2025 Color, Mocha Mousse, is described as “a warming rich brown hue. Mocha Mousse nurtures with its suggestion of the delectable quality of cacao, chocolate and coffee, appealing to our desire for comfort.”
Top: Tablescape prepared by Ashley Hotham Cox at the Design Matters ‘Set the Table’ event October 2024. Image by Anna Barzin.
Left: Espresso Martini at Salted Melon
Right: Silvia Furmanovich Botanical Natural Butterfly Earrings from Tiny Gods. $7,700.
“Pantone 17-1230 Mocha Mousse: A mellow brown infused with a sensorial and comforting warmth.”
Top: Jaydan Moore (Richmond, VA, 1986-). “Array”, 2022, found silver platters. Featured at the Mint Museum “Coined in the South” exhibit. Image courtesy of the artist.
Left: Banquette view at Albertine restaurant. Right: “Double Doors” available for purchase at A Print Shop by Amanda Anderson.
thy LOVING NEIGHBOR
sits in what was used as a
Manning is watching over widows one bouquet at a time
ARTICLE BY CARROLL WALTON PHOTOGRAPHY BY AMANDA ANDERSON
Ashley Manning’s idea for her Valentine’s Day Widow Outreach Project started in 2020 with a gesture for a preschool teacher. Manning, a mother of four, thought it would be nice to give a bouquet of flowers to her child’s teacher whose husband had died of cancer. She didn’t realize its full impact until after COVID closed schools
Manning
“prayer room” by the previous owner, Mary Lance Sisk.
that spring and the teacher drove by their house to say goodbye to her 4-year-old son.
“She said, ‘You’ll never know what that meant that you acknowledged my pain on that day,’” Manning recalls. “It was more than ‘Oh, here are some chocolates.’ It was, ‘I know you’re probably not going to get flowers, so I want you to have these.’”
A year later, she started a floral business, Pretty Things by AE Manning. Preparing for Valentine’s Day, she thought of that teacher. She decided to enlist her Instagram followers to give a portion of their orders to donate flowers to widows.
“Losing your spouse is a fear that many of us can only imagine,” she posted. “I would like to show the women who have lost their spouse there are still people that love and care for them.”
Volunteers lined up to help arrange vases. Trader Joe’s and Harris Teeter donated chocolate. Starbucks donated coffee for the volunteers. They delivered flowers to 125 widows the first year, 400 the second.
“Before we knew it, it just took off,” Manning says.
In 2022, her Valentine’s Day Widow Outreach Project was featured in People Magazine, then the Today Show, along with nearly 40 media outlets. They delivered 800 bouquets in 2023. Last year it was 1,100, and Manning mentored people starting similar projects in Houston, Nashville, Buffalo, Hutchinson (Minn.), and Pittsburgh, where she grew up.
This year it look just 24 hours to fill 650 volunteer spots to arrange flowers. Another 600 volunteers will deliver them as far as Columbia, S.C., Asheville and Raleigh.
Twenty percent of the volunteers are widows. Manning said she can always tell if a new volunteer is a widow, when she asks how they found the program. “As soon as somebody takes a deep breath [and says] ‘Oh, I got flowers [from Widow Outreach] last year,’” Manning says.
A stained-glass window in Manning's home is inscribed with a meaningful Bible verse from Song of Solomon.
Jillian Myers, wife of Charlotte weatherman Jason Myers who died in a helicopter crash two years ago, is now a liaison to help widows in the group support each other.
Even as Widow Outreach grows, Manning always goes back to the feeling she got that first year in 2021, delivering flowers and a bottle of wine to a neighbor two doors down from her house.
It was cold and rainy, so she sent her children to the doorstep of a 92-year-old woman that neighbors said was a widow. Nobody answered, so Manning walked up to retrieve the wine, worried it might freeze if left. That’s when the door opened.
“People say all kinds of things when they answer the door like, ‘I didn’t order this,’ ‘It’s the wrong house,’” Manning says. “When we explained it to her, she said, ‘Wow, I can’t really believe this. I think I’m going to cry.’”
Walking back to the car, her 6-year-old daughter, Mia, asked if that moment was why she started Widow Outreach.
“My kids understand what it feels like to give back,” Manning says.
She runs the nonprofit out of a south Charlotte house she bought in 2013. She has since discovered the house was previously owned by Mary Lance Sisk, daughter of the former CEO of Lance Packing Co., who once worked alongside evangelist Billy Graham. A stained-glass window in one room of the house’s addition is inscribed with a Bible verse: “He pastures his flocks among the lilies of the valley, Song of Solomon.”
“I used to wonder why, of all the scripture, she chose that,” Manning says. “It took a couple of years of outreach to let it all sink in; here we are pastoring his flocks among the flowers. We are nurturing, caring and loving our neighbors with flowers.”
Volunteers gather for the Widow Outreach Project.
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VILLAGE
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Trust
• Dilworth Facial Plastic Surgery is a collaborative partnership between Dr. Andrea Garcia and Dr. Josh Surowitz. At Dilworth Facial Plastic Surgery, we apply a team-oriented, two-surgeon approach to all aspects of your care—at the time of consultation, during surgical planning, and in the operating room.
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ARTICLE BY CARROLL WALTON
ARTISTS AT WORK
McColl Center celebrates 25 years of cultivating the Charlotte arts
Image by Olly Yung
Hugh McColl, former chairman and first CEO of Bank of America, used to drive past an abandoned church near his uptown office. The building at the corner of 11th Street and Tryon had been destroyed in a fire in 1984. As CEO of what was then NationsBank, McColl purchased the land and decided to redevelop it as an urban artist colony, which opened in 1999 as the McColl Center.
“I dedicated this building to my mother, who was an artist, who started up in New York until my father came and got her— and then my sister, who was an artist, a musician and a writer,”
McColl told The Charlotte Observer in 2020, at a gala celebrating the 20th anniversary of the center. “I started out trying to help artists, not realizing what a tremendous help and asset it would be for Charlotte.”
This month, as the McColl Center celebrates its 25th anniversary, what was built as a church in 1927 is a place where artists can thrive. Inside the brick and stone exterior that survived the fire, is state of the art studio space to which the McColl Center welcomes artists from around the country and the world to work at their craft for three months at a time.
2024 Artist-in-Residence Sepideh Dashti. Image by Chris Edwards.
“We have a wood shop, a welding lab, a ceramic studio,” says Armando Bellmas, Vice President of Operations for the McColl Center. “We have a print-making studio. We have a digital media lab, a 3D printer, laser cutters. We make all of these tools available to artists while they’re here, so they can move their practice forward. But while they’re here, they are working on a specific project.”
Out of hundreds of applicants, just four artists are selected for each of three cohorts during the year: spring, summer and fall. Some artists have come from as far away as Japan, Brazil, Mexico and Nigeria or as close as the Carolinas. Artists who teach and/or have families come in the summertime, when more flexible schedules allow.
In 25 years, nearly 500 artists have come through the McColl Center. This month, the McColl Center marks the anniversary with a week-long event, starting with a silent auction Feb. 13 and culminating in a live auction and celebration Feb. 22 featuring 70 pieces from artists who have come through the program. Proceeds benefit both the artists and the McColl Center.
ARTIST’S PALETTE | ARTS + CULTURE
2024 Artist-in-Residence Michael Webster. Image by Chris Edwards.
2024 Artist-in-Residence Júlia Pontés. Image by Chris Edwards.
2024 Artist-in-Residence Oswaldo Ruiz.
Image by Chris Edwards.
One of the artists featured in the auction is Missouri-born Nick Cave, who made a name for himself nationally by creating wearable sculptures he calls Soundsuits. He makes these multimedia pieces, that transcend both art and fashion, out of objects like twigs, buttons, beads, fabric, and fur. Cave, who came through the McColl Center in 2000, has since had his work featured in museums from the Guggenheim in New York to the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago. His work is in the permanent collections of The Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Smithsonian Museum of American Art in Washington.
His three-color lithograph, called “Amalgam (Blue),” which resembles bronze castings of Soundsuits, is featured in this month’s auction.
Another featured artist is Cuban-born Carlos Estevez, who was a resident at the McColl Center in 2016. His 2010 oil and watercolor pencil on
CONTINUED >
Encuentros by Carlos Estevez. 2010, Oil and watercolor pencil on canvas, 18x24in. The works of art on pages 33-34 are featured in the McColl Center’s 25th anniversary auction.
Queen Nzingha Mbande by Mark Steven Greenfield. 2021, Acrylic and gold leaf on wood panel, 20 x 16 in.
Untitled by Jen Ray. 2018, Watercolor and ink on handmade paper, 17.63 x 13.63. Ray is a Raleigh native and represented by SOCO Gallery.
Amalgam (Blue) by Nick Cave. 2015, 3-color lithograph, duster with pearlescent powder, 42.5 x 30 in.
canvas called “Encuentros,” meaning “Encounters,” is up for auction. When Estevez first came to Charlotte, he painted predominantly, but he changed course after experimenting with ceramics at the McColl Center.
“He walked by one day and noticed there was a kiln in the corner down in the big sculpture studio where the ceramics lab is,” Bellmas says. “He’d done some ceramics in the past, but he was curious about it. He started asking for help to get going on it and fired a few pieces. By the end of his residency, he was
constantly at that kiln, pulling stuff out that he was making. His studio upstairs had turned into a big ceramics lab. Within a year after his residency, he debuted his first all-ceramics show.”
Now close to 60 percent of his artwork is ceramics, Bellmas says.
“It’s little things like that that the public doesn’t see, but in the life of an artist, they’re so critical,” says Bellmas. “Just to be able to have that time to experiment and try something different.”
The artists live in condominiums across the street from the McColl Center. They usually arrive without cars, and either
Carlos Estevez, 2016 Winter Artist-in-Residence. Courtesy of McColl Center.
walk, bike, use public transit or get around with rides from staff members. It’s a far cry from more typical artist retreats that take place out in nature.
“[Usually] artists go away from the city to go to the woods, to reside in a cabin for a month, not to be distracted by families or work or traffic or Starbucks,” Bellmas says. “They sit somewhere and just paint or write or compose. The urban residency sticks folks right in the middle of a major urban center and forces them to interact with each other, with the cityscape.”
The setting has fostered not only a culture of collaboration and connection that continues long after the residency ends, but several artists have made lasting contributions to the cityscape itself. One artist, Shaun Cassity of Rock Hill, created steel sculptures of leaves welded into the fencing on light rail tracks at 10 Lynx stations. They represent native trees like dogwood, magnolia, pin oak and sweetgum. The veins on each leaf represent neighborhood street maps.
Another former resident, Sharon Dowell, a graduate of UNC Charlotte, turned the 12th Street Brookshire Freeway overpass into a vibrant mural of orange, blue and green.
In 2020, the McColl Center opened its top floor as studio space local artists can use, creating another tie to the city.
“We have a stable of artists who are here for [several] years,” said Makeia Carrier, marketing director at the McColl Center. “They are part of the crew that welcomes these new artists in and can give them connection to the existing Charlotte community and art scene.”
The McColl Center. Image by Olly Yung.
PRIMARY CARE THAT MAKES YOU PRIMARY
DR. CARMEN TEAGUE offers a different approach to primary care in Charlotte. She sees fewer patients so she can offer same- and next-day appointments that start on time and last as long as needed. Plus, patients can reach her after hours for urgent matters, and she has more time to answer your questions.
Dr. Teague also focuses on prevention, offering advanced screenings and diagnostic tests designed to identify risk markers before they become health problems.
Visit mdvip.com/CarmenTeagueMD or call 980.486.0832 to learn more about her innovative practice and her approach to preventive care
CARMEN TEAGUE, MD, MC
CHARLOTTE SKILL FACTORY FOCUSES ON DEVELOPMENT AND FRIENDSHIP
Hoops Connection
ARTICLE BY CARROLL WALTON
PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF CHARLOTTE SKILL FACTORY
In just three years, Lawrence Gordon has grown his youth basketball program from 10 kids to 250. Charlotte Skill Factory is unique among Amateur Athletic Union, or AAU, programs, he says, because it’s built on connection rather than simply competition.
“The relationships you build makes sports special,” he tells his players in kindergarten through 10th grade.
Gordon walked onto his college basketball team at Morris Brown in Atlanta. But after having to sit out because of his grades, he decided to get into youth coaching. He developed a passion for working with young people that stayed with him during his years in Atlanta and after he moved to Charlotte in 2012.
Gordon founded Sport Mode One, a sports event company that hosts two high school tournaments a year, and coached the seventh grade boys team at Charlotte Country Day. He recently stepped back from middle school coaching to focus on Charlotte Skill Factory, which he says is the fasting growing program in SouthPark and Myers Park.
WHAT MAKES YOUR PROGRAM DIFFERENT FROM OTHERS IN AAU?
We don’t do tryouts. We want to take away the anxiety and pressure of tryouts, where kids feel like they’re not good enough at the young ages. It’s more like a life group. We decide to do life with kids. We’re basically saying, whoever in the neighborhood wants to participate with our program, come and we will help develop, train and equip you to make your middle school team. Over 90% of the kids that have played more than two seasons with us have made their seventh and eighth grade basketball teams.
AAU TEAMS ARE TYPICALLY FOCUSED MORE ON WINNING?
It’s more volatile. You could have a team and in two weeks, a really good kid comes along; they’ll add that kid to the team. It’s much more sport-centric, trying to win at any cost. With us, we think about the kids and their emotional health….It’s a lot of talk around relationship. Who’s on your sofa? Who are you doing life with and building up that social capital and that social connection? Those are things that are really important.
YOU LIKE TO ATTRACT PLAYERS FROM DIFFERENT SCHOOL AND SOCIOECONOMIC
BACKGROUNDS?
We’re trying to promote that we all live in the same community. But not a lot of programs do. They’re just trying get the best players, let’s go win this championship. And then when kids have won, they’re depressed and not feeling good. They don’t even know their coach’s name. I had a parent the other day say, “Lawrence, I don’t even know who’s coaching my son.” That’s crazy to me, but that’s normal. Or, if you ask a kid, “Hey, who’s on your team?” They don’t know the kids’ names. Those are things we think are very important. You’re not just here to get better in sports. You’re also here to meet a new friend. You should want that.
DID YOU EXPERIENCE SOMETHING WITH ANOTHER PROGRAM THAT YOU WERE DETERMINED TO CHANGE?
The program I ran in Atlanta was a very competitive, toxic environment. I always told myself, if I ever were to get back into it, I would be more disciplined to say, “I’m not going to chase culture. I’m not going to chase popularity, social media clicks. I’m going to do what I believe is true and right.”
ARTICLE BY CATE STERN | PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF TROPE BOOKSTORE
KEEPING THE Romance Alive
TROPE BOOKSTORE INTRODUCES CHARLOTTEANS TO NEW FICTION AND, SOMETIMES, EACH OTHER
Shortly after rekindling her passion for reading, Katie Mitchell discovered The Ripped Bodice, the country’s first romance-only bookstore, on Instagram. Inspired, Mitchell introduced Charlotte to its very own all-romance bookstore on wheels, Trope Bookshop, in October 2023.
The Green Girl, as Mitchell calls the bus that transports Trope’s selections, conjures a cozy library hideout with its checkerboard floors and wooden shelves stocked with books organized by romance tropes. (Think marriage of convenience or second-chance romance.) Mitchell partners with coffee shops and breweries to feature The Green Girl at pop-up events around Charlotte. She plans to expand Trope Bookshop to a brick-and-mortar location in Plaza Midwood this year.
Like many millennials, Mitchell grew up with the Harry Potter series. That was where her love for reading started, she says. Years later, working in a corporate job, her reading habit dwindled. But during the pandemic, she and her friends started watching book reviews on TikTok, which inspired her to pick up books again.
“(Some people) think that it’s silly and frivolous and unserious. To that I say romance is the fastest-selling, largest-selling genre in the market.”
–Katie Mitchell
After reading popular author Sarah J. Maas, she was hooked. A self-described fan of “romantasy” (fiction that combines romance and fantasy), Mitchell says, “Your taste changes, just like it does in food or wine ... You have to try something new every now and then.”
For those new to the romance genre, Mitchell suggests starting with authors like Emily Henry, Abby Jimenez, and Ali Hazelwood. They write contemporary books that don’t involve intricately constructed settings—like foreign planets or complicated systems like magic—that might intimidate newcomers, she says.
Charlotte has a robust network of romance authors as well, and Mitchell enjoys organizing events to highlight their work.
“It’s been really cool to meet and connect with local authors and connect them with readers,” she says.
The romance genre’s market continues to grow, fueled in part by TikTok and a desire for happier endings. From 2020-2023, annual print sales in the United States more than doubled.
“(Some people) think that it’s silly and frivolous and unserious, and to that I say romance is the fastest-selling, largest-selling genre in the market,” says Mitchell.
As a sign of romance’s mainstream status, Caroline Chambers, author and top food and drink writer on Substack, frequently mentions the romance books she reads.
Trope Bookshop is now one of more than 20 romance-only bookstores in the U.S., which is a reflection of the genre’s popularity.
For Charlotte-based author Jessica Peterson, having a romance-only store here fills her with joy.
“It’s such a special thing, and important, too–for so long reading romance was a ‘guilty pleasure,’” Peterson says.
Fresh off Trope Bookshop’s one-year anniversary, Mitchell has been encouraged by its reception among other small businesses, many of which are also women-owned.
“We want each other to succeed,” she says.
One of her favorite parts of running her business is fostering relationships through Trope’s book club, Troop Trope.
“I have helped other people make new friends,” she says. “That feels pretty amazing.”
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A SALAD REC IPE TO LOV E
A GORGEOUS, FRESH AND SIMPLE DISH
PEAR, PROSCIUTTO,
Burrata Salad
INGREDIENTS
• Ripe Pear
• Prosciutto
• Burrata
• Lemon Zest
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Dried Figs
• Red Pepper Flakes
DIRECTIONS
1. Slice the ripe pear into thin slices.
2. Arrange pear slices on a plate, creating a base for the salad.
3. Nestle slices of prosciutto in-between pear slices, a perfect combo of sweet and savory.
4. Tear the burrata into bite-sized pieces and scatter them over the salad adding a velvety creaminess to the ensemble.
5. Grate fresh lemon zest over the entire salad, infusing it with citrus flavor.
6. Top with fresh basil, figs and pepper flakes.
7. Finish by generously drizzling extra virgin olive oil over the salad, creating a silky texture that ties it all together.
THE GIFT OF LETTER WRITING
ARTICLE BY QUEEN CITY STAFF | PHOTOGRAPHY BY JANIE JONES
HANDWRITTEN NOTES ARE A GREAT WAY TO SHOW SOMEONE YOU CARE
In this speedy world where anything can be done in an instant, a handwritten letter takes time and shows thoughtfulness. Much like a fingerprint, your handwriting- as elegant or clumsy as it may be- is as much a piece of you as the color of your eyes or the sound of your voice. The handwriting of a loved one that has passed or the writing of a child that time has aged will forever be treasured because of who they are, not how beautiful the calligraphy.
We invite you to handwrite a letter to someone you care for this month. It could be as short as a sentence, as practical as a favorite recipe, or as light-hearted as a joke. Whatever is written, write it in your own handwriting as a gift to be treasured by the person who receives it.
WAX SEALS
Sealing a letter with a wax stamp is a beautiful way to turn a standard paper letter into the gift that it is.
SUPPLIES NEEDED
1. Wax Sealing Stick
2. Sealing Stamp
3. Match or Lighter
HOW TO APPLY A WAX SEAL
1. Light the wick and hold the stick parallel to the work surface.
2. Let wax slowly drip into a coin sized circle onto the paper.
3. Blow out the flame and set the stick aside.
4. Press the sealing stamp onto the melted wax. Hold for a few seconds before lifting away. If it sticks, gently rock the seal back and forth to release.
*Wax seals are able to be sent through the mail but consider an additional outer envelope for potential damage.
Much like a fingerprint, your handwriting- as elegant or clumsy as it may beis as much a piece of you as the color of your eyes or the sound of your voice.
