"Ever since I moved to San Jose 29 years ago, I've loved antiques," said the native Texan. "So I've always known where I could find antiques"—Los Gatos, Saratoga and Willow Glen. "I frequently shopped at these places, but I've always been partial to Willow Glen. When I saw this place"—the former Rose Mille location—"I thought it was the cutest little place."

Hart-Carlson noticed the "for rent" sign had been up for months, so she looked into the possibilities of renting the space while employed at another job.

She works at SummerWinds nursery in San Jose in the mornings, where she has worked for the past six years. She begins her day at 7:30 a.m. and dedicates 32 hours a week to the nursery. In the fall and winter, she hopes to open her store at 12:45 p.m. and stay open until 7 p.m.

"Collecting antiques started out as a hobby," said Hart-Carlson. She's been collecting for years, well before she even considered turning her hobby into a business. She raised a child and worked at IBM before taking a job at a nursery. But she saved and invested, waiting for the time to strike out on her own and run a business.

"Things have been going well," she said about opening a business during an economic slump.

It's too soon to make a salary or to hire any help, so she gets by working two jobs.

"It tears me," she said. "I love working the books and arranging the flowers" at the nursery, "but I love what I do here. I'm not ready to give up the nursery just yet."

But her goal is to turn the store into a full-time job.

"The reality is, you never know when you're going to sell something," she said. "You could go a week without selling anything, and I do need an income."

Hart-Carlson came to California after graduating high school in 1973. Her grandparents raised her, but her mother was in California. At her mother's invitation, Hart-Carlson came to the Bay Area to work at IBM, where her mother also worked.

When she was moving into the store she heard that the neighborhood was into arts and crafts, so she brought in some desks and a workbench for craftmaking. But she prefers to stock art deco and Victorian items as well as Limoges porcelain plates and trays.

"Everything here is my taste," she said. "I love the flower paintings on the dishes, you know, and there are a lot of people who like the French look."

Sandra's Antiques & Collectibles is the newest tenant of a Lincoln Avenue building that traditionally has catered to small treasures or heirlooms. Until 1994, it was Lisa's Tea Treasures. Next came Diversions and Delights, which left in 1997 to make way for the short-lived Angel Garden.

Michelle Rose Jorgensen opened the Rose Mille in 1998, a boutique that specialized in designer hats and bridal veils and gave classes in making veils. It closed a year ago this month because Jorgensen moved to Minnesota when her husband accepted a job transfer.

Now it's Hart-Carlson's turn to make a name for herself.

"I'd like the place to be known as a store that's affordable, because antiques can be pretty expensive," she said.

"But I just want to have fun with the store, I want to be able to turn it around, buy more stuff that people like and have them say, 'Hey, yeah, go see Sandra. She's got good prices," she said. "I just want to belong."

Sandra's Antiques & Collectibles is located at 1203 Lincoln Ave. For more information, call 408.971.7005.