An Original Belle

I've Moved!

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Sun, 02 Feb 2014 23:36:00 +0000

I've moved! Please visit me at my blog, Unsweetened Lyme, or my design website, Bellis Bohtique. See you there!

MIY Monday Link Party #100 and a Fond Farewell

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 06 Jan 2014 08:00:00 +0000

Welcome to the 100th and last edition of MIY Monday! As I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, I'm closing this blog and discontinuing the link party. This blog has been fun and I've met a lot of wonderful people during the last three and one-half years by having it.

While this chapter of my life is over, a new chapter begins; one that never would have been without this blog.

I'll still be around and if you want to keep in touch you can find me at Bellis Bohtique, my design website. I will occasionally blog there as well and would love to hear from you now and again.

Thank you for your continued support and your amazing talent that you've shared with me here every week since this linky began. Thank you! We made it to 100 together!

Best wishes to you in the new year,
Heather Rae

An InLinkz Link-up

Make-It-Yourself Monday Link Party #99

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 30 Dec 2013 08:00:00 +0000

Welcome! It's the 99th edition of M.I.Y. Monday, where you show us how it's done! If you made it yourself, we want to see it- whether it be crafts, recipes, sewing tutorials or anything related.

Here's how the linky works:

Link as many posts as you want, as long as they are your own. Crafts, sewing projects, recipes, gardening and tutorials are welcome. The party will be on through Friday.

My Rules:

1. Friend An Original Belle via RSS, GFC, Facebook, or Twitter.

2. Please display my button or a link back to my blog in your linked post(s).

3. Visit at least one blog while you're here. We all love visitors and comments!

Grab my button to share the party:

An InLinkz Link-up

Make-It-Yourself Monday Link Party #98

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 23 Dec 2013 08:00:00 +0000

Welcome! It's the 98th edition of M.I.Y. Monday, where you show us how it's done! If you made it yourself, we want to see it- whether it be crafts, recipes, sewing tutorials or anything related.

Here's how the linky works:

Link as many posts as you want, as long as they are your own. Crafts, sewing projects, recipes, gardening and tutorials are welcome. The party will be on through Friday.

My Rules:

1. Friend An Original Belle via RSS, GFC, Facebook, or Twitter.

2. Please display my button or a link back to my blog in your linked post(s).

3. Visit at least one blog while you're here. We all love visitors and comments!

Grab my button to share the party:

Before you continue...

I just want to let you know that I have a new design website. You can now visit me at Bellis Bohtique for all your web design needs. I will also be blogging there shortly and closing this blog. I will let you all know when that time arrives. Thank you and merry Christmas!

An InLinkz Link-up

Make-It-Yourself Monday Link Party #97

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 16 Dec 2013 08:00:00 +0000

Welcome! It's the 97th edition of M.I.Y. Monday, where you show us how it's done! If you made it yourself, we want to see it- whether it be crafts, recipes, sewing tutorials or anything related.

Here's how the linky works:

Link as many posts as you want, as long as they are your own. Crafts, sewing projects, recipes, gardening and tutorials are welcome. The party will be on through Friday.

My Rules:

1. Friend An Original Belle via RSS, GFC, Facebook, or Twitter.

2. Please display my button or a link back to my blog in your linked post(s).

3. Visit at least one blog while you're here. We all love visitors and comments!

Grab my button to share the party:

Before you continue...

An InLinkz Link-up

Make-It-Yourself Monday Link Party #96

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 09 Dec 2013 08:00:00 +0000

Welcome! It's the 96th edition of M.I.Y. Monday, where you show us how it's done! If you made it yourself, we want to see it- whether it be crafts, recipes, sewing tutorials or anything related.

Here's how the linky works:

Link as many posts as you want, as long as they are your own. Crafts, sewing projects, recipes, gardening and tutorials are welcome. The party will be on through Friday.

My Rules:

1. Friend An Original Belle via RSS, GFC, Facebook, or Twitter.

2. Please display my button or a link back to my blog in your linked post(s).

3. Visit at least one blog while you're here. We all love visitors and comments!

Grab my button to share the party:

An InLinkz Link-up

Make-It-Yourself Monday Link Party #95

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 18 Nov 2013 08:00:00 +0000

Welcome! It's the 95th edition of M.I.Y. Monday, where you show us how it's done! If you made it yourself, we want to see it- whether it be crafts, recipes, sewing tutorials or anything related.

Here's how the linky works:

Link as many posts as you want, as long as they are your own. Crafts, sewing projects, recipes, gardening and tutorials are welcome. The party will be on through Friday.

My Rules:

1. Friend An Original Belle via RSS, GFC, Facebook, or Twitter.

2. Please display my button or a link back to my blog in your linked post(s).

3. Visit at least one blog while you're here. We all love visitors and comments!

Grab my button to share the party:

An InLinkz Link-up

Make-It-Yourself Mondau Link Party #94

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 04 Nov 2013 08:00:00 +0000

Welcome! It's the 94th edition of M.I.Y. Monday, where you show us how it's done! If you made it yourself, we want to see it- whether it be crafts, recipes, sewing tutorials or anything related.

Here's how the linky works:

Link as many posts as you want, as long as they are your own. Crafts, sewing projects, recipes, gardening and tutorials are welcome. The party will be on through Friday.

My Rules:

1. Friend An Original Belle via RSS, GFC, Facebook, or Twitter.

2. Please display my button or a link back to my blog in your linked post(s).

3. Visit at least one blog while you're here. We all love visitors and comments!

Grab my button to share the party:

An InLinkz Link-up

Make-It-Yourself Monday Link Party #93

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 21 Oct 2013 07:00:00 +0000

Welcome! It's the 93rd edition of M.I.Y. Monday, where you show us how it's done! If you made it yourself, we want to see it- whether it be crafts, recipes, sewing tutorials or anything related.

Here's how the linky works:

Link as many posts as you want, as long as they are your own. Crafts, sewing projects, recipes, gardening and tutorials are welcome. The party will be on through Friday.

My Rules:

1. Friend An Original Belle via RSS, GFC, Facebook, or Twitter.

2. Please display my button or a link back to my blog in your linked post(s).

3. Visit at least one blog while you're here. We all love visitors and comments!

Grab my button to share the party:

An InLinkz Link-up

Make-It-Yourself Monday Link Party #92

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 30 Sep 2013 07:00:00 +0000

Welcome! It's the 92nd edition of M.I.Y. Monday, where you show us how it's done! If you made it yourself, we want to see it- whether it be crafts, recipes, sewing tutorials or anything related.

Here's how the linky works:

Link as many posts as you want, as long as they are your own. Crafts, sewing projects, recipes, gardening and tutorials are welcome. The party will be on through Friday.

My Rules:

1. Friend An Original Belle via RSS, GFC, Facebook, or Twitter.

2. Please display my button or a link back to my blog in your linked post(s).

3. Visit at least one blog while you're here. We all love visitors and comments!

Grab my button to share the party:

An InLinkz Link-up

Make-It-Yourself Monday Link Party #91

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 23 Sep 2013 07:00:00 +0000

Welcome! It's the 91st edition of M.I.Y. Monday, where you show us how it's done! If you made it yourself, we want to see it- whether it be crafts, recipes, sewing tutorials or anything related.

Here's how the linky works:

Link as many posts as you want, as long as they are your own. Crafts, sewing projects, recipes, gardening and tutorials are welcome. The party will be on through Friday.

My Rules:

1. Friend An Original Belle via RSS, GFC, Facebook, or Twitter.

2. Please display my button or a link back to my blog in your linked post(s).

3. Visit at least one blog while you're here. We all love visitors and comments!

Grab my button to share the party:

An InLinkz Link-up

Make-It-Yourself Monday Link Party #90

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 16 Sep 2013 07:00:00 +0000

Welcome! It's the 90th edition of M.I.Y. Monday, where you show us how it's done! If you made it yourself, we want to see it- whether it be crafts, recipes, sewing tutorials or anything related.

Here's how the linky works:

Link as many posts as you want, as long as they are your own. Crafts, sewing projects, recipes, gardening and tutorials are welcome. The link party will be open until Friday.

My Rules:

1. Friend An Original Belle via RSS, GFC, Facebook, or Twitter.

2. Please display my button or a link back to my blog in your linked post(s).

3. Visit at least one blog while you're here. We all love visitors and comments!

Grab my button to share the party:

An InLinkz Link-up

Make-It-Yourself Monday Link Party #89

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 09 Sep 2013 07:00:00 +0000

Welcome! It's the 89th edition of M.I.Y. Monday, where you show us how it's done! If you made it yourself, we want to see it- whether it be crafts, recipes, sewing tutorials or anything related.

Here's how the linky works:

Link up as many posts as you want, as long as they are your own. Crafts, sewing projects, recipes, gardening and tutorials are welcome. The link party will be open until Friday.

My Rules:

1. Friend An Original Belle in some capacity via RSS, GFC, Facebook, or Twitter.

2. Please display my button or a link back to my blog in your linked up posts.

3. Visit at least one blog while you're here. We all love visitors and comments!

Grab my button to share the party:

An InLinkz Link-up

Make-It-Yourself Monday Link Party #88

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 02 Sep 2013 07:00:00 +0000

Welcome! It's the 88th edition of M.I.Y. Monday, where you show us how it's done! If you made it yourself, we want to see it- whether it be crafts, recipes, sewing tutorials or anything related.

Here's how the linky works:

Link up as many posts as you want, as long as they are your own. Crafts, sewing projects, recipes, gardening and tutorials are welcome. The link party will be open until Friday.

My Rules:

1. Friend An Original Belle in some capacity via RSS, GFC, Facebook, or Twitter.

2. Please display my button or a link back to my blog in your linked up posts.

3. Visit at least one blog while you're here. We all love visitors and comments!

Grab my button to share the party:

An InLinkz Link-up

Make-It-Yourself Monday Link Party #87

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 19 Aug 2013 07:00:00 +0000

Welcome! It's the 87th edition of M.I.Y. Monday, where you show us how it's done! If you made it yourself, we want to see it- whether it be crafts, recipes, sewing tutorials or anything related.

Here's how the linky works:

Link up as many posts as you want, as long as they are your own. Crafts, sewing projects, recipes, gardening and tutorials are welcome. The link party will be open until Friday.

My Rules:

1. Friend An Original Belle in some capacity via RSS, GFC, Facebook, or Twitter.

2. Please display my button or a link back to my blog in your linked up posts.

3. Visit at least one blog while you're here. We all love visitors and comments!

Grab my button to share the party:

An InLinkz Link-up

Make-It-Yourself Monday Link party #86

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 12 Aug 2013 07:00:00 +0000

Welcome! It's the 86th edition of M.I.Y. Monday, where you show us how it's done! If you made it yourself, we want to see it- whether it be crafts, recipes, sewing tutorials or anything related.

Here's how the linky works:

Link up as many posts as you want, as long as they are your own. Crafts, sewing projects, recipes, gardening and tutorials are welcome. The link party will be open until Friday.

My Rules:

1. Friend An Original Belle in some capacity via RSS, GFC, Facebook, or Twitter.

2. Please display my button or a link back to my blog in your linked up posts.

3. Visit at least one blog while you're here. We all love visitors and comments!

Grab my button to share the party:

An InLinkz Link-up

Make-It-Yourself Monday Link Party # 85

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 22 Jul 2013 07:00:00 +0000

Welcome! It's the 85th edition of M.I.Y. Monday, where you show us how it's done! If you made it yourself, we want to see it- whether it be crafts, recipes, sewing tutorials or anything related.

Here's how the linky works:

Link up as many posts as you want, as long as they are your own. Crafts, sewing projects, recipes, gardening and tutorials are welcome. The link party will be open until Friday.

My Rules:

1. Friend An Original Belle in some capacity via RSS, GFC, Facebook, or Twitter.

2. Please display my button or a link back to my blog in your linked up posts.

3. Visit at least one blog while you're here. We all love visitors and comments!

Grab my button to share the party:

Make-It-Yourself Monday Link Party #84

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 08 Jul 2013 07:00:00 +0000

Welcome! It's the 84th edition of M.I.Y. Monday, where you show us how it's done! If you made it yourself, we want to see it- whether it be crafts, recipes, sewing tutorials or anything related.

Here's how the linky works:

Link up as many posts as you want, as long as they are your own. Crafts, sewing projects, recipes, gardening and tutorials are welcome. The link party will be open until Friday.

My Rules:

1. Friend An Original Belle in some capacity via RSS, GFC, Facebook, or Twitter.

2. Please display my button or a link back to my blog in your linked up posts.

3. Visit at least one blog while you're here. We all love visitors and comments!

Grab my button to share the party:

Make-It-Yourself Monday Link Party #83

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 01 Jul 2013 07:00:00 +0000

Welcome! It's the 83rd edition of M.I.Y. Monday, where you show us how it's done! If you made it yourself, we want to see it- whether it be crafts, recipes, sewing tutorials or anything related.

Here's how the linky works:

Link up as many posts as you want, as long as they are your own. Crafts, sewing projects, recipes, gardening and tutorials are welcome. The link party will be open until Friday.

My Rules:

1. Friend An Original Belle in some capacity via RSS, GFC, Facebook, or Twitter.

2. Please display my button or a link back to my blog in your linked up posts.

3. Visit at least one blog while you're here. We all love visitors and comments!

Grab my button to share the party:

Spring Planting 2013 - Tomatoes

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Fri, 28 Jun 2013 00:52:00 +0000

Growing up, one of my favorite pastimes was eagerly waiting for the JCPenney Christmas catalog to appear in the mailbox and then spending the weeks preceding the holiday poring over each page in the children's toy department with my sister, picking out dolls, play kitchens and all sorts of fun, little-girl toys. We'd even page to the baby section and pretend we were mommies picking out our babies' nursery sets. Once toys and dolls were a thing of the past, the yearly tradition went out the window too, along with the fleeting sensation of magic that only children get at Christmastime. A few years ago I became interested in vegetable gardening and have since rediscovered the joys of eagerly awaiting a special catalog in the mail, only this time around, they're seed catalogs.

To an enthusiastic gardener, poring over seed catalogs is by far the simplest and one of the most joyful pleasures of the gardening season and I discovered that during the winter months, that little bit of childhood magic comes to call whenever a seed catalog appears in my mailbox in preparation of spring. I order free catalogs from many seed companies each year, but since my garden is miniscule, I usually only place an order with two or three. But the magic lies in the seed shopping, in the act of sitting down for the sole purpose of poring over each catalog, picking out different varieties, seeing newly-discovered heirloom varieties and shaking my head in wonder at the all-new hybrids. Heirloom seeds are something every gardener ought to experiment with. This year, I've planted a mix of heirlooms and hybrids and am anxious to see which ones our family prefers. Tomatoes are the main attraction around here, so it's fun trying new varieties each year. Varieties growing this year:

Chocolate Stripes (heirloom)
Paul Robeson (heirloom)
Brandywine (hybrid)
Park's Whopper (hybrid)

For two years, I've started my tomatoes from seed in Park Seed's Bio Dome. I have both the 60-cell and 18-cell planting block. I used the 18-cell planting block this year and kept the dome on only until the seedlings emerged and then I removed it. I kept the seedlings indoors, rotating them around the house every day to place them in the best and brightest natural light. Since I used the 18-cell planting block, it wasn't necessary to pot-up the seedlings; there was plenty of room for them to grow. However, as an experiment, I potted-up six of the nine and found that the potted-up plants did grow quite a bit larger. When they grew 6-12 inches tall and nighttime temperatures warmed up to around 55 degrees, it was time for them to be planted outside. I planted them pretty deep along the stem so they could grow a strong root system. In no time they took off like rockets!

I'm starting to get used to the idea of sharing my raised bed with the earthworms that chose to inhabit it. I have no idea how they got in there since it's on concrete (and lined), but they're multiplying like rabbits. I know this is a good thing for the soil and saves me from having to buy earthworm castings (which I just did before I discovered my new tenants) since I have my own manure factory going on down there. I have to keep reminding myself that those wriggling red worms are good.

Tomato growing tip: pinch or snip most suckers that develop, letting only a few grow out, either from the bottom stems, or up higher, and tie your tomatoes up, up, up! Keeping the plants off the ground and manageable results in larger tomatoes and healthier, more disease-resistant plants! I'm looking forward to tasty tomatoes, how about you?

Make-It-Yourself Monday Link Party #82

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 24 Jun 2013 07:00:00 +0000

Welcome! It's the 82nd edition of M.I.Y. Monday, where you show us how it's done! If you made it yourself, we want to see it- whether it be crafts, recipes, sewing tutorials or anything related.

Here's how the linky works:

Link up as many posts as you want, as long as they are your own. Crafts, sewing projects, recipes, gardening and tutorials are welcome. The link party will be open until Friday.

My Rules:

1. Friend An Original Belle in some capacity via RSS, GFC, Facebook, or Twitter.

2. Please display my button or a link back to my blog in your linked up posts.

3. Visit at least one blog while you're here. We all love visitors and comments!

Grab my button to share the party:

Make-It-Yourself Monday Link Party #81

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 07:00:00 +0000

Welcome! It's the 81st edition of M.I.Y. Monday, where you show us how it's done! If you made it yourself, we want to see it- whether it be crafts, recipes, sewing tutorials or anything related.

Here's how the linky works:

Link up as many posts as you want, as long as they are your own. Crafts, sewing projects, recipes, gardening and tutorials are welcome. The link party will be open until Friday.

My Rules:

1. Friend An Original Belle in some capacity via RSS, GFC, Facebook, or Twitter.

2. Please display my button or a link back to my blog in your linked up posts.

3. Visit at least one blog while you're here. We all love visitors and comments!

Grab my button to share the party:

Make-It-Yourself Monday Link Party #80

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 07:00:00 +0000

Welcome! It's the 80th edition of M.I.Y. Monday, where you show us how it's done! If you made it yourself, we want to see it- whether it be crafts, recipes, sewing tutorials or anything related.

Here's how the linky works:

Link up as many posts as you want, as long as they are your own. Crafts, sewing projects, recipes, gardening and tutorials are welcome. The link party will be open until Friday.

My Rules:

1. Friend An Original Belle in some capacity via RSS, GFC, Facebook, or Twitter.

2. Please display my button or a link back to my blog in your linked up posts.

3. Visit at least one blog while you're here. We all love visitors and comments!

Grab my button to share the party:

Make-It-Yourself Monday Link Party #79

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 03 Jun 2013 07:00:00 +0000

Welcome! It's the 79th edition of M.I.Y. Monday, where you show us how it's done! If you made it yourself, we want to see it- whether it be crafts, recipes, sewing tutorials or anything related.

Here's how the linky works:

Link up as many posts as you want, as long as they are your own. Crafts, sewing projects, recipes, gardening and tutorials are welcome. The link party will be open until Friday.

My Rules:

1. Friend An Original Belle in some capacity via RSS, GFC, Facebook, or Twitter.

2. Please display my button or a link back to my blog in your linked up posts.

3. Visit at least one blog while you're here. We all love visitors and comments!

Grab my button to share the party:

Make-It-Yourself Monday Link Party #78

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Rae) — Mon, 27 May 2013 07:00:00 +0000

Welcome! It's the 78th edition of M.I.Y. Monday, where you show us how it's done! If you made it yourself, we want to see it- whether it be crafts, recipes, sewing tutorials or anything related.

Here's how the linky works:

Link up as many posts as you want, as long as they are your own. Crafts, sewing projects, recipes, gardening and tutorials are welcome. The link party will be open until Friday.

My Rules:

1. Friend An Original Belle in some capacity via RSS, GFC, Facebook, or Twitter.

2. Please display my button or a link back to my blog in your linked up posts.

3. Visit at least one blog while you're here. We all love visitors and comments!

Grab my button to share the party: