Bella Blue Gifts

I've been asked how I came up with the name for Bella Blue Gifts.

It was easy really, Bella is the first four letters of Bellarwi, a small place in the Riverina district of New South Wales, near West Wyalong, and its where I grew up. My parents had a farm only a few miles away. Geographically, the place barely rated a pinhead-sized dot on the State's map, but Bellarwi was the centre of the universe to me.

Like most places in country NSW it owed its inception to the railway line, which stopped at Bellarwi and provided much needed transportation of goods and supplies to local and regional markets. My Grandparents sent milk and eggs by rail regularly to supplement their other farm income of wheat and sheep.

Other than a stop on the railway line, Bellarwi also had a telephone exchange,(which in my time was operated by the Pidgeon family) tennis courts, and the Bellarwi Hall. The Hall was the glue that united the local farming community either through fire brigade meetings CWA meetings, Christmas parties, 21st Birthdays, Engagement parties. Everything really.

Unfortunately, like so many rural lines the railway no longer stops at Bellarwi and the telephone exchange died long before mobile phones were invented. Then the unthinkable, the Bellarwi Hall closed its doors when insurance for the old building made it no longer viable. Apparently the ode pit toilets needed to be upgraded and made wheelchair friendly and this was going to be expensive.

However, as a former historian, I like to see things saved for future generations to enjoy and reflect on and I wanted my children to know about their link to country NSW and a little place called Bellarwi. So I named by company Bellarwigirl. Ben's dad also had a farm at Bellarwi so its a nice connection too. Our favourite colour is "blue" - with my nickname at school being 'Smurf' as I was always wearing blue and white clothes - and there you have it - "Bella Blue"