Kellogg, Minnesota - He conjures magical thoughts and speaks nonsense words. This is the advice that Santa's fictional elves give to an elf who is forced to make useful things instead of the dancing toys that children love.
At Kellogg's Lark Toys, toymakers entertain happy thoughts, laugh, and listen to the radio as they transform wood into dozens of happy faces, colorful animals, and creative puzzles. Wooden toy pullers and pushers have been a multi-year “labor of love” on the part of their creators. While Cam Norton wonders how the two will meet the demand, he credits Tim Munson with his gang saw skills.
“We feel at home here,” Norton said while playing with a toy snail covered in pink, blue, yellow and orange.
“In two years of drawing and assembling the toy, (Norton) couldn't reach the tip of the ear,” Monson said of his imaginary ears, smiling. “Once the sharp ears came in, it was like, ‘OK, it’s official.'”
He jokes about goblin ears as if he hasn't heard the comparison in over 30 years. Although attempts to spin old-school toys are ridiculed at checkout, Norton passes the spinning toy test.
Upon returning through the green workshop doors, toymakers and visitors are surrounded by the scent of freshly cut wood. Toys climb the walls, soft materials fill rows of boxes, and imaginative creatures play in every corner. Norton recommends checking out Munson in his shop: He turns pine logs into dragons or whales using a band saw, and the rough edges are smoothed with a router and polished.
Norton said he also loves the happy sounds of the children in the store: “They love being here.” As Santa's assistant, 8-year-old Annie Norton makes sure her work uniform is just right: a red and green headband with elf ears. "That's the first thing he did, man, he put it on and smiled," Munson explained. After years of being asked to work full-time at Lark Toys, the Norton sons took on a home wood-burning business on their former farm.
“They are very proud,” Norton said.
A large wooden carousel created in the 1990s by Munson, woodcarver and longtime Lark employee Mary Eversman, without Google's knowledge, represents most people's memories of the new toy store. The tree was gone, and a week later the flamingo or gnome appeared in the store, ready to be installed. They saw the animals come to life: they were cut, pasted, painted and collected over the course of nine years. Munson said he was "extremely lucky" to be able to continue this magical and exciting adventure.
"I was blown away. I fell in love on day two," Munson explained when Lark's gaming career began in 1987. "It was a labor of love."
The "Memory Lane" toy window aims to bring joy to all visitors, and is Monson's favorite project. Its handcrafted exhibits take people through the games of the past.
For Norton, “all he loved” was making games. He began making wood projects as a hobby, from tractors to toy boxes and game tables for his family. Most of his family members are proud of Lark's many wooden toys.
Over the years, wooden toys made in Don and Sara Kreofsky's garage have honored Lark Toys employees, their friends and families. According to Munson and Norton, the Canoe Paddler and Drea Dragon train toys are the best sellers. The pink spots lightened the red dragon to a pale pink color on its neck.
“Drea is probably my favorite wood-burner. I really like wood-burning smokers,” Norton says of the black lines that create the smiles, feathers, and scales.
In his home workshop, the toymaker is surrounded by photos of family and friends. As Munson and Norton say, there's no sense that the toy factory has run out of energy or creativity. This process creates a relaxing atmosphere with toys produced in quantities of 24 to 30 pieces and smaller toys in quantities of 40 to 50 pieces.
“It's like making art, and I can do it,” says co-owner Scott Gray Burlingame, who works at the store, which features cliff-inspired creatures, dollhouses and toy projects. From Raoul the River Giant to dolls and Blufflings, his “weird little objects,” each with their own story, provide visitors with an immersive in-store experience.
In his original shop building, Munson loved the feeling of slowing down and respecting the machine. He was not seriously injured, "knock on wood." Continuing the wonderful tradition of making toys by hand, Munson said, “This year, Norton will use his skills to make a band saw.”
“Everything we do is cut by hand, and that doesn't happen anymore, it doesn't happen anymore,” Monson said. "And we hope that one day this will continue where we don't have to...use one of our C&C (hand-cut goods) machines because it's so unique. In fact, if you look closely, you can see little lines here, each one carved by hand."
While people enjoy the atmosphere of Santa's workshop and get a behind-the-scenes look at the toy-making process, Munson and Norton said the store is "crazy" during the summer. However, toy production remains constant throughout the year. The few weeks in January and February with fewer clients also gave them time to redesign models and create new looks.
Between projects in the shop, working on the miniature golf course, or extracting fibers with a knife, Munson smiles in awe of the gift of creating treasures for people to enjoy. Norton said he also helps children who walk past storefronts.
“This place is rare, but very special,” Munson said. "There's something about it, you know, something special, like a lark."
On the slopes of southeastern Minnesota, Scott Gray Burlingame introduces a new creature: the Bluffling. Part of folklore and part of an educational tool, the Bluffling family enjoys their habitat in the store's "Memory Lane" lobby. Native latex creatures invite visitors to decipher their language and explore the Driftless Zone.
“Each character in Bluffling represents a different lost art, so we have explorers, teachers, healers, animal whisperers, it's endless, but we started with these eight characters,” Scott Gray Burlingame said. The Lark store is named Kreofsky's Lost Arts Revival, after the Kreofsky family who founded the toy store.
“Because they evolved as the story progressed,” he saw the Blufflings as “a side project I created” without having to rush to sell them, although Bluffling dolls, figurines, and photo prints were sold in the store. November 2022 He hopes to share his creations with the community through partnerships with local schools, libraries and parks. Adding art and experiences “keeps Lark fresh for people,” said co-owner Miranda Gray Burlingame.
Through years of research and experimentation, the process was transformed from a dream into a painstaking, detailed “creature-making” task: making faces, shaping hands, and painting jackets and buttons. Creatures that were previously considered scary have now been transformed into cute, human-like creatures. People love to welcome friends into their homes.
“I love the process,” Scott Gray Burlingame said. He has experience in creating special effects makeup and masks. “It's hard to say when something is finished, maybe because every step is an interesting element, and I think the fun is in doing it.”
When generations of families visit the magic shop, Munson loves seeing their enthusiasm, and “I think our mission is made more special knowing that people love this place and bring their families and children.”
"It's a magical place. You can see it in the people who come, I mean some of the people I'm so excited about, they spend all day here. There's so much to do, but... I always want to go there and I ask, 'What are you doing here?'" Munson said. For eight hours? They love it."
