A Little Help from Our Friends

Every January, just after the New Year's confetti is swept up and the party hats are put away, we roust the gnomes for help with the first big job of the new year. Because it's every January that Castle in the Air closes for three days to sort and stack and count absolutely everything in the store.

You might not think that fairy creatures would be into helping modern-day retailers with inventory, but the gnomes have a natural knack for this sort of work. The little workers love gathering knowledge -- in fact, they are thought to have been named by the 16th-century alchemist and philosopher Paracelsus, who derived the word "gnome" from the Greek word for "intelligence." And besides, they're small enough to get into all the corners of the store and count all the wonderful things we'll be bringing out in the new year.

So, Monday, January 5 through Wednesday, January 7, Castle in the Air will be closed for inventory. Come by on Thursday to see the new displays!