Archive for December 16th, 2009

A Magical Night to Honor St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital

December 16th, 2009 by Jack

There is nothing like being in Manhattan during the holiday season. There are people everywhere, tons of beautiful holiday lights and a wonderful chill in the air. It truly is something special!

Last week, our VP of Marketing, Ilana, and I attended a magical night at Brooks Brothers store on Madison Avenue in Manhattan. It was their fourth annual Holiday Celebration to benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is close to our hearts here at Lion Brand, so we were eager to see how another company helps raise money for this worthy cause.

There were various activities for children, such as decorating cookies, creating balloon art and meeting Santa. Throughout the night, guests were also able to meet Marlo Thomas, see a performance from the cast members of the Broadway musical Memphis and enjoy a jazz performance by Wynton Marsalis.

Meeting Marlo was such a great experience for me and Ilana. Marlo was nice enough to sign copies of the book, Henry’s Unsuitable Adventure, for us (these will make very special holiday gifts.)  For each book purchased that evening, 15% of the proceeds were donated to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.  We chatted with Marlo for a while about the book and our shared love for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Even though she is not a knitter or crocheter, she was delighted to hear about our Vanna’s Choice yarns and how portions of the proceeds of the sales of those yarns go to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

Overall, a great night was had by all.

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Blizzard Essentials

December 16th, 2009 by Guest

This is a guest post from Michelle Edwards–a life long knitter and the author/illustrator of many books for children including the 2006 Gryphon award winner, STINKY STERN FOREVER and CHICKEN MAN winner of National Jewish Book Award. Michelle lives in Iowa City, Iowa, with her husband and three daughters. She is a frequent contributor to the Lion Brand Weekly E-Newsletter.

Iowa City, Iowa – December 9, 2009 – When a blizzard hits your town, as one did here on Tuesday, it’s good to be prepared. You should stock up on staples like milk, bread and eggs. It’s a good idea to fuel up the snow blower, and inspect the state of your shovels. It’s wise to keep candles and matches someplace handy. And if you are a knitter, you might like a new project or yarn to keep you company when you are snow bound.

My samples of Lion Brand’s Amazing arrived last week but it wasn’t until Monday night, when snow began to fall fast and furious, and fierce winds knocked tree branches against the side of our house, that I decided to give it try. As the world outside grew white, I delighted watching the heathered greens and purples stitch up on my needles. The subtle color changes and the softness of the yarn was calming as our life was slowed down to a stop, daily activities and school curtailed and cancelled.

A blizzard gives you a space to be reflective — you aren’t going anywhere. Sure there’s shoveling to do, and meals to prepare, but the release from the daily grind makes it a perfect time to appreciate and enjoy an new yarn. And lucky for me, it was Amazing. Warm and beautiful, perfect for cold weather knitting. Give it a try!

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