A box of brightly colored foam puzzle pieces sits on a shelf inside Imagination Station in Roanoke. The toy is a lonely presence amid plenty of bare space, probably because it isn't from China.

Lauri Toys is the United States company that manufactures these puzzles. Imagination Station, which also has stores in Blacksburg and Radford, has been selling the puzzles for years.

This holiday season, however, demand has been much higher.

"I've sold nearly everything," said Paula Bolte, owner of the toy stores.

The puzzles typically sell well, but Bolte has seen a large uptick in demand lately. The massive recalls of popular toys in the past several months, largely because of unsafe lead levels found in paint, have caused people to be wary of dolls, trucks and other toys made in China.

And with the Christmas spending season in full swing, Bolte and other independent toy retailers locally and nationally are seeing more business and sales this holiday. Bolte and another local toy store, Perrywinkle Toys at Valley View and Tanglewood malls, do not carry the toys that have been recalled, unlike larger retail chains such as Wal-Mart and Toys "R" Us.

"They [customers] are coming in with a lot of questions," Bolte said. "They just don't know what to do. They don't know what to look for."

And Bolte's stores do sell some toys made in China, but also from a variety of other manufacturers, including those in Germany, Thailand and the United States.

At Imagination Station, this holiday's success rivals last year's sales.

"September and October [sales] were up over last year," Bolte said. "We don't know about November, but it's looking like it will be good."

Nationally, it's difficult to quantify how much sales at other independent toy shops are rising because of the recalls, but generally "they are attracting some new customers," said Lisa Orman, a spokeswoman for the American Specialty Toy Retailing Association, which represents at least 500 specialty toy retailers.

James Morris, a father from New Castle, walked into Imagination Station on Friday searching for fresh Christmas gift ideas for his son, who is 18 months old. He seemed desperate. He just had left Toys "R" Us in Roanoke empty-handed and frustrated because many toys sold there are made in China, he said.

While browsing the selection, Morris said he was looking for "something that doesn't have that stigma attached to it."

A red sign posted on the wall beside Wow Toys at Imagination Station displays a message from the product's United Kingdom manufacturer. Wow Toys don't contain PVC, a plastic that could contain lead, and nontoxic paint has been used on the toys, it states. These little vehicles and figurines, such as campers, fire engines and police cars, also have passed certain European toy standards, according to the statement.

In a white three-ring binder, Bolte and store associates compile articles about toy recalls and copies of letters from specialty toy manufacturers, guaranteeing that their toys are safe and detailing how they are made. She also has briefed her employees about how to explain to customers where various toys are made and how they are manufactured.

Not all toys made in China are unsafe, Bolte said, explaining that she knows some of the small, family manufacturers personally. And many of them only sell toys to specialty shops.

"We're just trying to help in anyway that we can, to educate," Bolte said.

Some of the largest retailers that sold the recalled toys are also making efforts to educate and reassure customers.

Toys "R" Us, for example, is promising to take back any toy that is recalled, with or without a receipt, according to a statement on its Web site. The retailer also will remove all toys from stores worldwide immediately that do not meet its safety standards.

The New Jersey-based retailer with a Roanoke location has posted a list of safe holiday-toy shopping tips on its Web site.

But the recalls still are at the top of some parents' minds, including Monique Taylor of Roanoke, who said she's scared of most any toy that she gives her twin daughters, who are 4 years old. They like to paint and do artwork, and so far, she has bought stuffed animals for them for Christmas.

On Friday, she glanced at mini paint palates at Imagination Station. Some other paint sets at the store were made in Italy.

"I have an overall angst about what is a concern and what is not," Taylor said.

Meanwhile, Morris ended up buying at least one toy at Imagination Station for his son -- a truck, made by Wow Toys.