A Hay River woman is planning to build something unique for the Arctic Winter Games.
That would be an igloo.
Teira Arnault explained she was inspired to undertake the project – her first time building an igloo – because her sister and her husband in Slave Lake, Alta., built one last year.
Plus, she was also inspired by a challenge.
"My sister's old man said that I couldn't build a better one than him," she said, adding that she accepted the challenge and he will help guide her.
"I was just going to build it in my own yard and somebody gave me the idea to maybe ask Arctic Winter Games if I could build it for them," she said, noting the organizers liked the idea.
"I'm happy to do it for them and I'm ready to take on the challenge, for sure," she added.
The igloo, which will be four feet high and eight feet across, will be built next to the Welcome to Hay River sign.
Arnault will be using the colours of the Arctic Winter Games – purple, green and blue.
"I froze all the blocks in the Arctic Winter Games colours and I'm doing a lot of blues and stuff for the lettering," she said. "I'm just trying to figure out the lettering right now so I can put AWG 2018 in the blocks."
The blocks are being frozen with food colouring and in two-litre milk cartons.
Arnault said she will need 600 blocks for the igloo and she already has than many milk cartons donated by the Tri R Recycling depot.
"I have people that have volunteered to wash them for me and I have people that are freezing them for me, too," she said.
As of Jan. 26, she had 289 blocks frozen, including many in her backyard.
Arnault will first build a plywood frame for the ice bricks and construct the igloo on that with help from some friends.
She said the igloo will be big enough for people to crawl inside.
Arnault doesn't know exactly when the igloo will be built.
"I'm not sure yet," she said. "I have to get the blocks frozen and get the frame built and kind of just go from there, and start planning around the weather, I think."
The current cold weather is good for freezing the blocks, she noted. "But I don't really want to be out there in minus 30. If I have to I will. Minus 20 would be nice to be laying bricks."
The 31-year-old Arnault, who works mostly in carpentry, said she will be excited to get the igloo project started.