Try this out for size.
1,200 pounds of dough. 800 pounds of icing. 200 pounds of white chocolate. 250 pounds of almond paste. Hundreds of pounds of candy.
It’s for the looks, not for the eating.
Sheraton Seattle’s Gingerbread Village is eye candy extraordinaire.
The theme this year for the larger-than-life gingerbread creations is “May The Holidays Be With You,” inspired by scenes from “Star Wars” movies. The hotel’s culinary team partnered with architecture firms to design and build this dazzling display.
Put it on your wish list of things to do in Seattle over the holidays.
There are happenings galore. After you make your list, you might want to check it twice. Many run through the month, but some are one-shot deals.
The Olympic Sculpture Park is already a pretty magical place, but on Dec. 17, lights and luminarias take it to a cosmic level.
While you’re downtown, take a spin on the carousel. Toss a snowball. See Santa scuba dive.
Don a red suit and join the sea of Santas parading through downtown at SantaCon on Dec. 12.
Eat. Drink. Skate.
And be merry.
Seattle’s Best Damn Happy Hour: 5 to 8 p.m. Dec. 17, Seattle Center Armory, 305 Harrison St. Food, specialty cocktails, music, games and prizes. Giant Scrabble, giant Jenga and board games. More at www.seattlecenter.com/happyhour.
SAM Lights, A Winter Evening of Art, Music &Lights: 6 to 9 p.m. Dec. 17, Olympic Sculpture Park, 2901 Western Ave., Seattle. Walk the paths with luminaries, hundreds of lights and the looming shadows of outdoor installations in the background. Warm up inside the Pavilion and let your little artist play with blocks and create artwork at the Kids’ Play Station. Food trucks with eats and hot cider to sip. This event is free, but RSVPs are requested in the form of online tickets. More at: seattleartmuseum.org/visit/calendar/events?EventId=35594.
Westlake Park Winter Village and Holiday Carousel: Outdoor, old-fashioned carousel through Jan. 1, Westlake Park, 401 Pine St., Seattle. Live music, sound-reactive holiday lighting, doughnuts and hot chocolate, children’s activity area and photo cut-outs. Carousel will be open until 5 p.m. Christmas Eve. Cost is $3 suggested donation for Treehouse.
Seattle Center Winterfest: Lots of free and affordable holiday activities and entertainment through Dec. 31, Seattle Center, 305 Harrison St., Seattle. Skate at the ice arena, drive a miniature locomotive through a turn-of-the-century village inside the Armory, watch ice sculpting demonstrations, listen to Dickens carolers and see performances by more than 100 different student groups. Fireworks show and concert on New Year’s Eve. More at seattlecenter.com/winterfest.
Snow Showers Inside Pacific Place: Through Dec. 24, Pacific Place, 600 Pine St., Seattle. Flurry of snowflakes each night in the atrium at Pacific Place. Musical performances on the weekends. Free. More at pacificplaceseattle.com.
Gingerbread Village: Sheraton Seattle Hotel Lobby, 1400 6th Ave., Seattle, through Jan. 3. Larger-than-life gingerbread creations follow the theme “May The Holidays Be With You,” inspired by scenes from Star Wars movies. Since 1992, the Sheraton’s culinary team has partnered with architecture firms to design and build intricate, holiday-themed gingerbread displays. Free, with donations accepted for the Northwest Chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. More at www.sheratonseattle.com/gingerbread-village.
Teddy Bear Suite: Big bears, little bears, brown bears, white bears. Through Dec. 27, Fairmont Olympic Hotel, 411 University St., Seattle. Free, with donations accepted for Seattle Children’s Hospital. More at www.fairmont.com/seattle/activities-services/events-calendar.
“WildLights”: Through Jan. 3, Woodland Park Zoo. Electrifying after-hours displays of wild animals and exotic destinations including “African Water Hole,” “Jungle Lights” and “Northern Lights.” A visit from Santa’s reindeers. Zoomazium will be transformed into Snowmazium which will be open every night for storytelling and faux snowball fights. More at zoo.org/wildlights.
Scuba Diving Santa and Music Seattle Aquarium, 1483 Alaskan Way. Watch Santa scuba dive and get your picture taken. Diving Santa, noon and 3 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays through Dec. 20, with live music at 1:30 p.m.: Dec. 5, The Not-Its! Dec. 6, Seattle Youth Symphony Quartet. Dec. 12, Caspar Babypants. Dec. 13, Red Octopus. Dec. 19, Johnny Bregar and the Country Dawgs. Dec. 20, No Love for Fire. Donations accepted to help fund DreamNights at the Seattle Aquarium for bringing children who have disabilities. More at seattleaquarium.org/diving-santa.
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