More than 150 artisans come together in the Tri-Cities for the annual crafts show, spread over three days in the region's convention center. Gifty-type items include jewelry, hand-thrown pottery, and nice-smelling soaps, plus vendors hawk unique holiday decor so your house doesn't look like you went to the same big-box store as everyone else on the block.

The annual Orcas Island beer festival provides a multitude of reasons to take the ferry all the way into the San Juans for the weekend. Market Street in Eastsound becomes pedestrian-only, and more than 30 brewers set up shop alongside local bands. Though the event proper only lasts a day, local restaurants often do beer-related events in the surrounding weekend.

Competitors vie for the prize for best chili (and, because this is a Salish Sea island, best chowder) in an annual event that goes back more than a quarter century. Tickets score tastes of 10 chef creations; choose wisely and you'll sample a winner. Live music and a roaring fire round out the less competitive side of the festival.

Folk groups spanning Celtic, bluegrass, blues, African, Asian, and Middle Eastern traditions join forces for two days of free musical discovery in Spokane. Don't miss the commemorative festival buttons to show off your folky taste. 

What's under the pier? Marine biologists from Puget Sound Estuarium help decipher the sea life in a monthly nighttime event at Zittel's Marina. Sea slugs, anemones, and sea stars come out to play in this wintertime tide-pooling adventure.

Get a head start on those winter break activities with Olympia's 5,000-square-foot pop-up ice rink at Isthmus Park. Skaters of all ages glide under fairy lights and the rain-free protection of a wintery tent.