Olympic Sculpture Park

Free stuff is our jam. So are awesome waterfront parks and unique artwork. Olympic Sculpture Park: check, check, and check! 

This park is part of the Seattle Art Museum (although it is not in the same location) and was primarily funded by Microsoft COO, John Shirley (a modest $30 million). Lucky us!

And now Seattle has this wonderful park.

This park is full of wonderful, sharp lines.

Left: Eagle by Alexander Calder. Right: Echo by Jaume Plensa.

Eye see you. 

This park is a part of every tour we give friends from out of town. We love the architecture and the almost Easter egg hunt quality of the art. If you aren't looking for it, you could walk right by and never know! 

So go check it out! It is fairly wheelchair accessible, it is free, and there is parking. Kids love it, dogs love it, adults love it, heck we once saw a cat being walked and it looked about as happy as any cat can. 

Walk along the Seattle waterfront and look for seals along with art! 

Insider Tip: If you continue to follow the path once you get down to the waterfront you will eventually be in Myrtle Beach Park. Keep going! This park has an amazing walk along the water. Try to make it for a sunset; we promise, Puget Sound and the Cascade Mountains make it quite the show!

Myrtle Beach Park takes you right up to Puget Sound.

Go here to see a map and more info about parking. 

We also recommend reading up on the art in the park so you don't miss any of the less obvious installments.

5 Places to Instagram in the Northwest

The Pacific Northwest has a lot of quirks. As we explore we keep our eyes peeled for unique places that can serve as good photo opps. Check out some of the awesome things we have found in the past months.

The Umbrella Mural in Tacoma, WA, is great for many reasons. 1. Look at it, it's adorable. 2. If you haven't heard, it rains a lot here, so there is nothing more appropriate to paint on a wall than umbrellas. And 3. It leaves room for so many photo opps and ideas. Go get creative with it! 

Find it here: 216 Puyallup Ave, Tacoma, WA 98421

This EAT sign can be found at Shake Shake Shake, a charming diner in Tacoma, WA, which has delicious milkshakes that can put you in a sugar coma. Expert tip: the tables by this sign fill up fast, so go during off hours to snag a winning seat!  

Find it here: 124 N Tacoma Ave, Tacoma, WA 98403

This marquee is located in Downtown Vancouver on the Public Library. The library itself is an impressive building, but this adds a fun flare for photos. 

Find it here: 350 Georgia Street W,  Vancouver, BC, V6B 6B1

Ok, we know, this is a brick wall painted blue. Well you know what, that makes it a (bright) blank canvas for creativity. Go visit and get inspired! 

Find it here: 9127 Roosevelt Way NE, Seattle, WA, 98115

This one is popular, but it doesn't take away from its photo charm. It is a wall of gum! Nasty, but super cool for photos. 

Find it here: 1428 Post Alley, Seattle, WA 98101

April Fools Day: Take Me to the Magic Shop

Market Magic and Novelty Shop

The lower levels of Pike Place Market hold an amazing assortment of quirky shops you can spend hours exploring. In honor of this wonderful holiday, April Fools, we are profiling The Market Magic Shop, home to all your April Fools needs! 

Market Magic Shop boasts the fact that it is the oldest magic shop in the Pacific Northwest and when you step inside you are greeted with framed photos of all the famous visitors from over the years. The shop is stocked with goodies for beginner and expert magicians and have quite a few trick items for your April Fools' Day.

Our favorite finds inside? The Encyclopedia of Immaturity (if you watch Modern Family, I think this book is probably in Phil Dunphy's collection), the balloon animal starter kit (we have always wondered how they make those), and the Elvis Fortune Teller (yes, he does sing). 

Every little thing she does is...

All sorts of goodies can be found at the Magic shop.

For $.75 Elvis will give you your fortune.

50 million fans can't be wrong.

"...beware of a young woman in a red sports car"

Chihuly Garden and Glass

Visitors flock to Seattle Center to see Seattle's number one attraction: The Space Needle. Upon arrival most people also notice the beautiful glass sculptures right next door. We want to let you know that this attraction is not to be missed! Dale Chihuly is one of the Pacific Northwest's most famous artists and there is an obvious reason. Simply put, his glassblowing sculptures will stun the pants off of you.

The Garden and Glass exhibition in the Seattle Center is a beautiful combination of new and old and a clear testament to the Pacific Northwest's culture of art and innovation. 

Chihuly, born south of Seattle in Tacoma, WA, creates an amazing variety of large glass sculptures. Many of his creations are hundreds of small pieces placed together to create one large piece. These pieces have to be taken apart to clean one at a time (no bulls are allowed to work in this china shop). He purposefully does not give any sort of map on how to put it back together so that each time the gallery cleans a piece it then takes on a new shape depending on how they piece it back together.

The exhibition is separated into three parts:  the indoor galleries, the Glasshouse, and the Garden. The indoor galleries are incredible. Each room is filled with awe-inspiring exhibits and knowledgeable staff to give you background about each piece. The Glasshouse, our personal favorite, is a large glass building toward the end of the exhibit with a giant statement piece that dwarfs you as you walk in and it hangs over your head. Last, you are released into the Garden to explore the glass sculptures mixed in with the plants and flowers (with the Space Needle looming overhead). 

On a bright day, Chihuly's work adds a spectacular pop of color to Seattle Center and on a rainy day it will brighten even the darkest clouds. It is a don't miss in the city and since it is a stone's throw away from a place everyone usually visits it is an easy addition to the sightseeing tour! The gift shop is also a fantastic place to get great Seattle gifts that are a bit better than your average Sleepless in Seattle t-shirt or Space Needle Snow Globe.

Check out additional details here to learn more about the artist, exhibit hours, and how to buy tickets.