December 2014

Best and Worst of 2014: In Memoriam

Best and Worst of 2014: In Memoriam

OsoA simple wooden sign on a towering evergreen—one of only a few still standing along this barren stretch of Highway 530 in Snohomish County—marks the instant the world turned upside down for the tiny town of Oso. In March, a devastating mudslide claimed the lives of 43 people in a matter of minutes. A heroic…

8 Reasons to Love the Denny

8 Reasons to Love the Denny

he aim of making cities more bike friendly has traditionally focused on the streets—striping, signals and barriers, that sort of thing. But this year The Bike Design Project (oregonmanifest.com), a nonprofit innovation platform in Portland, took aim at the velocipedes themselves with a national competition to inspire bike designs that strive to do no less…

The 2014 Crosscut Courage Award Winners

The 2014 Crosscut Courage Award Winners

Improvements in the human condition often begin with a single person endowed with an extra dose of courage, determined to do the right thing in the face of obstacles and naysayers for the benefit of the many. Seattle magazine is proud to partner with Crosscut to present the second annual Crosscut Courage Awards. Meet the…

Best and Worst of 2014: Highs & Lows, Gaffes and More

Our annual review of Seattle's gaffes, goofs and triumphs

Crickets for dinner. Buses filled with pot smoke. Good karma. Our annual review of the high points and low lights of the year. For more Best and Worst 2014 articles go here, plus read about the 2014 Crosscut Award winners.  

Best and Worst of 2014: Pot

Best and Worst of 2014: Pot

Recreational marijuana comes to Seattle and the potrepreneurs are out in full force

LegalHave your cake and eat it, too (yum, cake!) with cannabis-infused cold-brew coffee. Perfect for: viewing Peter Jackson’s 11-hour extended-edition Lord of the Rings trilogy. Also available in full-chill form, as a non-caffeinated, spliff-enhanced sparkling soda. Warning: If you hear something go bump in your pantry, it might not be because you’re baked. Overly yeasted…

New Public Art Installation in South Lake Union

New Public Art Installation in South Lake Union

South Lake Union sprouts a new urban forest

This time of year can start to feel like you’re trapped in a crinkling vortex of wrapping paper with “Jingle Bell Rock” on repeat. But with his new, permanent work of public art, “There Is Another Sky,” New York artist Spencer Finch reminds us to slow down and look up. The only artist commissioned to…

The Best Northwest Winter Getaways

The Best Northwest Winter Getaways

Infinite ways to enjoy the cold weather, from sleigh rides and igloos to relaxing by a fire.

We may have more than our share of soggy, gray days here in Seattle, but we find solace in one fact: It’s probably snowing in the mountains! Then we make tracks to bright, bracing snow country. Whether you prefer to enjoy your winter wonderland up-close on slopes, trails and ice rinks or from the warm…

The Best Places to Ski in and Around the Northwest

The Best Places to Ski in and Around the Northwest

Whether you are a powder hound, laid-back freerider or Polartec poser, you can find your perfect place in the snow with our at-a-glance roundup of essential ski areas. CRYSTAL MOUNTAIN How big? Largest ski resort in the stateThe scene: FamiliesThe slopes: 2,600 acres; nearly 57 runs of various levels of difficulty Other fun: Sidecountry adventures…

7 Wintertime Activities to Do Now

7 Wintertime Activities to Do Now

Ice climbing, dogsledding, showshoeing and more await at these closer-than-you-think locales

Seattle’s Ski HillGet your winter blast fast at The Summit at Snoqualmie When powder fever hits Seattle, the closest snow is less than an hour’s drive east on I-90. At The Summit at Snoqualmie (summitatsnoqualmie.com), a yearly average of 436 inches of the white stuff blankets nearly 2,000 skiable acres across four ski areas—Summits West,…

2014 Holiday Gift Guide

2014 Holiday Gift Guide

From jewelry to culinary supplies to techie treats, these 40 presents have everyone covered

From affordable treats to luxe baubles, here is our essential roundup of unique, thoughtful and chic gifts for everyone on your list. Luxury Gifts   1. The everything bag: Bevée’s Trifold Sidekick is a convertible wallet and purse with removable chain (not shown). $215, available at beveebags.com.   2. Inspired by chainmail armor, Elizabeth Roberts’…

PNB’s Wardrobe Mistress knows The Nutcracker inside and out

PNB’s Wardrobe Mistress knows The Nutcracker inside and out

Sherri Thompson has been mending costumes on set since 1984

While you sit in the audience watching Pacific Northwest Ballet perform The Nutcracker with flawless grace, the backstage is buzzing with quick costume changes and last-minute fixes. This is the purview of PNB’s Sherri J. Thompson, who waits—needle and thread at the ready—should the Nutcracker lose a button or the Sugarplum Fairy tear her tutu….

Will the Duwamish Ever Be Clean?

Will the Duwamish Ever Be Clean?

42 Chemicals in the River Exceed Human Health Standards

Blackberries. A cluster of them, fat and ripe, one of Seattle’s sweetest freebies. Normally, I’d pick them—they aren’t growing next to the road, after all. But on this summer day, I’m standing on Harbor Island in South Seattle, designated as a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) hazardous-waste Superfund site, and looking at the lower Duwamish…