Show WA Love
Spring has come to the Pacific Northwest and there has never been a better time to daydream about your next adventure. Though we all are confined to our homes for at least a few more weeks, if not more, our minds are free to explore. However, this crisis has been devastating to the tourism and hospitality industry and when it passes, we want to make sure that our favorite places are still open to enjoy. Introducing showWAlove.com: a website that connects you to your favorite local businesses so you can buy gift cards for future visits.
Created by the not-for-profit Washington Tourism Alliance to help support local Washington businesses that are in desperate need of support, this website creates a way to search and find old favorites, local gems, and new discoveries. Buy a gift certificate now, and play later. Plan a future road trip and use the site as both a planning tool, and a way to keep the lights on for your favorite destinations.
At showWAlove.com, many of your favorite businesses (plus hopefully some new ones!) have been gathered into one convenient location. Browse through gift certificates and online gift cards. They are conveniently organized and easy to search by map, location and category. Own a business yourself? It's very simple to add your own listing to the site!
“Never has there been a more important time to come together as a state as we work to rebuild Washington’s tourism and hospitality industry,” said Scott Meis, Vice President of Marketing for Clipper Vacations. “ShowWAlove.com provides an easy curated gift card shopping experience to surprise someone you care about with the gift of travel to enjoy once the crisis has passed.”
Vacation Mood Board
Its times like these that make us stop, take stock of what we do have, and realize that we do want to appreciate our freedom when we have it. Besides just longing to see all our favorite people and critters again, we want to get out of the home base we’ve been looking at most everyday since this began.
The sun is shining , the days are getting longer, and we’re starting to feel the itch to go exploring. Do you have a bucket list of all your favorite Washington warmer weather spots? What better way to get our minds away from the day to day and start visualizing our next trip than with a Vacation Mood Board?
What do you see first? Well when we’re talking about our own Evergreen State, its usually blues and greens. Your favorite body of water surrounded by a stand of trees? How about the trail to get down there? Or up, is hiking your thing? What's your favorite wildlife creature to spot along the way? Are you also a bird watcher when the opportunity arises? When you arrive at the water, do you collect stones, interesting driftwood, or abandoned shells? This is where a mood board comes in. Its something a little more concrete, that we can gaze at whenever we’re feeling reminiscent of all Washington has to offer. Something to set near your workspace, creative nook, or it could be wherever you spend the biggest part of your day.
Step one: Start collecting. Don’t limit yourself, just get all your favorite things together. Tearing into magazines, chopping up color swatches, and compiling images to begin.
Step two: A base for your collection. Poster boards can be picked up at the dollar store, or perhaps you have one in your stash. An unused picture frame or corkboard. A whiteboard with magnets. A piece of wooden trellis from the garden makes an interesting one to hang momentos from.
Step three: This step involves narrowing things down. It is ok! There’s time and enjoyment in creating another board later! Channeling the direction of where you’re concentrating this trip on is the focus. Start building around an inspiration image. ( Wallace Falls? By way of the scenic route up the beaches of Chuckanut drive? Favorite roadside food joint?) Create texture in between your images with different thicknesses of ticket stubs (whale watching), nostalgic receipts, previous photographs. Perhaps pictures of the last time you made this trip or a similar one; friends you want to accompany you; or just the same color scheme, trees, or views. Layer in fabric, flowers, plant materials, or feathers.
Step four: Start planning your adventure! Get your friends and family involved. Pick some good dates on your calendar and coordinate with their schedules. Plan the route. Order the hiking guide, fishing guide, or all around visitor’s guide for the area.
Hopefully this has you feeling inspired, confident, and accomplished. Its been a productive use of this time with something tangible and fun to share later while peaceful to gaze at now. Creating this Vacation Mood Board helps us to envision the possibility before the first step is taken or the last photo is snapped.
(Share with us? #showwalove ?)
