Wedding bands by Jen & Wil
In July the Olympic Peninsula turns a beautiful shade of purple. A distinct and lovely fragrance permeates the air and you know, it's lavender season. Lavender is one of 30 species in the mint family and typically grown for essential oils and dried flowers.
For centuries, the purple herb has been known for its healing properties. The Romans used it as bug repellent, the Greeks wore it as perfume, and monks in the Middle Ages used it in medicinal concoctions. In a bouquet, lavender flowers symbolize devotion or luck and its purple hue, the color of royalty, signifies refinement and luxury.
Sequim Lavender Festival
For the 22nd year, the city of Sequim is celebrating all things lavender with their wildly popular festival from July 20th - 22nd. Sequim is approximately a 45 drive from Port Townsend.
The lavender festival features free self-guided farm of eight farms and one commercial nursery and street fair with 150+ crafts & lavender booths, food court, and live music. Click here for the full lineup of events.
Photo ℅ VisitOlympicPeninsula
Photo Credit: Wilderbee Farm
U-Pick Lavender
Wilderbee Farm, in Port Townsend, is a magical place to spend an afternoon picking lavender. Fit all the lavender you can into an 8-inch twist tie for $5/bouquet, the farm provides baskets, twist ties, and snippers.
Open Wednesday - Sunday from 10am to 5pm, Wilderbee has eight varieties with all different purposes including culinary, for essential oil, dried bouquets, or sachets. In the farm store, Wilderbee sells their own lavender essential oil, massage oil lotion, lip balm, dried lavender and more!
Photo Credit: Finnriver
Lavender Black Currant Cider
Every summer I anxiously await Finnriver’s seasonal and delicious Lavender Black Currant cider. The semi-sweet cider is my favorite summer drink. The lightly carbonated beverage is a fermented apple cider blended with black currant and steeped with Royal Velvet lavender.
Finnriver recommends pairing the cider with salads, cheeses, and desserts. You can pick up a bottle at the cidery and most of the local grocery stores like the Coop, Aldrich’s, and Chimacum Corner Store. If you’re looking to order more, you can purchase bottles on Finnriver’s website.
Photo Credit: Elevated Ice Cream
Lavender White Chocolate Ice Cream
For a truly decadent, creamy lavender experience stop by Elevated Ice Cream in downtown Port Townsend. Currently, they are dishing up a tasty lavender white chocolate ice cream that is not to be missed!
Elevated prides itself using local, high quality ingredients like locally grown berries and regionally grown nuts, or in this case lavender! They offer at least 30 flavors at a time and change their offerings seasonally, always serving two flavors of sherbet and 8 Italian Ices (non-dairy).