WEDNESDAY, DEC. 3 2014 >>>

1. Puyallup Fair and Events Center will be turned into a Christmas lover's wonderland for five days when the Victorian Country Christmas festival opens at 10 a.m. Holiday music will fill the air as live musicians stroll through a festive array of Christmas décor and animated displays. Visitors can shop all day as well as enjoy the shows and a vast array of food offerings. There are also carriage rides, Santa Tram rides and the Christmas Carousel. Best of all, for those who love to sing Christmas carols, the festival features Christmas Karaoke.

2. Tacoma Art Museum Chief Curator Rock Hushka will lead a discussion on the history and inspiration behind the sound and video installation Mary Lucier: The Plains of Sweet Regret at 11 a.m. Hear how the video stemmed from a larger project titled Emptying Out of the Plains that was commissioned by the North Dakota Museum of Art. Find out more about this installation and how life is on the plains almost 10 years after the video was created.

3. Tacoma's Mad Hat Tea Co. and local band The Cloves teamed up to create their own special tea blend. Mad Hat's Tobin and Maureen created a unique mix of black tea, cinnamon and cloves to spawn "Tea Time with The Cloves." Thrilled with the tea, the band will celebrate with an acoustic set at 4:30 p.m. in the tea shop in downtown Tacoma.

4. The South Puget Sound Community College Choir will join voices with the Puget Sound Community Choir and St. Martin's University Chorale, all to the festive strains of the Department of Washington American Legion Band for Sounds of the Season at 7 p.m. on the Minnaert Center Main Stage. Among tunes performed will be "Ding Dong Merrily on High," "A Virgin Unspotted," "A Visit from St. Nicholas" with poetic narration, and a "Christmas on Broadway" medley featuring the songs of Irving Berlin. This heartwarming concert will be followed by a sing-along of carols with the audience. O night divine!

5. Tacoma and Seattle music scenes will collide at 8 p.m. when Maurice the Fish Records welcomes London Tone Music's artists in a showcase at Jazzbones. The all-ages show will feature musicians Eric Lilavois, Science! And Vanowen. The staff of both labels will be on hand with open arms if you'd like to hand them your CDs.

LINK: Wednesday, Dec. 3 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area