Homes get gussied up for the holidays

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Historic homes and holiday décor make a gorgeous match and just may inspire you with ideas for sprucing up your abode in holiday style.

The Mount Baker Home Tour chauffeurs guests between seven beautifully preserved homes with an arts-and-crafts fair at the Mount Baker Community Club to browse while you await your tour, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, 2811 Mount Rainier Drive S., Seattle, $20 for adults, $12 for seniors and children, 206-722-7209.

Other tours this weekend include the Snohomish Historical Society's Christmas Parlour Tour of the Victorian-era Blackman Museum and several historic district homes in holiday finery, noon to 4 p.m. Sunday. The tour is self-guided with tickets available at the Blackman Museum in Snohomish for $8 to $10, 360-568-5235. Or take a tour of homes built in the popular early 1900s' Craftsman style by shuttle bus from the State Capitol Museum in Olympia, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, $12, 360-753-2580.

For a look at some of the best outdoor light displays in local neighborhoods, circle your calendar for the Dec. 15 Seattle Holiday Lights Tour. It's a two-hour tour guided by Santa himself on vintage buses restored by the Metro Employees Historic Vehicle Association, departing 7 p.m. from Third Avenue South and South Main Street near Seattle's Pioneer Square. Fares $4 to $5, no reservations required, 206-684-1816 or www.mehva.org.