Come Up To My Room - Opening Reception

I've been known to sing praises to the Gladstone Hotel before and this night is no exception. Come Up To My Room is Gladstone's annual alternative design event, now in its tenth year. Visitors are invited to see what happens when artists and designers get a chance to occupy and alter a space in a dramatic, conceptual, or experimental way. My favourites of the night: Bruno Billio and the SUMO Project.

The exhibit itself runs for 4 days but the opening night reception turns it into a real (and very popular!) party, so come early and stay all night. In addition, in true Gladstone fashion, there were three other exhibits taking place throughout the hotel that night, so it was a bit of a grand tour experience.

Finally, night owls can stay for the free Love Design Party (10pm-2:30am), which is the official closing party for the Toronto Design Offsite Festival. Like I said, options abound for the willing.

WHAT: Come Up To My Room Opening Reception

WHEN: January 26, 2013 - 7:00-11:00 pm

WHERE: Gladstone Hotel, 2nd Floor (additional exhibits in the Melody Bar and on the 3rd and 4th floors)

COST: $10 (additional exhibits are free to attend)

INSIDER DETAILS: The opening night is seriously packed, so if you're not into crowds, I would suggest going on one of the other days for easier access. Otherwise, grab your friends and enjoy a fun night out!

Do Design - Trinity Bellwoods on Dundas

Do Design is an annual celebration of design on Dundas St. West where visitors are invited to explore the neighbourhood as a "gallery" by visiting participating venues, all within walking distance and showcasing works of contemporary designers in sometimes unusual venues.

Tonight was the Public Opening Reception night, with 9 venues hosting a series of receptions in the afternoon and early evening. The event website indicated that the receptions would take place between 3:00-8:00 pm but was a little sparse on the details, so I couldn't actually tell which venues were hosting a reception when. As I was heading down over to the Gladstone Hotel for their Come Up To My Room exhibition around 7:00 pm, I figured I might as well line up my times and start on with Do Design receptions around 5:30 pm. A practical plan, one would think but not quite as foolproof as I had thought.

The good: the event is charming and I definitely came across some interesting and unique pieces that I absolutely loved. This is a great way to discover the neighbourhood and I had enjoyed myself quite a bit. Because the geographic area is very small, you end up bumping into the same people and can make a few friends over the course of the night (which I did). I also managed to wander into a very strange situation that included the host (with the help of some bubbly) recounting a very personal dating story (and seeking advice) and treating myself and another visitor to a rather lovely rendition of "Moon River". The more I end up in potentially uncomfortable situations, the more I find that keeping an open mind and just going with it saves a lot of headaches and makes all the ridiculousness quite enjoyable. Overall, it's a nice variety of venues and some great new finds (sprinkled with some drinks, nibbles, and music).

The bad: Some of the venues were actually closed, which I did not expect on a Public Opening Reception night. Of the nine venues that were hosting receptions, three were closed (Sweet Woodruff Flower Shop, Odile Chocolat, and The Press Club) and 1 was a bar (that was quite empty - Archive). Of the remaining five, two were quite packed (MADE and Comrags), one was a gallery in the process of setting up an installation (Creatures Collective), and two were pretty quiet (Fute and Hide). So this was a pretty hit-or-miss kinds of night with varying success rates.

WHAT: Do Design Public Opening Reception (multiple venues)

WHERE: Dundas St. West between Markham St. and Bellwoods Ave.

WHEN: January 26 - 3:00-8:00 pm

COST: Free

INSIDER DETAILS: To catch all the participating venues, go early! They don't stay open past their regular business hours for this event.

5th Anniversary - Fynn's of Temple Bar

My original plan was to only stop by for a drink before heading off to another commitment, but it was such a good time that I ended up staying all night. A few of my friends and I headed off to one of our favourite bars for their 5th Anniversary celebrations and believe me when I say that a good time was had by all.

We got the whole tray!

The evening featured free Steam Whistle beer samples (that were quite generous and numerous), birthday cake, appetizers, live music, drink specials, some Steam Whistle freebies (tours, tastings, bottle openers, and a draw for a vintage cooler), and a fantastic magician (and I don't even like magicians). Baldini the magician was tremendously entertaining and spent quite a bit of time at our table awing us with card and magic tricks and balloon artistry. He was hilarious to boot and even taught us a couple of cool (but easy!) magic tricks.

We may have gotten our hands some more

Baldini the Magician up to his old tricks

WHAT: Anniversary celebrations at Fynn's of Temple Bar

WHERE: 489 King St. West

WHEN: January 17 - 5:30-9:00 pm

COST: Varies (depends on what you order but prices are very reasonable; I had a cider and went in on 2 pitchers all for $20 tax and tip included)

INSIDER DETAILS: This event was not widely advertized (which also means the bar wasn't overcrowded and the staff were not run off their feet!), so you really need to be a "local" to be in the know. Like their Facebook page to learn about future events. Also, if you have any favourite bars/restaurants/etc., I would suggest befriending them on social media as well as this is the avenue of choice these days when it comes to promoting special events while targeting dedicated followers.

Calling it a night

Our balloon loot - biggest in the bar :)

Winter Welcome-Back Events at Ryerson

I addition to free poutine, Beavertails and skating, Ryerson held other winter welcome-back events for students for the rest of the week. As a continuing education student, these are the two that were on my radar:

January 14-17, 2013, 5pm-6:30pm
CESAR is giving away FREE hot chocolate and cookies from 5pm-6:30pm on Monday, January 14 to Thursday, January 17 at VIC, TRSM, ENG, POD, and SHE

Tuesday, January 15, 2013, 5pm-7pm
CESAR Student Life Centre House Warming
Visit the satellite CESAR office in Heaslip House (297 Victoria) on the main floor for free prizes, food and giveaways.

While I didn't see any prizes and giveaways at Heaslip House, there were, indeed, giant (and quite delicious) soft chewy cookies, various dessert squares, and hot chocolate available and made for a great tie-me-over snack before class (for some reason, that picture didn't come through). In addition, there was information available on other CESAR events and I have discovered in the process that Heaslip House also offers free computer access, which comes in handy from time to time. 

 WHAT: Winter Welcome-Back Events (i.e. free dessert and hot chocolate)

WHERE: Ryerson University

WHEN: Jan 14-17, 2013

COST: Free

INSIDER TIPS: Open house and welcome-back events nearly always involve free food and giveaways and while they target a particular audience, there are rarely restrictions on who can attend. Check out student unions/associations, universities, and other membership-based organizations in your neighbourhood to see what events are taking place. 

 

Skating and Free Food at Ryerson

Today Ryerson University hosted a Winter Welcome Back party for continuing education and part-time students, also known as "Come and Get Free Stuff!" The official invite read this: "Join CESAR and the Ryerson Students' Union (RSU) on MONDAY, JANUARY 14 from 5pm-10pm for a night of ice skating on Lake Devo, hot chocolate, FREE Beavertails and Smoke's Poutine, Ryerson Skate team demo music and outdoor games. Dean Gervan Fearon of the Chang School and President Sheldon Levy will be present on Monday, January 14th at 5:30pm to talk to part-time degree and continuing education students about student engagement on campus and student services. President Levy will also be handing out FREE tickets to varsity games at the Mattamy Athletics Centre."

 While we didn't see President Levy or any free tickets (and I was there at 5:30), we definitely got out free Beavertails and Spoke's Poutine, as well as quite a few turns on the skating rink. Overall, it was a fun low-key event and my friend and I had a good time.

 WHAT: Winter Welcome Back: Skating Under the Stars

WHERE: Ryerson University, Lake Devo (at Victoria and Gould)

WHEN: January 14 - 5:30-10:00 pm

COST: Free

INSIDER DETAILS: Technically, the event is for continuing education and part-time students (well, the free food was) but they weren't really checking too closely. If you have a friend at Ryerson, you can partake in free food quite easily. Also, if you plan on skating, note that the change rooms are currently under constructions, so dress accordingly as you'll be changing out in the open, where it's quite chilly. There is a bench in the middle of the skating rink by a cluster of rocks where you can leave your personal belongings to keep them safe from passers-by. 

Chef's Cookbook Library Charity Event

 Viva Tastings, a local caterer, held a charity event today with the proceeds benefiting FoodShare. Guests were invited to browse their collection of cookbooks and pick one to take home for free, with each additional title costing a mere $5. Some great titles were available (including bundles of Canadian, British, and Australian cooking magazines), as well as some tasty morsels to snack on. A quick feel-good stop-over with a healthy dose of shopping.

FoodShare Toronto is a non-profit community organization whose vision is Good Healthy Food for All.  FoodShare Toronto is Canada's largest community food security organization, recognized as an important innovator of effective programs that have been reproduced all across Canada.

WHAT: Tasting event and cookbook sale

WHERE: Viva Tastings, 52 Henry St.

WHEN: Jan 13, 1:30-4:00 pm

COST: Free (includes one book to take home); additional items $5

INSIDER DETAILS: Be sure to sign up for Viva Tastings newsletter to be kept in the loop about future events. They offer a good range of activities, including cooking classes, kitchen dinners, corporate team-building, and special events.

Whole Foods - Health Starts Here: Passport Fair

Whole Foods has an expensive reputation and it can certainly get pricey to shop there but this does not necessarily need to be the case. In fact, I have found products there on numerous occasions that were, in fact, cheaper than  in regular grocery stores and the quality is always superb. Besides that, Whole Foods offers tastings, classes, and other special events. One such event was the Passport Fair, which took place over the lunch hour today. Visitors to the store were welcome to pick up a passport and visit 8 different stations throughout the store that showcased different departments and offered free tastings. The food was fresh, delicious, and innovative, and the samples were not only generous (it was enough to constitute a lunch!) but also offered inspiration for meal plans. In addition, those who collected all 8 stamps were invited to enter a draw for a food basket. This is definitely an event I would gladly return to next year.

WHAT: Whole Foods Health Starts Here: Passport Fair

WHERE: Whole Foods store - Yorkville location

WHEN: January 12, 12:00-3:00 pm

COST: Free

INSIDER DETAILS: The staff are very friendly and helpful, so take full advantage of this and ask them for recipes, nutritional information, and even second helpings! Also be sure to stop by the cheese counter, as they normally have a couple of cheeses set up for tastings as well. Finally, be sure to keep an eye on other Whole Foods events at a location near you.

Double Vision: Poster Art of Doublenaut

Free print! 

I've mentioned before that Gladstone is a good spot to get a free dose of art on a regular basis and the best way to do so is to make it to try to make it to opening nights of their exhibits. The Double Vision: Poster Art of Doublenaut launch night was a great example of this. Not only was this a beautiful display of works featuring simple illustration, bold colour schemes, and strong typography, but those in attendance also walked away with a specially-designed limited edition poster created specifically for the exhibit (and free to take home!).

The exhibit runs until January 19th and features concert posters and art prints designed and screen printed by Andrew and Matt McCracken, who first began working under the name of Doublenaut in 2004. The studio is Toronto based (which always appeals to my desire to support local businesses) and the exhibit will appeal to fans of mid-century modern design and fans of music shows. 

WHAT: Double Vision: Poster Art of Doublenaut

WHERE: Gladstone Hotel, 2nd Floor Gallery

WHEN: Jan 10-19, 2013 - 12:00-5:00 pm daily

COST: Free

INSIDER TIPS: The exhibit is not terribly extensive, so be sure to plan another activity if you want to make a night of it. The Gladstone usually has something going on just about every night, so check out their scheduled events to help plan your visit.