As soon as the Monday workday ended for the 9-5ers, some famous faces hit Soho House’s third floor Pretzel bar for a low-key cocktail to fete their Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) film My Days of Mercy.
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In addition to the star power-filled films, red carpets and parties, another major ingredient to the Toronto International Film Fest (TIFF) are the gifting suites.
Being blessed with big screen-worthy looks and acting chops comes with the added perk of getting showered with all kinds of noteworthy products like the stars do. Speaking of a perk of the job, the media gets to partake in the suite life of TIFF as well – we even have a lounge dedicated specifically for us.
Along the way we met some cool people and discovered notable products; these are some of our favourites.
The Stylist Box‘s Stylist Suite made the lives easier for talent throughout the festival by offering a massive “closet” of Canadian-designed clothing and accessories to borrow, red carpet-ready hairstyling from the experts at Salon Daniel & Spa and makeup from the beauty experts at P1M. Guests also left the suite armed with fully stocked gift bags containing everything from gift certificates to Salon Daniel, PearlMD Rejuvenation (Dr. Jennifer Pearlman was also on-site to offer treatments) and new dress rental spot Boro, to a LED Cinema Lightbox from My Cinema Lightbox (which was probably the coolest swag gift we took home throughout the festival). Check out more at #stylistsuite5.
EGPR Essentials Lounge | Photo: Ryan Emberley
Back for its eight year, EGPR’s goodness-packed Essentials Lounge returned to treat the media to memorable (and much appreciated) swag and services on the eve of the festival. This included mini facials from Skinceuticals, eyelash extensions from Winks Boutique, makeup touchups from Dior Makeup and manicures by Tweezerman, who also gifted engraved Tweezers (if you don’t own a pair of their magic-making Tweezers, you need to ASAP). Other highlights included an assortment of kicks from Keds (including a Kate Spade collaboration, which I scooped up), “Toronto” t-shirts from Tuck Shop Trading Co, engraved Michael Kors Sexy Ruby perfume and an assortment of products from Loreal. Gift bags included the Dior Diorshow Pump n Volume mascara, which is hands-down the best I have ever owned; it turns your lashes into a work of art. Check out more at #essentialslounge8
Back for the ninth year, the Bask-It Style suite by Glo Communications popped up in the Thompson Hotel to showcase some notable brands like Studio1098, HP (and their handheld printers) Kobo, Pureology, Yardley London, Maredesso, Barefoot Venus and much more. The HP Sprocket handheld printers caught our eye. Serving as the modern day instant camera, it lets you wirelessly and instantly print mini 2 x 3-inch photos. Other notable talking points included the prettiest tea that you ever did see from DAVIDSsTEA (the “Glitter and Gold” tea featured TIFF-appropriate stars), the talking point-heavy Diamond Graphic Collection from Studio 1098 and red carpet-worthy hair touchups from Pureology. Check out more at #baskitstyle
Rock-it Promotions welcomed media and talent into their airy, newly renovated headquarters for Tastemakers Presents: Suite on the SIXth, held September 6 to 8. Showcasing brands like Peoni, Perth Soap Co., InBalance Smoothie Cubes, McGregor Socks, Ink & Water Tattoo (who offered on-site fine-line tattooing) and Hudson’s Bay Company (plus more), the gifting suite left guests clad with Hudson’s Bay bags (that feature the brand’s iconic stripes) packed with well-received products. One of the most notable discoveries was the art of Michelle Vella that decorated the space. Check out more at #suiteonthesixth
the[fix] hosted by Dr. Liza Egbogah
Decidedly one of the most celeb-frequented gifting suites was the[fix} luxury retreat lounge. After posting pictures of countless A-listers on Instagram, the magic maker behind it, Dr. Liza Egbogah joked in a post that it was easier to list the stars who didn’t show up. At this lounge – conveniently located in the press junket and interview-filled InterContinental Hotel, at this suite, celebs can sip on Havana Club cocktails, pick out a new pair of Sorel boots, get a massage from Dr. Liza herself (select stars got to take home her uber comfortable Dr. Liza pump) and eat as much candy as their hearts desire. Gift bags included Pommies Cider, Refreshsht spray and Station cold brew coffee. Check out more at #thefixtiff
Swarovski at NKPR IT Lounge
Back for the second year, NKPR has collaborated with Scott Brothers Entertainment (you know, those easy-on-the-eyes twins from “Brother vs. Brother,” “Property Brothers at Home”) to transform a two-story hub at Richmond and Peter into the IT House x Producers Ball. Here, talent can have their portrait taken at one of two celebrity photo studios – one with Nylon Magazine and another with The Coveteur. To complete red carpet-worthy looks, Swarovski was on site gift the stars with some sparkly swag. IT House also partnered with rock & roll gallery, Analogue Gallery, to feature notable works throughout the space, with a portion of all sales going back to APJ. Check out more at #nkprit17
Celebrating the TIFF premiere of the film Stronger, Jake Gyllenhaal arrived to the after party at Soho House last night on September 8, 2017.
The film centres on the memoir of Boston marathon bombing survivor Jeff Bauman (pictured above).
We sipped on cocktails and nibbled on bites while admiring how Jake looks the same as he does on the big screen. He was all smiles as he mingled with guests.
We spotted Tatiana Maslany greeting him and take a photo with him as well.
Tatiana Maslany, Jake Gyllenhaal | Photo: Getty Images
Also in attendance were lead actors from the film Richard Lane Jr and Miranda Richardson as well as Stanley Tucci and Armie Hammer.
Thanks to Grey Goose for the invite to the private party.
Jake Gyllenhaal, Tatiana Maslany, Jeff Bauman | Photo: Getty Images
Photos by Getty Images
Helmets on, safety restraints in place, clutch in, in gear, green light, go go go! The excitement and exhilaration of driving a Corvette Z06 on the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park Grand Prix track makes for one sweet afternoon.
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Step aside escape rooms and board game cafes; virtual reality may just be the “future of entertainment” wherein one can immerse themselves into another world. The arcade, bordering the uptown area of Toronto, combines high quality technology with the social aspect of gaming with friends, which intrigues both avid gamers and newcomers alike. One can take on a variety of games to their heart’s content or have a glimpse of the VR world at booths that are pre-setup by tech connoisseurs.
Located at the “World on Yonge” plaza, “VR Zone” recently opened in June by a joint collaboration between an economics and a computer science graduate. After testing out a handful of VR equipment, Ray and his partner, opted for the HTC Vive for its high calibration and ease of mobility. The smooth performance (featuring a GTX 1080 Ti) creates a realistic visual and acoustic ambiance that allows players to feel as if they have been teleported to a different dimension. Most impressively, VR Zone has Canada’s first ever fully wirelessly controlled game system.
“State of the art custom carbon fibre wire management system – removes wire dragging effect”
Currently, the 18 games available at VR Zone are divided into five categories:
1. First Person Shooter
First person shooter is without a doubt a popular pick due to its high-intensity and adrenaline-inducing gun-play. “Mercenary” exercises swift tactile skills for dodging bullets and target accuracy. “Space Pirate Trainer” has a more breath-taking view where you shoot down flying droids on a spaceship horizon to get the highest score.
2. Recreation
You can have your own customizable avatar at “The Rec Room”, a dorm-style lounge that allows you to interact with other real-time users globally, and play various PVP games such as dodgeball, disc golf, and charades. I also enjoyed “Audioshield” where you hold two different-coloured deflectors and shield incoming beats from your song-of-choice.
3. Experience
“The Lab” is a pocket universe which holds a collection of Valve’s experiments and games in varying worlds. “Tilt Brush” brings drawing to a 3D context. The brush allows you to unleash your creativity with a life-sized canvas and animated brush strokes.
4. Strategy
I enjoyed “Vacate the Room” which is a virtual escape room with a definite ending to your puzzle-solving achievements.
5. Horror
For the braver adventure-seekers, “Arizona Sunshine” places you in a survival mode during the zombie apocalypse. “The Brookhaven Experiment” will also be sure to make your skin crawl where monsters pop up from the darkness.
Alongside The Rec Room and Arizona Sunshine, “Battle Dome” and “Raw Data Arcade” are more co-op games where you can team up with your friends, which comes in handy when hosting birthday or bachelor parties.
What makes VR Zone different from other Virtual Reality Arcades is the self-serving aspect. In many other places, the user would require to seek the assistance of the employee in order to manually switch games. Aside from receiving assistance for putting on the headgear and game recommendations from the knowledgeable employees, you decide how long you’d want to play each game for with minimal supervision. Additionally, the projection of blue-grid indicators into the game allows for awareness of the outside world.
VR in action
They are in the works of developing more Steam games, such as “Super Hot” into a virtual-reality format, so expect more new games upon your visit. Unsurprisingly, VR Zone’s efficient self-service experience is already receiving franchising proposals to implement their convenient system globally. The owners also hope to expand the use of VR to bring a more educational purpose (ie. biology demonstrations) to future clients.
Photos Courtesy of VR Zone
Photo Courtesy of VR Zone (c)
Photo Courtesy of VR Zone (c)
Photo Courtesy of VR Zone (c)
Photo Courtesy of VR Zone (c)
Photo Courtesy of VR Zone (c)
Photo Courtesy of VR Zone (c)
Book online at: https://www.vrzone.ca/
7181 Yonge St #31
Instagram: @torontovrzone
Facebook: /TorontoVRZone