2014 Christmas stocking fillers at Bergo in The Distillery

It's that time of the year again!

I'm not sure one ever outgrows the thrill of emptying her Christmas stocking. I know I still love finding trinkets to fill my kids teens young adults' stocking. It is always the first thing that gets opened on Christmas morning. (Update: This post was written in 2014. The 2015 market goes on from Nov. 20 to Dec. 20)

I went to Bergo Designs this week (the gift store in the middle of Tank House Lane at The Distillery) and once again saw many cool gift ideas between $6 and $30, many of them perfect to add into the stockings. 

Beware, things fly off the shelves quickly! What you see here (seen in the store on December 4) might not be there anymore. But this is just the tip of the iceberg. The place is packed with fun or beautiful objects and gorgeous home decor items.

Fun suggestions to hide money gifts:

Christmas stocking fillers:

In this game, each player has 10 dice and must roll them until
all the dice are on the same number

Party ice breakers/fun hostess gifts:

I see an improvised puppet show... once the wine has been drunk.

Provide permanent pen for your guest so they can fill in the blanks...

I heard 10-year boys get very VERY excited about something. I turned and saw this!

Original gifts:

Cookie cutters for letters or numbers. I would bake special messages with that and put it in a cute box.

The good old mix tape... with a twist, to offer your favourite playlist to a special one.

A gift with a vintage feeling to it.

To play in the jaccuzi? Or to get the kids really really clean.

For picky eaters.

Toronto Christmas Market

Note that the Toronto Christmas Market is going strong at the Distillery until December 21, 2014! (Tuesday to Friday, 12 noon to 9 p.m., and 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on the weekends.)

My three pre-Holiday shopping walks!

I suggest the three following Toronto strolls to combine pre-Holiday shopping with a walk:

Click on the images for more info on each walk!

Click here for the full year-round calendar of suggestions.

The Junction Soulful Stroll

Stroll #20 in Toronto Urban Strolls 2

Why? The perfect place to find unique and substantial home decor gifts. (Did you know that The Junction is just a 15-minute walk north of High Park?)

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Trinity-Bellwoods Artsy Stroll

Stroll #26 in Toronto Urban Strolls 1

Why? This stroll includes three blocks east of Trinity-Bellwoods Park, with over 30 clothing or accessories boutiques for a good chance to find that special outfit you want for the holidays.

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The Distillery Red Brick Stroll

Stroll #7 in Toronto Urban Strolls 1

Why? Toronto Christmas Market goes on from Nov. 28 to Dec. 21 at The Distillery and every patio in the historical site hosts a burning fire.

Three cardio walks in Toronto: Perfect for the cold weather

For the cooler month of November, 
I suggest the three following Toronto walks 

Click on the images for more info on each walk!
Click here for the full year-round calendar of suggestions.

Don Valley Evergreen Brick Works Stroll

(ref. Stroll #12 in Toronto Urban Strolls 1)

Upper Beaches Steep Hill Stroll

(ref. Stroll #12 in Toronto Urban Strolls 1)

Casa Loma Staircase Stroll

(Stroll #22 in Toronto Urban Strolls 2)

Around Merchants of Green Coffee

Great combo in Riverside!
On my way to the Merchants of Green Coffee, I always walk across Joel Weeks Park, another hidden treasure nested in Riverside, located by the Don Valley. This morning, I noticed it recently got even better, with the addition of three fun sculptures.

At the southern entrance of tiny Joel Weeks Park, off Thompson Street (one street north of Queen east), a sculpture of four squirrels holding a giant acorn reminds me of the acorn-obsessed squirrel in Ice Age.  By the playground, a fat beaver sits on its tail, on a boulder featuring the carvings of fish and an otter. By Matilda Street (with the café in the background) is a lonesome fox.

The Riverside BIA let me know that they're the work of Mary Ann Barkhouse and Michael Belmore (not officially unveiled yet!), commisssioned by the City Parks, Forest and Recreation.

Fall gives a yellow hue to the beautiful trees, great landscaping with tall grass blowing in the wind creates a textured background. Just love it. And no wonder it's so lovely! The park was designed by Janet Rosenberg and Studios, the ones who gave us little gems such as Town Hall Square in Yorkville and Courthouse Square between King and Adelaide.

Walking past the fox, I peeked into the backyard of a place that seems to be collecting architectural ornaments from old buildings (today, I saw two Eiffel Towers and a pig sculpture). At the door of Merchants of Green Coffee awaited my friend Cat. He will later join me on the bench as I write this post. 

The place was quiet in the morning, with a couple playing Scrabbles and three business people planning a marketing coup on the Shopping Channel. In the afternoon, it filled up with a large team scouting locations for a movie and people having casual business meetings. Then, a good friend came to meet me at my "office"...

It's Halloween time, which explains why I was greeted in the washroom by a candle-lit sculpted pumpkin, painted in white. What a great idea!

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