As spring in Toronto pushes into its second month, colourful signs of life are just starting to show themselves in our gardens, ravines and front lawns. Yes, things might still be a little desaturated on the whole, but that's about to change in a major way. What better time to challenge our readers to share their photos of colourful Toronto. Partnering up with the Colour Me Rad 5K race, we offered two tickets and $100 of merchandise to the reader who submitted our favourite photo of colour in Toronto. It was difficult to make our choice, but we'd like to congratulate Alan Dawe for his ethereal shot of the Gardiner Expressway at dusk.

Check out all the submissions in our Colours stream.

Winners stores in Toronto are always a roll of the dice. No matter which of the discount chain's many GTA locations you choose, you'll need lots of time - and a little bit of luck. You can't just walk in and pick up what you want - you have to dig to find that treasure, whether it's a designer item of clothing, shoes, cosmetics or something for the home.

The trick is knowing which Winners has what: some have more designer items and a better selection of clothing, while some have a better home collection. It all depends on what you want and how much you want to search for it. That's the secret of Winners - it's all about the thrill of the hunt and the joy of the deal.

Here are the best and worst Winners in Toronto.

BEST

College Park
This is considered one of the best Winners in the city - the large, marble-floored location is the perfect place to find that item of clothing to complete your wardrobe. Need a trench for the spring? It's probably here. It also has a healthy designer section, recently offering a grey Saint Laurent bag at just $1,999.99. It has a good selection of menswear and if you're athletically-inclined, all the items you need to equip your home gym, like kettle balls and yoga mats. It also has a very healthy cosmetics section. The only downside? The store is very popular (it's right at the College subway stop), so if you see something you like, buy it immediately.

Bathurst and Lawrence
The shoe selection at this north-end location isn't that great, but there is a balance of clothing and household items, with a good selection of men's brands, designer labels, cosmetics and travel items. It's one of the smaller stores, so the selection isn't as varied as the bigger downtown locations.

Queen and Portland
Located on top of the Joe Fresh and Loblaws, this Winners might be the best one for finding designer clothing - if that's your thing. You might have luck finding Pink Tartan or a discontinued Canadian designer hanging on the rack. If that's not your thing, there's a broad selection of shoes, as well as a good menswear selection.

Yorkville
This two-storey store is easy to navigate. Shoes, cosmetics, jewellery and accessories are on the first floor; clothing, lingerie and housewares on the second. This store has one of the bigger household selections, recently offering copper cookware and numerous cake stands. The Bloor St. location means the store sees a lot of foot traffic, so the racks are usually picked over. This is one of the better Winners for jewellery.

Leaside
This location, one of the chain's newest, has two storeys. That means a bigger selection of items - but also means it tends to be picked over, just like its sister store Marshalls, just up the road at Eglinton and Brentcliffe.

Milton
It's out of the way (at least a 40 minute drive from downtown Toronto) but if you want to pick up something for the home, this Winners has a big selection of chairs, benches, tables, art work and pots. You can stock your kitchen entirely with Le Creuset from this location. The clothing, men's and shoe selection isn't that great but there is the rare find of a Mackage coat for less than half the retail price if you're willing to dig through the tiny coat selection.

BEST/WORST

Dufferin Mall
This location seems to have supporters and detractors. Some love it because all the good stuff is available, thanks to the mall's crowd of older patrons. Others hate it because it's messy and difficult to find items. Bottom line: This one really requires some extra digging time.

WORST

King and Spadina
Everything in this location seems wilted, dated and made of very limp polyester. The clothes are tired, the household selection is bland and the shoe section is picked over. The walls are dark and it may also have the least flattering lighting in the change rooms. They seem to do well in hair styling products based on their window displays.

Cloverdale Mall
Winners seems to suffer from distance syndrome - the clothing seems to get worse the further you travel from the city core. Cloverdale Mall's Winners is one of the more tired stores, not really offering a great selection of anything.

Richmond Hill
There are two Winners stores in Richmond Hill: one at Richmond Heights Plaza and the other at Yonge and Highway 7. They both have the same problem: they're small, messy and their selection isn't great.

Did I miss your favourite - or least favourite - Winners store? Let me know in the comments below.

Writing by Renee Sylvestre-Williams, photo by experttorontogirl on Flickr.

Commuting on the Gardiner Expressway can be trying at the best of times, but it's about to get a whole lot worse - and for a longer time. Long term construction work began this morning on the troubled highway, which will extend until 2016. No, that's not a typo. Along with periodic weekend closures like we had on Saturday, lane reductions will become an everyday reality for those travelling to and from the core of the city.

Reports from this morning indicated that traffic had slowed to stop-and-go prior to 7:00 a.m. with the left lane closed in both directions from Park Lawn to Strachan. That's going to mean some groggy-eyed wake-ups for those hoping to beat traffic into the city. Ouch. The crumbling expressway needs all manner of work, including bridge repairs over the Humber River, guardrail work, and replacement of the centre median and a deck of roadway on the westbound side near the CNE.

In addition to daytime lane reductions, the eastbound Gardiner will also be closed periodically overnight (from 11:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m.) so that work crews can address repairs that require complete lane closures. Let the road rage begin.

Photo by Jeff Mann in the blogTO Flickr pool.

Today in Toronto you can listen in at TO's own version of The Moth, True Stories Told Live, where each reader gets ten minutes on stage to tell one true story with no notes. While you can hear plenty of ten minute long+ free stories on public transit, these will be more focused, if not necessarily as entertaining. Bruce McDonald and Don McKellar will be at The Royal for Canadian Film Day, and Andres Marroquin Winkelmann's Contact exhibit will open in Corktown. For more events, click on over to our events section.

• Lit: True Stories Told Live (The Garrison)
• Film: National Canadian Film Day w/ Bruce McDonald and Don McKellar (The Royal)
• Comics: Descant 164: Cartooning Degree Zero: Launch Party (Handlebar)
• Music: James Blunt (The Danforth Music Hall)
• Art: Andres Marroquin Winkelmann "Colectivo & Paisajes Diversos" (Corkin Gallery)

Have an event you'd like to plug? Submit your own listing to the blogTO Toronto events calendar or contact us directly.

Photo via Tania Haas

The worst offender on DineSafe this week goes to a tea house across the street from the AGO which racked up a whopping nine citations for failing to handle food safely. Bringing up the rear with a similarly strong (or terrible) showing was Nawab Fusion Grill, with eight safety infractions - three of them crucial. Elsewhere, vegan fave Sadie's Diner earned three citations, and popular pizza joint FBI Pizza was handed five.

Here's the rest of the dismal DineSafe news for the week.

Pho Orchid (124 Chestnut St.)
Inspected on: April 22, 2014
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional)
Number of infractions: 3 (Minor: 1, Significant: 2)
Crucial infractions include: N/A

Eskimo Tea House (336 Dundas St. West)
Inspected on: April 22, 2014
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional)
Number of infractions: 9 (Minor: 4, Significant: 5)
Crucial infractions include: N/A

Sadie's Diner(504 Adelaide St. West)
Inspected on: April 23, 2014
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional)
Number of infractions: 3 (Minor: 2, Significant: 1)
Crucial infractions include: N/A

FBI Pizza (2338 Lake Shore Blvd. West)
Inspected on: April 24, 2014
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional)
Number of infractions: 5 (Minor: 1, Significant: 4)
Crucial infractions include: N/A

Nawab Fusion Grill (5009 Yonge St.)
Inspected on: April 24, 2014
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional)
Number of infractions: 8 (Minor: 1, Significant: 4, Crucial: 3)
Crucial infractions include: Operator fail to maintain hazardous foods at 60 C (140 F) or hotter. Operator fail to ensure food is not contaminated/adulterated. Employee fail to wash hands when required.

Noodle King (3240 Dufferin St.)
Inspected on: April 24, 2014
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional)
Number of infractions: 4 (Minor: 3, Significant: 1)
Crucial infractions include: N/A

Each year, FAT Arts & Fashion Week celebrates the extreme side of fashion; the 2014 edition, with 45 wild runway shows and a slew of photography and film exhibits, was no exception. FAT attendees naturally followed suit, pushing the boundaries of their own closets to put together some out-there party looks.

Check out all the looks in the Style section.

375 Shaw St is nothing if not unique. Sure, it maintains some traditional Victorian elements in its stained glass windows, wainscoting, and high ceilings, but it's not exactly your average turn of the century home. To start, there are the bright blue painted banisters and the golden wallpaper and carpeting. Oh yeah, and then there's also the sizeable pool/solarium at the back of the house that you might describe as "baffling."

Like, um, there's a pool in the living room. Or the kitchen. It's a POOL room. And you thought waterbeds were outlandish... Start putting together the guest list for your bathing parties... soaking parties... spa parties? You can use your imagination. The biggest selling feature, though, is that this house has got plenty of space. With 4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, and approximately 4,000 square feet of living space, there is nothing but opportunity here. With some imagination (and renovation), this could be an ideal home for a growing family.

SPECS

• Address: 375 Shaw St
• Price: $1,200,000
• Lot Size: 23.5 x 127 ft
• Bedrooms: 4
• Bathrooms: 3
• Parking: 2
• Taxes: $4,890
• Walk Score: 95
• Notable Features
• Large home (4000 sq ft) with 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms
• Located in the desirable Trinity-Bellwoods neighbourhood
• Indoor Pool/Solarium
• Detached Garage (coach house)

GOOD FOOR

Lovers of the unique. Lovers of Victorian architecture. People with a vision. This home has maintained some of its original features, keeping a historic feel. But it's ready for someone with a creative mind to take hold of the house and make it their own. It will take some time and money (OK, maybe a lot of time and money), but in the end, you could have the house of your dreams.

MOVE ON IF

You're not the handy type and you want something "move in ready." A lot of the unique parts of this house also make it scream "WORK!" Aside from all the maintenance and renovations that it may take to get this 1890 house up to your modern standards, there's the subject of that pool. Up-keeping pools takes time and money, and with the odd setup of this one....well...it might just not be worth it.

Thanks to The Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO) for sponsoring our obsession with Toronto's real estate market.

Read other posts in this series via our House of the Week Pinterest board.

Writing by Isabel Ritchie

Planning a journey in Toronto has never been so eerily beautiful. Thanks to Isoscope, the work of data visualization students in Europe, the effectiveness of a short car ride taken at any time of day is rendered in a visually striking, fluid-looking splat.

The site generates a layered blue blob to illustrate how far a 2-, 4-, 6-, 8-, or 10-minute car journey will take you from your starting point, factoring in typical traffic conditions and the time of day. A 10-minute car ride in optimal conditions from the blogTO office on Temperance Street, say, gets you to St. Clair and Avenue, Eastern and Coxwell, or a good distance down the Don Valley Parkway or The Queensway into Mimico (image above.)

There's also a pedestrian mode which performs the same calculations for walkers.

The map overlay was created by students at the Potsdam University of Applied Sciences in Germany and it works for a bunch of cities worldwide. "Isoscope tries to [compare] different means of transport and their sensitivity for disturbances," they write. The blob tends to elongate in tendrils where the going is good and remain confined when traffic is slow.

Try it for yourself and see how far you can go in 10 minutes.

Chris Bateman is a staff writer at blogTO. Follow him on Twitter at @chrisbateman.

The Contact Photography Festival is naturally driven by gallery shows, but over the years organizers have taken strides in beefing up the number of events affiliated with the month-long celebration of all things photographic. This is particularly good news if you, like me, are somewhat underwhelmed by the feature exhibitions.

My best festival experiences have typically been the most interactive, where I make a point of engaging with photographers and gallery-owners. While this can be accomplished by being outgoing at the various shows, it's really the event programming that opens up this aspect of the festival. With that in mind, here are my top picks for Contact events this year. See our main festival preview for a list of the best shows to catch in 2014.

Kodak Lecture Series: Stan Douglas
Vancouver-based photographer Stan Douglas was awarded the third annual Contact Photography award, and will thus be in attendance to discuss his most recent work, which joins a body of photographs and visual material that extends back to the early 1980s. Douglas is a theoretically-inclined artist whose subtle social and philosophical critiques can be challenging to spot during a passive viewing of his work, which makes a talk by him all the more appetizing. April 30th, 7pm. Ryerson University.

Festival launch at MOCCA
This ain't your average art opening. As much as I detest the art-speak and hobnobbing that goes on at these things, fine art photographers would do themselves a service by mingling in this crowd. Not an artist? No matter, just play dress up, drink horrible white wine and remark that since William Eggelston, contemporary fine art photographers seem infatuated with the idea of the democratic forest and no longer know how to tell stories. Well, everyone except Alec Soth, that is. The after party at the Gladstone will be decidedly more laid back. May 2nd. Starts at 7pm.

Scott Conarroe
Scott Conarroe is one of Canada's finest photographers. Loosely inspired by photographers like Stephen Shore and Joel Sternfeld, Conarroe's large format prints are as gorgeous as they are thoughtful. I was a bit disappointed to hear that he had taken China as his latest project (too Burtynsky-like for my tastes), but I'm pleased to say that he's brought a refreshingly human focus to this series, one which goes beyond the scope of monolithic infrastructure projects, factories and the country's notorious density. May 3rd, 1pm - Stephen Bulger Gallery.

Gregory Heisler
Heisler is one of the all-time great portrait photographers, a craft which I seem to gain more and more respect for as I struggle to incorporate people into my photographs. The art of the portrait is a strange one, but no one knows more more about it that than this artist, whose work has appeared on the cover of Time Magazine more than 70 times. Wow. There will me much to learn at this lecture. May 14th, 8pm. Hart House.

Scott McFarland
Scott McFarland's wonderfully detailed prints are digital constructions that seem like a cross between a Andreas Gursky photo and and Gregory Crewdson production. While McFarland's work is photographic, the process by which he makes his prints is anything but conventional, stitching and combining, as it were, various images to construct a final work. Listen to the artist discuss the state of photography in the age of digital manipulation at the AGO on May 21 at 7pm.

Top photo by Scott Conarroe

When is rush hour in Toronto might be a bit of a difficult question to precisely pin down. As Jerry Seinfeld aptly sums it up, in big cities "everybody goes every way all the time." It's true. With a population of 2.7 million, traveling by highway or public transit is never a lonely experience in Toronto, even if most people wish it was. But when exactly is a trip by road or the TTC most likely to involve delays?

As far as the TTC is concerned, the busiest time of the morning is between 8:15 a.m. and 9:00 a.m.. That's when all the available subway trains, streetcars, and buses are in service to meet the biggest spike in demand, says spokesman Brad Ross. Officially, the morning peak is from 6:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m., but those 45 minutes in the lead-up to 9:00 a.m. see the most crowding.

On the highways, the Don Valley Parkway and Gardiner Expressway is most congested at the same time: 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. Mike Brady, the manager of the city's Traffic Safety Unit, says that's when vehicle speeds are slowest due to the sheer weight of traffic. The highest number of vehicles - not necessarily the worst delays - occurs weekday mornings on the Gardiner west of Kipling at the same time, he notes.

The afternoons are a little harder to navigate. The TTC says, based on observation, demand tops out between 5:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m., several hours after the highways are most congested from 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.. The afternoon transit peak technically lasts from 3:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., so perhaps it's a case of the roads cresting before public transport.

Conclusion: There are three distinct rush hours in Toronto. The first, between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m., is when both highway speeds and transit crowding are worst. In the afternoon, the second rush between 3:30 and 4:30 p.m. is when the DVP and Gardiner are slowest. The third rush, slightly later between 5:00 and 6:00 p.m., is when the TTC is most claustrophobic.

Maybe it's time to find another way home.

Chris Bateman is a staff writer at blogTO. Follow him on Twitter at @chrisbateman.

Image: Paul Flynn/blogTO Flickr pool.

Toronto's first cat cafe is coming, and Koreatown looked to be the destination - up until now. Another epicentre for feline cuddle-fests is poking its ears above the horizon: Pet Me Meow launched their Kickstarter today, and the slick page advertising endless downtown cat-selfie potential makes it look like the upstart will be neck-in-neck with its competition. Toronto's cat wars are on.

Ashkan Rahimi and Jeff Ro's cafe looks like it will follow the same strategy tried and tested in Asia, where the concept originated: a small cover fee for a room full of adoptable cats (Pet Me Meow are already partnered with Toronto Cat Rescue), plus board games, cafe-style drinks and snacks, and lounge areas. They're already in talks with Toronto Public Health, and the cafe is slated to open in fall 2014.

The campaign's goal is $70,000, which they just might meet - their logo features a cat wearing Ray-Bans, after all, and cat lovers across Toronto who for various reasons can't have a kitty of their own seem ravenous for digs to brush elbows with fluffy strangers. So, will Toronto have two cat cafes by the fall? With so many adoptable rescued kitties in this city who stand to benefit, let's hope so.

Pet Me Meow is raising funds on Kickstarter until June 13. Photo via Paw Me Meow.

The top cycling clubs in Toronto range from the recreational to the race-ready with a fair number of options in between. While there's a little bit of a learning curve affiliated with group riding, most would say that it's more entertaining that slogging through the kilometres all on your own. It's also easier to go long distances, as you'll benefit from being able to draft behind other riders (just make sure to do your turn at the front).

Cycling clubs offer camaraderie, training tips, and, in some cases, pro-like kits that'll have you looking like you're ready to dance up Mount Ventoux without a chain. In addition to organized clubs, local riders eager to get their feet wet with group riding might also consider the Donut Ride, an informal but regular group jaunt that departs from Eglinton and Laird on Saturday mornings.

See also: The best custom and road bike shops in Toronto

Toronto Bicycling Network (TBN)
Geared towards beginners and enthusiasts, the TBN has long been the best place to turn Toronto cycling into a social activity. With regular rides of widely varying distances (and speeds), this is the type of club that offers something for almost all riders. There's even group mountain bike rides through Don Valley. Rides take place throughout the week during peak cycling season.

Morning Glory Cycling Club
With rides in Leaside, High Park and Oakville, Morning Glory covers a lot of territory. It also does a lot of rides -- in fact, there's one every day if the weather cooperates. Despite their frequency, these rides are typically well organized and attended. This is a club for folks who are capable of hoping on a bike and riding +50km, and so not for outright novices, but those looking to increase the distance and speed at which they ride will find a happy home here.

Midweek Cycling Club
If you want to learn how to race, this is the club for you. Although there are weekend club rides to participate in, it's the Monday learn-to-race series and the Tuesday night crits that are the main draw here. If you think you've built up your fitness enough to test it in a competitive environment, a crit is a great way to start. Big points given here for the work the club does to de-mystify bike racing, which can be daunting for those just getting into it.

D'Ornellas
D'Ornellas is a well-rounded bike club that brings together enthusiast road riders of various levels. The 25 year old club is perfect for east enders, with a starting point of Lawrence and Victoria Park. Rides typically head north out of the city to Markham and Stouffville and come in a variety of lengths depending on the skill level of the riders participating. Popular rides talk place on the weekends, but there's also some midweek activity as well.

Beaches Cycling Club
The Beaches Cycling club started as an informal group ride back in 2007, and has grown into a 100+ strong club with rides scheduled Tuesday through Saturday (plus hill intervals on Thursday). Most rides are enthusiast friendly and relatively laid back, but if you're a racer looking to stretch his or her legs, the Tuesday advanced ride is fast-paced and populated with competitive cyclists who know how to stomp it.

BONUS

Blacksmith Cycle
Probably the best club for sheer bike nerds, Blacksmith's weekly ride is typically composed of bike industry types (Cervelo employees are a common sight) and local racers looking to put in some group miles. The level of rider is quite high, but the pace of the rides are reasonable, so you don't necessarily have to worry about constantly being dropped. Rides take place on Saturdays and cover about 85km.

Photo by Ben Roffelsen in the blogTO Flickr pool

On Victoria near Dundas, this quiet little diner has watched the years come and go. Now, at the ripe age of 66, the spot is attempting to broaden its horizons, targeting younger diners and night owls with a revamped dinner and cocktail menu. The changes may bring in some new blood, but the restaurant's most time-tested menu items don't always stack up to one another (even though the kitchen's been cranking them out for 60-odd years).

Read my review of the Senator in the restaurants section.

Last weekend PULP asked Toronto, "Have you ever partied in a room made of paper?" The unique event at the Great Hall saw 55 artists create strange, dainty installations, artworks, costumes, and even furniture in a multi-room playground made from recycled and reclaimed materials. The night was part art show, part party, and part concert - including a live performance from Lemon Bucket Orkestra. If you missed Friday's event you can see some of these installations in person at Artscape Youngplace until May 3, and PULP's Card Yard will appear at the corner of Bloor and Dufferin from July 21-22.

Check out highlights from the event in our photo gallery.

Photo by AmarpreetK in the blogTO Flickr pool.

Today in Toronto, the hype for Contact continues: Vancouver-based photographer Stan Douglas was awarded the third annual Contact Photography award, and will be in attendance to discuss his most recent work, which joins a body of photographs and visual material that extends back to the early 1980s. Living life at too high speed for art lectures? Don't sweat - Punk Rock Bingo, OUTrageous!, Beerworking, or straight up horror screenings might be more your style. For more events, click on over to our events section.

• Art: Kodak Lecture Series: Stan Douglas (Ryerson University)
• Games: Punk Rock Bingo (The Beaver)
• Music: James Blunt (The Danforth)
• Fashion: Clark & James Grooming Co. Launch (Scout)
• Drink: Beerworking (Project: OWL)
• Comedy: OUTrageous! With Robert Keller (Yuk Yuk's)
• Film: Rue Morgue & Unstable Ground: Hidden Fear (Carlton Cinema)

Have an event you'd like to plug? Submit your own listing to the blogTO Toronto events calendar or contact us directly.

Photo: Stan Douglas, Kung-Fu Fighting, 1974, Courtesy the artist and David Zwirner

This Week in Fashion rounds up the week's style news, store openings and closings, pop-up shops, sales and upcoming fashion and design events in Toronto. Find it here every Wednesday morning.

NEWS

Kleinfeld Bridal is opening in Toronto just in time for wedding season. The New York retailer - made famous by reality show Say Yes To The Dress - will live on the seventh floor of the Hudson's Bay Queen St. flagship (176 Yonge St.) alongside their newly renovated home department. Expect to find exquisite gowns by the likes of Oscar De La Renta and Alberta Ferretti in the 20,000-square-foot space starting Thursday (May 1st).

Next Monday (May 5), Toronto Fashion Incubator will host its annual New Labels competition, where they'll crown one Canadian designer this year's Most Promising New Label. AliceAzur by Miriam Baker, Christopher Paunil, Laura Siegel, and NOMAD of the SUN by Ashley Boutcher - all hailing from Toronto - will each present twelve looks to host Jeanne Beker, a swarm of stylish guests, and a panel of esteemed judges. The winner will walk away with $25,000, an exclusive editorial in FLARE Magazine, production of a lookbook, and - of course - bragging rights.

EVENTS

Green + Good, a collaborative beauty pop-up shop presented by Fresh Faced and Health Hut - is coming to the Art Bar at Gladstone Hotel (1214 Queen St. West) this weekend. From tomorrow (May 1st) until Sunday (May 4), find all-natural beauty products from a whole slew of luxe brands like Province Apothecary and Ella's Botanicals. There'll also be a handful of special treatments like custom-made facial serums and massages, so be sure to stop by for some green and good R and R.

Toronto Loves Kicks is hosting their first Sneaker Design Project of 2014 at the Bata Shoe Museum (327 Bloor St. West) this Friday (May 2). The event marries music, art, and jazzy footwear in a poppin' party filled to the brim with beatboxing c/o Beatbox Canada, Iceberg Vodka, and many, many Sharpie markers. Twenty artists will have 20 minutes to transform plain white sneakers into works of art, and guests will have a chance to vote for their favourite piece. Admission is $12 at the door.

Bellwethers Vintage is returning for its third monthly pop-up shop this Saturday (May 3) at Seventeen Eighteen (1718 Queen St. West). Stop by sometime between 10am and 7pm to peruse their handpicked treasures and second-hand designer garb with a cocktail in hand and good company in tow.

WORN Journal is releasing The WORN Archive this Saturday (May 3), and there's no better way to celebrate the launch of a 400-page book rounding up the publication's very best articles and editorials than with a Secondhand Prom at Adelaide Hall (250 Adelaide St. West). So pull out your floor-length ball gowns and powder-blue tuxedos from the back of your closet and get jiggy with DJ Teddy the K (read: semi-shimmy by the Bunner's Bake Shop snack table) from 9pm until 2am. Admission is $15 at the door or free with the purchase of The WORN Archive at Type Books.

Fashion Whore Boutique is popping up at Theatre Lab (664 Lansdowne Ave.) this Sunday (May 4) for a one-day printed party clothing extravaganza. From noon until 6pm, snag printed leggings, body suits, and dresses by Sourpuss and JapanLA all in one place - all you have to do is follow the pink balloons!

Photo via WORN Fashion Journal on Facebook.

Public transit: Where we commune with our fellow man - and his microbes. Picking up mysterious illnesses from strangers is one of the many unique joys of city living, and though the TTC incorporated anti-microbial handle coatings into its latest trains, Toronto's transit system - and your immune system - are never truly safe from tiny intruders.

There's no guarantee that guy next to you with the tissues stuffed in his sleeve is properly executing the sneeze-into-arm manouevre, and unless you wanted to bathe in hand sanitizer, or wear one of those surgical masks in public, there wasn't really much you could do - until now!

With the launch of a new brand, Adrianian Canadian, Toronto fashion designer Adrian Wu has just unveiled "the world's first antibacterial scarf specifically designed for public transit". The pieces are made of a cotton/synthetic material coated with an antimicrobial agent meant to repel the bacteria, mold and viruses that would normally penetrate a piece of fabric.

They come in two styles - a simple loop scarf for $48 and a double-size zippered model for $84 - and three different colours, available now for preorder on the brand's website. (Hot tip for hypochondriacs: Steer clear of the brand's collection of transit facts, which suggest that you are six times more likely to end up at the doctor's with a respiratory infection if you have recently used a bus or train. Shudder.)

Photo courtesy Adrianian Canadian on Facebook.

The top 10 songs from Toronto bands in April feature some returning names from earlier this year, but a few newbies are making their way into the scene. Arguably the best birthday month, as well as historically the least violent month in Toronto, April has come and gone again. The weather could have been a bit warmer, the sun a bit brighter, but the music was juuuust right.

Here are the top 10 tracks released this month.

Billy Moon - Kalashnikov
The lead track from Billy Moon'sYoung Adult EP, released April 17, is a distorted rocker that bumbles along in the vein of early Green Day. Singer Billy's voice even reflects that of ... well, Billie. From the mouths of babes: "Our first show we ended up having to play for three straight hours. No one liked us." Get on that disgruntled teen bandwagon. Stream it on Bandcamp here.

Slowpitch - Robotic Rain Cells (Ft. Shikha)
A dark electronic loop backs Toronto singer Shikha as she croons a sexy hymn in this single from the new Slowpitch album. Dimly Lit Existence, which came out April 15, is loaded with slow, spacey tracks like this one.

Shi Wisdom - Yacht
Toronto singer Shi Wisdom gets full R&B on this track off her new album, Stranger Things Have Happened, released April 19. If she keeps releasing tracks like this, maybe one day her dream of "sipping champagne on a yacht" will be fulfilled. Stream it on Bandcamp here.

Vierance - Raven
The first release from new Toronto synth pop and techno label Deth Records comes from local duo Vierance. Semblance is a dark and dreamy walk through a graveyard at night in a horror movie from the '80s. They even put together a creepy black and white music video for "Raven," the single from the album, featuring a man in a canoe, a girl in a white shawl, and several small bonfires.

Odonis Odonis - High Note
Ah yes, the classic "female astronaut in a weird VHS dream sequence." Oldest trick in the book. Odonis Odonis released a video this month to support their latest album, Hard Boiled Soft Boiled. "High Note" is straight out of the '80s, with steady drums, floating guitar riffs and soft vocals. The song gets heavier as it goes, increasing the rawness and distortion and building to a rocking climax at the end.

APB - Harvest
Scarborough duo APB (Airplane Boys) put together a music video for their new track, "Harvest," featuring the high school they went to (Pope John Paul II) and a restaurant they used to frequent (Markham Station).

Digits - Keeping Secrets
I was at a karaoke bar on my birthday this month. I belted a number of tunes, including "Under Pressure" and "Everybody Wants To Rule The World," to the general dismay of the audience. Why do I mention this? The new video from Digits features an 8-bit pop track and cute edits of a basement karaoke bar.

Cirroo - Something Good (Flip)
Local dreamwave producer Cirroo sampled popular jam "Something Good" by Alt-J in a track this month. Got pretty dubstep with it, but the outcome is nice, and he uses the samples in an interesting way. Check out "Dream Cameo" and "Strata" from his Clearout EP.

Drake - Draft Day
For some reason, Drake thinks he's allowed to beef with Jay-Z. He isn't.

Alvvays - Archie, Marry Me
Is it 1999? I'm listening to "Archie, Marry Me" by Toronto quintet Alvvays, and suddenly I am getting the urge to dive into my storage boxes and find my old Archie comics. I don't even think this song is based on that comic, but the late-'90s Sixpence None the Richer-esque vibes are really getting to me.

Special Addition:

Mac Demarco - Brother
Okay, I know Mac isn't from Toronto, but he is Canadian and he is amazing. He released his sophomore album, Salad Days, on April Fool's Day (of course), and it's definitely worth looking into. Sorry, Toronto peeps, just had to include this. Mostly because every song of his reminds me of Marcy Playground.

What April tracks are you bopping to? Let us know in the comments.

Lead image: Vierance, "Revelation" by Emad Dabiri. Follow Adam on Twitter and Instagram.