
Kate's 5 fun things to do in and around Waterloo region: July 25 to 27
A car wash to benefit Wounded Warriors Canada will be held at The Boardwalk in Waterloo Saturday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. This is an event being put on by members of the pre-service firefighter program at Conestoga College.
Art Market will take place Friday night in Waterloo Town Square. This monthly market features local artisans and makers.
Touch-a-truck is at the Kitchener Aud on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The first hour is a sensory friendly hour. After 10 a.m., there will be honking and maybe some louder noises as kids get to explore different trucks and equipment like diggers. There's also a big sand box for kids at this free event.
The Cherry Park Neighbourhood Association is hosting the K-W Houseplant Swap Saturday from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. It will take place in the pavilion at Cherry Park in Kitchener and people can bring houseplant cuttings, propagations and small plants to swap.
In Guelph for the Fourth Friday's concert at the Civic Museum, the Tuba Machine will be performing. It's not just tuba music - there will also be fiddle, trumpet, clarinet and banjo and songs range from jazz to blues to folk. The free concert starts at 7 p.m. Donations to the museum are accepted and there's also a cash bar.
Head to Fergus for the Fergus Medieval Faire Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.. Ladies, knights and squires will be walking around downtown Fergus as the area gets transformed into a medieval marketplace. There will be falconry demonstrations, a knights challenge, merchants with food, drink and handcrafts as well as wandering minstrels and people may even spot a dragon.
The Kitchener Panthers will be in London Friday night, then host the Guelph Royals on Sunday afternoon.
The Guelph Royals are in Toronto Friday night, then host the Hamilton Cardinals on Saturday evening.
If you need to drive, here are some local gas prices:
Wayback Festival
Friday 7 p.m. to 10:30 p.m., Saturday 4 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.
Carl Zehr Square, Kitchener's city hall
This free music festival has a tribute to classic rock on Friday night with AC/DC tribute band Thunderstruck and KISS tribute band Destroyer.
Saturday starts at 4 p.m. with Always on Friday, followed by Conor Gains at 6 p.m., Default at 7:30 .m. and Big Wreck at 9 p.m.
Will they play that song? You know, That Song? Probably.
City of Kitchener website
Saturday 12 p.m. to 8 p.m.
44 Gaukel, downtown Kitchener
This vintage market pairs nicely with some classic rock. Vendors will have items including clothing, accessories, records, toys and more.
Facebook event page
For the Love of ButterTarts Festival in Elmira
Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Woolwich Memorial Centre
Get your fill of this sweet treat with lots of options, plus visit the artisan market and enjoy live music. If sweet isn't your thing, there's also hot sauce.
Eventbrite page
Long Dash Festival
Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sunday 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
rare eco centre, Blair Road, Cambridge
The festival combines art and science and nature. It includes experiences like a sound walk, workshops into eco-printing and participatory mapping, art installations and music.
All activities are free but registration is required.
Musagetes event page
Emancipation Day with Rhythm and Blues Cambridge
Saturday 1 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Soper Park, Cambridge
There will be music, dancing, food and family friendly activities. There will also be a history corner and a vendors market.
Organizers say it's a day to mark freedom, joy and empowerment and everyone is welcome.
The event is free to attend.
Rhythm and Blues Cambridge event page
South Asian Family Sports Day
Saturday and Sunday
Waterloo Park
This is an event put on by several local cultural groups. Local teams will be competing in a number of sports like cricket to soccer, volleyball and throwball and people are welcome to watch. There will also be free zumba classes and other family friendly activities on the grounds.
On Sunday, CBC Kitchener-Waterloo will be on site from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. to talk to people and play a little soccer, too.
What is throwball? Local players share why they love this sport
2 hours ago
A number of sports will be highlighted at South Asian Family Sports Day in Waterloo Park this weekend and one is throwball, a "sister game" to volleyball. Local players explain how you play the sport and why they love it.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


CBC
2 days ago
- CBC
Waterloo man unveils homemade lightweight canoe
He's mostly known locally for his snow sculptures, but since the start of the pandemic, Waterloo's Matt Morris has been building lightweight boats to use in Kitchener's Victoria Park. Five years later, enter the Pheather2 — Morris' lightest canoe yet. CBC K-W's Cameron Mahler met Morris down at Victoria Park to see it in action.


CBC
3 days ago
- CBC
Obsessed with Labubus? Why you may want to rethink this unboxing trend
New, Kate Bueckert 'Every trend has a shelf life,' University of Guelph marketing professor Jing Wan says They're a little cute, a little scary — and very, very trendy. Labubu dolls are one of the latest must-have items being driven by social media posts of people unboxing them. The little elf-like toy monsters were created by Japanese artist Kasing Lung and they come in boxes, so people can't tell which one they're getting when they buy them. Videos of people unboxing Labubu dolls are popular on TikTok, with people screaming happily when they get a Labubu they want, or in tears when it's one they don't want. The Chinese toy maker behind Labubus, Pop Mart, is forecasting a 350 per cent profit jump for the first half of 2025 as global demand for the wildly popular Labubu characters surges. Allie Luk of Ajisen Ramen understands the power of Labubu. The Waterloo, Ont., restaurant is running a promotion where they're giving away a doll each month. "The reaction's definitely been through the roof," Luk says of the Labubu doll giveaway. "We've been getting thousands and thousands of comments and tags online. We have people tagging up to even like 20 or 30 friends and families for extra entries to win." It's an obvious win for the restaurant because people are also sharing photos and videos of their food, Luk says, which is "creating a lot of buzz." While it was younger customers who understood the first giveaway, as they prepare for a second Labubu doll winner, Luk says they're seeing people of all ages taking part. "We saw this as like a really unique opportunity to be able to connect sort of with our all of our guests simultaneously across all the age groups. And it's really fun because we saw that we would be able to connect with our customers in the way that sort of goes beyond food and ramen," Luk said. Unboxing excitement similar to gambling: Expert Celebrities Rihanna, Dua Lipa and Kim Kardashian have been spotted with Labubus, sometimes as an accessory on their bags. WATCH | Labubu maker Pop Mart forecasting a 350% profit surge: But while Labubus are the current must-have toy, some are worried about the waste they're creating — especially when some TikTok videos show people destroying or throwing out Labubus they don't want. Jing Wan, a marketing and consumer studies professor at the University of Guelph, compared the excitement of unboxing a Labubu to gambling. "You get that anticipation, hope, all wrapped up together when you're about to unbox and find out which exact model that you've pulled and you get to see whether it's maybe one of the models that you were looking for to complete your collection or maybe it's a rare version," she said. "There are actually rare Labubu dolls out there as well that are worth quite a bit of money. And so if... you think you're getting one of those, you can be quite excited." This can lead to overconsumption, Wan said. People will buy Labubus just for the rush, but they may not even want the doll they get. "Normally when we buy products, we're spending money on a specific thing that we want," Wan said. With blind boxes, "you are voluntarily spending money on things that you probably don't actually want. And so you're now buying a lot of things just simply in the hopes of getting that one thing." LISTEN | U of Guelph professor says Labubu doll excitement can lead to overconsumption, environmental concerns: Media Audio | The Morning Edition - K-W : Professor Jing Wan said the demand for specific Labubu dolls means overconsumption is a big problem. Caption: Have you heard of Labubu dolls? They're the current 'need to have' craze sweeping through TikTok and social media. Jing Wan, a University of Guelph professor, says this trend may boost people's moods but it's also hurting the environment. Open full embed in new tab Loading external pages may require significantly more data usage than loading CBC Lite story pages. 'Creating a lot of waste' Then, there's the environmental impact of these kinds of unboxing trends. "That's creating a lot of waste," Wan said. "These dolls are made out of plastics. There's also opaque packaging that typically goes around the dolls so that even when you open the paper box, you don't know what's inside it. You can't see it. That's part of the blind box rush," she added. "That's a lot of plastic to be produced by these sorts of products where some people are actively disposing of them because they don't want them." CBC K-W reached out to Pop Mart for comment about concerns around Labubus waste but did not hear back. Trends can be 'risky business' for toy stores Philip Sullivan is sales associate at Hobby and Toy Central, an independent toy store in Kitchener. He says they don't have any plans to sell Labubu dolls for a very specific reason: trends die quickly. He says he's seen the blind box or blind bag trend with various items over the past five years, including with Lego mini figures, Playmobile characters and Hot Wheels cars. "There's always been what the industry calls chasers, where it's a one out of 500 chance of getting the one that has white wheels and collectors go crazy over that kind of thing," he said. "On the blind bags alone … we're selling a $20 item, we want to make sure that it's something that has some staying power." He added "it's risky business" to try to get in on a trend. "We've certainly been burned on the fads where if you're not in on the ground floor, you might be sitting on the stuff forever," Sullivan said. Sullivan remembers Webkinz from the early 2000s, little plush characters which also had a digital equivalent and video game you could play. The initial launch was very local and the toys were sold through independent toy stores. "Over the course of probably a year... they blew up and that exclusivity disappeared. And all of a sudden you were finding them at all the flea markets, you were finding them a drug stores," he said. "If you didn't get out [of selling them] then, then you would have been the last person on the street still trying to sell these things." WATCH | Want to know the real price of a Labubu?: Wan says it can be really easy to get up in the got-to-have-it trends of the day, but she has advice for people who can feel the excitement rising over a blind box reveal. "A lot of this is probably driven by emotions, that sense of excitement, anticipation. So I think I would like people to maybe just pause for a moment before they buy and ask themselves, what are you doing? Why are you buying this? Do you really want this?" she said. "Let yourself think through that purchase and I also want people to maybe keep in mind as well that every trend has a shelf life. So Labubus won't be the hottest thing forever and with social media, every trend is going by faster and faster so there will be a next Labubu coming up pretty soon I'm sure."


CTV News
4 days ago
- CTV News
What's happening during the long weekend in Waterloo Region and beyond?
Many people across southern Ontario will be celebrating the civic holiday this weekend as we step into August. Here are some of the events going on: World in a Weekend: International Puppet Festival When: Thursday, July. 31 – Monday, Aug. 4 (various hours) Where: Various locations throughout Stratford, Ont. International puppeteers have arrived in Stratford. Watch as they bring colourful and creative characters to life, one string at a time. The International Puppet Festival is taking place at various locations throughout Stratford, Ont. and includes a mix of free and ticketed events. Waterloo Rib & Beer Fest When: Friday, Aug. 1 – Sunday, Aug. 3 (various hours) Where: RIM Park (2001 University Avenue East, Waterloo) People wanting to tempt their tastebuds over the long weekend can head to RIM Park for Waterloo Rib & Beer Fest. Aside from meaty morsels, event goers can also catch some live music and enjoy the kids' zone. Ontario Pirate Festival When: Saturday, Aug. 2 – Monday, Aug. 4 (11 a.m. - 6 p.m. daily) Where: Marden Park (7368, Wellington County Road 30, Guelph) Hoist the Jolly Roger, grab your treasure map and prepare for a rollicking good time as the Ontario Pirate Festival returns to Guelph. Swashbucklers and landlubbers alike can wander through the pirate village of Dry Bluffs, perusing merchants and craftspeople, watching live performances and immersing themselves in the pirate's life. Sunflower Fest When: Aug. 2, 3, 4 and 7, 8, 9, 10 Where: Brantwood Farms (251 Powerline Road, Brantford) Summer is in full bloom at Brantwood Farms as Sunflower Fest kicks off over the long weekend. Guests are invited to enjoy the beauty of the golden fields, take a wagon ride, pick sunflowers and, of course, grab a few photos. Tree for Three at Mill Race Park When: Sunday, Aug. 3 (7 p.m. – 8 p.m.) Where: Mill Race Park (36 Water Street North, Cambridge) Music lovers are invited to enjoy an evening of free music in Mill Race Park as Tee For Three brings their traditional folk music to Cambridge. Event goers should bring a lawn chair or a blanket so they can sit back and enjoy the tunes from England, Fance and beyond.