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Blingles –a service created for Black Singles aged 30 and older
in Toronto.
Blingles is not a match making service but more a company
set up to bring this age group together in a fun and advantageous
manner. Blingles started in July 2004, with “Guess
Whose Coming To Dinner” 8 people, 4 men 4 women and
a host having dinner at a local restaurant in Toronto. Then
the Blingles Grand Opening was on Thursday September 30th
2004, where we had over 200 participants at Hush Under Bar.
There were interactive games, an acting troupe-starring local
actors from Toronto, performing comedy sketches, we had “Dating
Testimonials” and a Special Guest performance by Al
St. Louis. DJ Carl Allen was on the wheels of steel and we
had DJ Glen C as the guest MC.
Our second major event was called “Blingles Eve” this event
was held the night before New Years Eve and we had over 100 participants.
There was: The celebrity dating game, with Geena Lee (from Flow 93.5 Quiet
Storm) mixing and blingling, door prizes, and DJ Glen C spun the tunes
for us til the morning hours.
We had a “Membership Mingle” for the people who purchased
Blingles Memberships at Fez Batik.
We had the “Blingles Movie Night”, another "Guess Whose
Coming To Dinner" event and then finally…
“Spring Bling” was held on May 26th, 2005 at Sugar Night
Club. With Guest MC Michael Anthony, and special lips sync appearances
by Coco Bean, the game Switch, and lots lots more.
The Blingles Rules Of Order
This is it, Blingles the event for Black Singles aged 30 and older is
finally here in the Tdot.
"Blingles is a registered trademark with the Government of Canada.
Blingles ® "
Blingles Events will be happening in Toronto, and you might be wondering
just what does all of this mean? What should I expect at a Blingles Event?
Are there rules to follow? Is there a code of conduct?
Before we get started… Blingles is not a match making service but
rather an event providing a positive and FUN atmosphere so that you might
just meet that special someone. But if not, that’s okay too, you
will still meet some great people.
Rule #1: In order to attend Blingles you must truly be single and must
not suffer from girlfriend/boyfriend or wife/husband amnesia.
Rule #1a YOU MUST BE ON TIME!!!! (if the promo says 8pm Sharp, then that's
what we mean)
Don’t try to be fashionably late, (or you’ll miss everything)
I made sure you had time to go home after work, change and come back looking
good.
Rule #1b Our advance ticket sales end on the date specified, so make sure
you get your tickets on time.
Rule #2 You should leave your business cards at home, but be ready to
have good conversation, and not hide behind what you do for a living.
Rule #3 You should come with an open mind and ready to have a good time.
Leave all attitudes at the door and whatever else happened to you that
day.
Rule #4 You should not wear your heart on your sleeve and throw all caution
to the wind, in hopes of finding your soul mate, but come looking good,
feeling good and have the attitude of if it happens it happens, but I’m
going to enjoy myself in the process.
Rule #5 You must take part in the interactive games. There will be interaction
from the time you enter the door, and we have some fun contests… The
Old Skool Face Off and The Dating Game are just some of our specialties.
Rule #6 There is a dress code for Blingles Eve, look good so you feel
good. But bearing that in mind, make sure you are comfortable enough to
walk and jam to old skool.
Feedback... From Blingles 1 – held Sept. 30th,
2004
Female Feedback…
Hi Anne- Marie
I wanted to thank you for organizing an amazing event on Thursday- Blingles
2004. Despite the fact that there was more women then men (no fault of
your own) it was a very exciting and fun event.
The poetry that you performed and the other entertainment was excellent.
I hope that you will continue to have these events. I feel that it is
definitely worthwhile.
Thanks again Anne-Marie
Male Feedback…
Hi Anne-Marie
I just wanted to congratulate you on a very successful, positive event
last night! It's very obvious that a lot of thought, planning and creativity
went into this event. Like I said to you before leaving last night, this
should be something that occurs more often than not. I think I speak for
the majority (if not everyone in attendance) when I say a big THANK YOU
for putting it together!
Seeing the caliber of this event, I would definitely want to be aware
of any other event you are associated with. At least I know there will
be mostly affluent persons of a positive mental attitude in attendance.
I really dislike the club/bar scene, and the cultural side of the production
last night definitely appealed to me.
Anyways, kudos to you and your very talented team and volunteers for a
job well done!
BLINGLES
ARTICLE: By Sankofa
Check your attitude at the door, smile, open your mind,
have fun and prepare yourself to meet the person that you
might spend the rest of your life with. This is Blingles,
an event for Black singles aged 30 and older who are ready
to meet with someone of the opposite sex in an unthreatening
setting.
Unlike dating services and clubs Blingles is one of the
few events in the city of Toronto where people are greeted
at the entrance by a host who instructs them to check their
coats on the left, and any negative attitudes on the right.
The point of this event is to encourage Black singles to
come together and have a good time with good people. The
creator of this affair, Anne Marie of Imani Enterprises saw
a need for Toronto’s Black professionals to loosen
up and become more approachable. “Toronto is very goal
oriented and goal focused. I have a strong drive, I have
to work but fun has to be a part of my life. This is a difficult
city to forge friendships.”
Growing up in Nova Scotia Anne Marie had a hard time with
the difference in cultures after moving to the Mega city.
In Nova Scotia Black people don’t avoid eye contact
with each other when they pass each other on the street.
They even say good morning or hello to people they’ve
never met. She didn’t see much interaction between
the men and women of Toronto unless it was networking for
business purposes. Even in the clubs she saw segregation
amongst men and women to the point where men were self-consciously
dancing in groups, while the women would sit down with their
arms crossed looking nasty and as unapproachable as ever.
With Blingles Anne Marie has set out to break down these
walls with a show that is interactive and entertaining. To
date there have been three Blingles events and a fourth one
is scheduled for May 2005. Each Blingles event follows a
specific theme; this upcoming one is supposed to be Blingles
Spring Bling. It will be an opportunity for people to have
a getaway and mingle in a vacation type setting without really
having to leave the city. If it is anything like the previous
shows the women will probably out number the men.
In the first Blingles, which was an after work social,
only 52 out of 220 guests were males. The second event Blingles
Eve, held the eve of New Year’s Eve, had more of a
balance with a ratio of 60 women to 40 men. In both of these
shows the guests participated in games, and watched comedy
sketches, and were entertained by some of Toronto’s
top poets and singers.
In putting together these shows Anne Marie found out that
there is a stigma attached to the men who go out to singles
events. So she makes a special effort to target the men and
change this idea because the brothers have been missing out
on the opportunity to meet Toronto’s beautiful Black
women.
Anne Marie wants to see people begin to converse with each
other more freely, even if it’s not for the purpose
of getting together romantically. “There seems to be
some great divide here between men and women and for some
reason we’re not communicating properly,” explains
Anne Marie.
Along with the lack of communication there are people who
complain that they are having troubling meeting new people.
Anne Marie’s solution to this problem is to help people
become more approachable and recognize the pleasure in conversing
with others. “What I’m doing is creating a fun
environment for people to relax in, because that’s
what I don’t find people in Toronto do,” asserts
Anne Marie. “If you’re relaxing having fun somebody’s
gonna want to talk to you, more so than if you’re standing
around posing and looking angry.”
Screw faces are a no no at any Blingles event. These affairs
even have their own set of rules, which are read out even
before the itinerary is revealed. Women are not to wear their
hearts on their sleeve, no posing, and so on and so on. Anne
Marie understands that she has started something revolutionary,
and these Blingles events are not restricted to just games,
poetry and singing. There will be Blingles dinners, bowling
and movie nights, also bus trips to Detroit for ballroom
dancing and Atlanta for the Midtown Music Festival are in
the works for the future.
The impetus behind Blingles is unification. Many Toronto
people complain that people in the city are cold, that they
don’t support each other. Toronto has even been called
the screw face capital of the world. The way to change that
is through socialization, and Blingles is helping mature
men and women to drop their guards, relax, let their minds
be free and get down with the sounds of Black unity.
For more information of Blingles contact the Blingles hotline
416 706 7694
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