New York Bartending School

The General Society of Mechanics & Tradesmen predates even the U. S. Constitution, as it was founded two years before the document was signed. For well over two centuries, the organization has been a hub of skilled activity, and its Mechanics Institute offers tuition-free courses to help people learn an A to Z of trades within the construction and building fields. The building, with its elegant marble staircase, mosaic tiled floors and stained glass window, is yet another 44th Street New York City landmark listed in the National Registry of Historic Places, and serves as a museum to the long and storied past of the organization, where many of the traditions continue. Known to be the second oldest in the city, The General Society Library opened its doors in 1820. With a sky-lit high ceiling to let in natural light, I found it to be a beautiful room to browse through both the technical books and others selected for recreational reading. A lesser-known fact, however, is that the building houses the John M. Mossman Lock Museum, which boasts one of the world’s most complete collections of bank and vault locks. Visitors can meander through the assortment of over 370 rare locks and keys — some of which can be traced back to 4000 B. C. — and wonder at the treasures they have safeguarded. “The collection has grown in popularity as people have come to appreciate the exquisite craftsmanship of the lock mechanisms and the beauty of the keys, ” said Executive Director Victoria A. Dengel.

In 2014, Mood Fabrics launched an innovative new side to its company, Mood U. Located on the second floor, a space that used to house furniture from Mood Home is now filled with seventy sewing machines, set up in neat rows. This is where classes are taught for beginners up through advanced students. When I visited, it was the first day of an open sewing lab that was slated to happen every Thursday. I met with Benjamin Mach, the director of Mood U, who was also a contestant on "Project Runway" (the fashion reality show uses Mood's materials for most of its on-screen challenges). Ben, who has been running classes at Mood U since early 2015, told me that the open labs began because students had started asking instructors for tips on personal projects after class. In response, a time was created when members of the school could come in with whatever they were working on and receive advice and assistance. Ben admitted that he will always be excited to see what comes out of the open labs. He already witnessed one unique project – a woman trying to teach herself how to make baby booties. Ben, who had only been the director of the school for two weeks when I visited, confessed that though he has had to jump in head first (“literally – I’ve jumped in the deep end”), he was looking forward to “putting his spin on things. ” He shared a bit more about the origins of the school: The Los Angeles location of Mood began running classes in 2013 with immediate success. This continued and enhanced when the school opened in New York. There are a wide range of workshops focusing on different items, techniques, and materials. Some past classes that Ben mentioned included instruction in leather-working, a How-To in making clutch bags, and beginner sewing courses. As to who takes the classes, Ben says it can be a wide range of people. He informed me that though there are those who are looking at going to fashion school, many of the students have no intension of getting into the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) or Parson’s School of Design, and that they are simply hobbyists. Quite a few are the kind of people who once dabbled in sewing, often in their childhood, and now want to see if they can get into it again. While I was chatting with Ben, a man who had taken his course came up to him to thank him for the instruction. He complimented him on how thorough he was, and yet how easy to follow. “Thank you for speaking plain English, ” he said. Ben is not the only "Project Runway" alum to spend time at Mood U. There are guest appearances every week. While I was there, Sean Kelly, the winner from a recent "Project Runway" season, was there to help out. It was great to see Ben and Sean joke around together – as Ben put it, “You have to keep things fun when you do things like this. ” He explained that members of the corporate fashion world often come by to take a break from the high-stress professional world and experience the calm, creative atmosphere of Mood U. The school has the same effect on Ben, even though he works there. He told me that no matter how physically drained he feels at the end of a day of teaching, “I head off into my evening recharged and happy. ”

It’s not every day you’re greeted at the gym by a man wearing teeny tiny swim trunks and plastic lei. And it’s not a regular gym where the boss arrives for a meeting resplendent in chicken hat. Which stays on for the duration, despite the rising temperatures. But then, Mark Fisher Fitness is not any old gym. In fact, it doesn’t even call itself a gym; it’s an “enchanted ninja clubhouse of glory and dreams”. It’s a place where clients are called ninjas and trainers are called unicorns and where mirrored balls, graffiti and disco lights take the place of the usual utilitarian gym furniture. “We like to keep things colorful, ” said Mark in understatement. “So there are lights. There’s a closet with costumes, so if the trainer feels like dressing up in Victorian era garb or an S& M unicorn, there’s a leash they can wear – whatever feels good. “But one thing that’s also important to us is just taking people where they’re at, so a lot of the ninjas who come here AREN’T insane, ” Mark added. “We say if someone wants to come to a dance party and someone wants to take off their pants and someone wants to cry quietly in a corner because they’re having a really bad day, everything’s perfect, you’re OK wherever you are. ”Mark describes himself as once that “classic skinny, awkward, Martian man, afraid-of-girls guy” who only properly found his place in this world when he started to work out in high school. “I was also a professional actor – which is partly how we’ve become such a fixture in the Broadway community – and throughout my twenties I fell more and more in love with the training. It was like the mistress I slowly left my wife for. ”A few years ago he quit acting completely and committed himself to training fellow New York misfits. “My own experience in the gym, starting as someone who didn’t feel very good about his body and didn’t feel like an athlete, it was very difficult for me, ” Mark said. “We like to say, in the most affectionate way, that the ninjas are like an isle of misfit toys – all manner of humanity, all ages and colors and backgrounds that are generally united in that we all have a feeling of being an outsider at times. I just wanted to celebrate that, and also to provide really good fitness information. I’m a huge fitness nerd, so it’s very important we provide a really good service with results. ”So if you want clear, no-nonsense weight loss and are willing to put in the hours, the intensive six-week Snatched program might be your bag. Alternatively, there are group classes, and semi-private training packages, Mark’s cheaper but just as effective version of a personal training program, where you train with two other ninjas and a dedicated unicorn. Unsurprisingly, many of the gym goers are from the Broadway community. Mark has worked with plenty of performers to get them ready for a specific role (such as a ninja playing a boxer in Kinky Boots) as well as backstage workers. “We train a lot of composers and directors and casting directors – and from their friends it’s trickled out to other professions; people who maybe work in white collar jobs but are a little bit weird, ” Mark shared. “The nature of their life means they perhaps don’t get to be as creative as they’d like so they can come in here and do whatever they want to do. ”The trainers, too, are a colorful bunch, counting among them one of the city’s best known drag queens, a gay porn star, a tattooed graphic artist who was a skate punk in a former life, and a professional clown who, at the last minute in med school, decided he wanted to be a clown not a doctor. “We need people to be really great coaches, but we also need them to be really authentic and comfortable with who they are. And a holistic approach means this crazy fitness family doesn’t just take care of your physical fitness; it offers life coaching workshops, classes on book keeping for financial fitness, advice on time management …“We hope to be a place where people come for general betterment, ” Mark explained. “Fitness is so transforming because you’re able to be more creative and stable and braver with your life. You’re feeling better about yourself, you’re eating well, you’re sleeping – we know your brain is going to work better. Additionally, it’s interesting to see how much of your life you can control. New York can be an isolating town – particularly for performers, who spend a lot of time getting rejected. So there’s a certain power one discovers when you know you can control what you eat and how you look. ”This story was adapted from the W42ST article, "Mark Fisher Fitness — The Gym Where New York’s Misfits Go to Work Out. "

Jonathan Boyarsky, fourth generation owner, has found himself a terrific niche on 39th by being one of the only menswear shops to remain on the ground floor. Over the years, he watched as companies moved upstairs into offices in the garment district, or even overseas, but he chose to remain where people could easily spot him. Although he feels that he has remained "under the radar, " at times, when people come in they are "ecstatic" with what he has to offer. His family began their men's clothing business on the Lower East side back in 1919. Over the years, members of the family spread out and opened related businesses offering either custom made shirts, suits or fabrics. At No. 257, Jonathan has combined it all. He describes it as "double dipping. " They used to sell only the fabric and then send people elsewhere to have their clothing made. Today, within the three floors of space at Fabric Czar, customers can select from some of the finest cloths, and then meet first class tailor, Steven Tabak, of Beckenstein Bespoke, where their clothing is designed... and, everything is constructed on the premises. "We are one stop shopping, whatever a customer needs, we can make it for them. " And for Jonathan, it is only about quality craftsmanship.

There are intriguing spaces sprinkled throughout the city that invite corporations to utilize their facilities, but stepping inside Offsite is a unique experience designed specifically for the business meeting clientele. The brainchild of Patrick Everett and Shawn Kessler, they have created a stunning turnkey facility where all day conferences can be held. Companies are invited to bring their employees together for a productive 9am-5pm meeting in the three levels of fully equipped space, which can then be flipped effortlessly into an appropriate venue for an evening event. The rooms are configured so that some forty people are able to sit around one gigantic table or be rearranged into smaller units. Attendees never have to feel confined to one space, as they can move around freely on each floor, dividing up into smaller breakout sessions, when necessary. The rooms are versatile and technology oriented, fully outfitted with AV equipment - as Patrick referred to it, "plug and play. " Endless pens and pads, drinks and snacks, including large jars of enticing candy, are provided throughout the day. The partners have paid attention to every detail, taking into consideration exactly what they believe their clients will require, including a small executive office that allows for a private phone conversation and a myriad of white walls that are actually whiteboards. Offsite works with some of the terrific catering facilities in the area to provide top lunches and dinners for groups, and everything is served on their attractive dishes. While being given a tour, Patrick told me that he had been an event planner. When he discovered that there was something important missing in the corporate world, he found his niche. As he began to imagine the possibilities, he worked diligently on his concept with Shawn. Basically all one has to do is book the space, and the rock star team at Offsite will handle the rest.