Posted by Samantha Mackertich ‘20
FACES on Facebook
Living Places. 2018. "West Side Historic District." Accessed December 04, 2018. http://www.livingplaces.com/NY/Saratoga_County/Saratoga_Springs_City/West_Side_Historic_District.html.
Posted by Samantha Mackertich ‘20 Crystal Cobert’s skin-therapy spa, FACES on Beekman Street, is located at the southern end of the current boundaries of the Arts District. The bustling building at 30 Beekman Street includes three businesses on the ground floor: FACES as well as Little Darlings Tattoo/Photography Studio and the Loft Blow Dry Bar. Two apartments occupy the second floor. Despite not being a fine artist, Crystal manages her skin therapy business as a very involved participant in the Arts District. Crystal believes that “People on this street tend to want to do things a little bit differently…that’s why we come here. If I wanted to be a spa like Aveda, I’d be on Broadway”. Beekman Street is a community, and according to Crystal, “All the businesses on this street are desperately trying to support each other.” One aspect of that support is how she works to include products and displays reflecting the creativity of the Arts District. Outward decoration—particularly on porches—conveys the neighborhood history and community values. As a residential area with a history of being settled by immigrants, money has always been tight, and porches have been a staple part of the architecture and the community (Living Places 2018). The porches are the connection to the community and street, as the roads are narrow, and people can sit out and see and chat with one another. Also, in during an earlier era without air conditioning, access to cooler outside air was critical. Crystal said that the porches remind her of New Orleans and are part of what drew her to the Arts District. Porches are symbolic of community and the heritage of the area. The outdoor décor and architecture of FACES on Beekman Street connects them to a neighborhoods deeper history of art and community. Decoration is how Crystal displays her values and services in her business. Her affinity for local, handmade, and organic products and art is evident through her shop’s décor. Crystal is currently transitioning her skin-therapy spa to become more of a ‘spa-tique,’ which will include more walk-in hours and opportunities to sell skin products as well as local art. The artists and business owners all work together to create this culture of support and exchange. Crystal not only displays her own values and tastes in the products and art she exhibits, but also supports her community and local artisans. Crystal works to bring together physical comfort with emotional comforting, and she believes “A lot of the healing that takes place here isn’t something you can see…it’s a self-esteem issue.” The decoration and personalization of the space embodies the holistic view of the person who creates it: Crystal. The space evokes a natural, holistic, and community-centred ambiance through its local art, floral designs, ethically-conscious products, and handmade statement pieces, such as the large wooden doors that separate the front room from the treatment room. The homey décor, such as the floral couches and plush rugs, are meant to enhance the comfortable atmosphere, similar to visiting the home of a close friend. In these ways, Crystal uses decoration and use of physical space at FACES on Beekman Street to convey the values and services relevant to the business and to the community. Links
FACES on Facebook Living Places. 2018. "West Side Historic District." Accessed December 04, 2018. http://www.livingplaces.com/NY/Saratoga_County/Saratoga_Springs_City/West_Side_Historic_District.html.
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Posted by Aggie Raymond '20Crystal Cobert is the owner of FACES on Beekman, a spa boutique located in the Arts District of Saratoga Springs. As an esthetician, nutritionist, makeup artist, and writer, Crystal provides a holistic approach to healing the face. The Arts District on Beekman Street is an arts and business community with a variety of working artists, shopkeepers, restauranteurs, health professionals, and residents. Crystal contributes to the broader view of arts, while also supporting the fine artists. Crystal provides creative healing and uses her shop to display vintage and hand-made items, creating a space that blends local art and organic facial items. Throughout my research, I found that Crystal alleviates physical and emotional pain by gaining trust and creating a collaborative relationship with her clients. Many of her clients struggle with the appearance of their face, thus seeking the specialized care Crystal offers. How people see and react to an individual’s face deeply affects the way that individual thinks about and presents themselves in society. Crystal works with her clients to create a trusting relationship to understand their lifestyle and to provide one-of-a kind treatments, from reflexology to acne. She focuses on the environmental factors of her client’s life, from what they eat, where they live, and if they have pets, to what kind of detergent they use. Crystal modified the original structure of the space in her store to accommodate her needs and those of her clients. She installed barn doors to create a private treatment area, marking the divider between the range of privacy of the boutique and treatment area. Crystal also uses her love and passion for vintage and handmade art to attract potential clients via foot traffic to the local restaurants. On display one could find anything from beautiful handmade hats, to antique keyholes from Paris and vintage button necklaces and earrings. She maintains and creates positive relationships with other businesses on Beekman Street, while putting her shop on the map. Crystal creates lasting relationship with her clients, providing them mental and physical relief to their suffering by providing comfort through her holistic healing approaches.
Posted by Evian Pan, '17Mineral springs. Organic Foods. Farmers Markets. Nowadays, health-related locations have filled up Saratogians’ lives. For Earth’s Sake, a fairly new business on West Avenue, next to the Fortunate Cup Café, seeks to assist customers in pursuing a healthier life. The nature-mimicking interior, designed by former owner Tina using mostly wooden materials and green paint, conveys the store’s business mission – sustainability and eco-friendliness. “We wanted to bring more good products to people in town, and not only to sell the products but also to educate people in selecting and using natural products,” said Tina. Thus, everyone will receive personalized and informative service when coming into For Earth’s Sake, whether the customer is looking for regular supplement or specific treatment. Since the beginning of November, Masood Channa, attracted by the interior design and original setting, has taken over the store from Tina and started reorganizing the space. Coming from a family business of health products in New Jersey and around Albany, Masood has been working in this field for 25 years, obtaining knowledge of products and management experience along the way. To continue running For Earth’s Sake, Masood decides to follow the visual aesthetics that Tina left as well as the friendliness-led customer service. Meanwhile, to build on the previous owner’s vision, Masood plans to transform the store into a gluten-free or allergy-free market, aiming to make one-stop shopping possible for customers. He said, “It is a demand. Lots of people now have allergy issues.” Masood has bought a new freezer to store and display more types of food and has built an additional shelf for some new health supplements. Though the store did not close during the reorganizing period, December 19th is the official open date of the new For Earth’s Sake. Being now the sole full-time staff, Masood hopes to make the store an embodiment of his business ambition as well as a healthy and sustainable highlight in the city of Saratoga Springs. Posted by Lisa Moran '17Saratoga Hospital organizes a variety of community outreach programs in addition to the medical services it provides. One of these initiatives, which is aided by the hospital’s Volunteer Guild, is “Treasures”, a thrift and consignment boutique on West Avenue. The average customer may not recognize the store’s connection to the hospital and the greater community of Saratoga Springs, and instead may simply appreciate the store for the excellent shopping experience. However, upon further examination, one might recognize that Treasures is a crucial part of several socially-minded organizations in Saratoga. The volunteers themselves are perfect indicators of the community involvement in the store (see photos by author below). Many volunteers are native to Saratoga Springs, and some even worked at the hospital before retirement. This connection to the greater community allows volunteers to bring a sense of pride and familiarity to their work, and one senses this comfortable, at-home feeling in shopping at Treasures. The volunteers, along with the manager, Kate, and assistant manager, Lori, are also happy to acknowledge how crucial the community is in the store’s success. Their dependence on local donations and consignments is invaluable, and those donations are a crucial role in an even larger cycle of community outreach. Donated items, which allow 100% of the profits to go directly to hospital fundraising, decrease in price in the store the longer they stay on the racks. Consigned items allow the hospital to earn 60% of the profits and provide the seller with 40% of the profit. Items that are donated and not sold on the floor for a variety of reasons can be sorted into several categories. Some items are reserved for community programs that provide clothing for individuals through vouchers provided by different community organizations for unemployment, medical reasons, or other concerns that inhibit those individuals from paying for some new clothes. Treasures also sells some donated items to associate organizations that pay by the pound for the items and allow the store to use those profits to buy new socks and underwear for the individuals with item vouchers. These different systems of giving back to the community allow Treasures to function in a symbiotic cycle of giving and receiving with the hospital, the volunteers, and other related community organizations. Shopping in the store or donating lightly worn items allows community members to take a crucial role in this cycle and provides bridges between many aspects of the Saratoga community. Posted by Erica Heinz, '17The Saratoga Senior Center, located at 5 Williams Street, is a well-attended community center of activity. Frequented mainly by senior adults living in nearby neighborhoods, the center offers a variety of resources, activities, and social connections to its members. Among them are food, computers with internet access, a library, a billiards table, and a television. The center is also an educational and volunteering destination for local high school and college students. Here, students engage in projects relating to their area of study, such as sociology or anthropology, and do volunteering by providing beneficial services to the members of the center. As an anthropology student, I completed my ethnographic research for Skidmore College at this location. Here I observed the number of activities and classes offered by the center. These range from frequent card games of bridge to casual games of pool to individual technological tutoring led by student volunteers. These activities serve as means for social and mental enrichment for those involved. Games played at the Saratoga Senior Center lend to friendship building between multiple members of the community. They build interlaced networks of seniors who participate in the various games at different times of week. Student volunteering acts as a mutual give and take between the senior generation and the student generation. The seniors learn the ins and outs of technological devices and programs from the student volunteers, while the student volunteers learn about history and the personal lives of the seniors as well as practice valuable communication skills. The friendly atmosphere facilitates these relationships, as the space is a place to sit and chat or read a book, to meet friends and make friends, and to do work and be merry. Posted by Katherine Judge '16 and Michael C. Ennis-McMillan, Anthropology Department The history of Saratoga Springs includes a pattern of wellness, and the city is sometimes referred to as ‘Spa City,’ because of the unique geography and fresh water springs. On the west side of the city, a different kind of health service pattern has emerged, one that is based in community health care rather than tourism. Unlike other areas of the city, the west side has become the focal point for most of the area’s community-oriented health and human services, including: Saratoga Hospital, Franklin Community Center, Shelters of Saratoga, CVS Pharmacy, Rite Aid Pharmacy, the Planned Parenthood clinic, Saratoga Community Health Center, the Senior Center, and others. In a sense, the spirit of serving local residents in need has become part of the heritage of the city’s west side. Urban planning and public health initiatives tend to share common missions. Both ultimately aim to improve human well-being and manage complex social systems. The two endeavors influence each other and have been intertwined for most of their histories (Kochtitzky 2006). Geographic analysis is a tool that can be used in both urban planning and public health strategies. In Saratoga Springs, many of community-based public health initiatives are located in a discrete area of the city. The Planned Parenthood clinic is one of several health care providers located west of the heavily commercialized downtown Broadway Avenue. As part of a larger community study of the West Side of Saratoga Springs, I carried out ethnographic fieldwork at the Planned Parenthood clinic located at 236 Washington Street. During my time at the clinic, I learned how the workers at Planned Parenthood strive to provide what they call “compassionate care.” They aim to create a safe and comfortable environment to help make a patient feel informed and protected no matter their individual identity. This clinic fits within the broader design of Saratoga’s urban changes and development of health and human services, which figures prominently in the west section of the city. Reference Cited: Kochtitzky, Chris S. 2006 Urban Planning and Public Health at CDC. Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/su5502a12.htm. Date Accessed: 12/13/14 |
Student projects
Anthropology students present case studies based on projects about local people and places.
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