Seventh Avenue from roughly 42nd Street until roughly 34th Street, is nicknamed "Fashion Avenue" and is at the heart of the Garment District. This is where the center of the United State's fashion trade has been housed since ... well, for a really long time. (You can tell that this is a well researched article. Not.)
In my own life, the Garment District means button stores and fabric stores and the sense that my Zedda (grandfather) walked these streets during his time as a furrier. By the time I knew Zedda, he owned a candy store but my dad tells great stories about how strong my Zedda was, all from handling the furs day in and day out. One of these days I'll snap a photo of the Garment Center Synagogue (they do not seem to have a website), it is still an active, Orthodox congregation. No, I do not know if my Zedda worshiped there but I'd like to think so. (Yes, I could ask my dad but the phone is so far away, and I am so very tired ...)
When I started sewing, many, many years ago, I haunted the remnant stores in the high 30's guided by my mother-in-law. She forced me to get over my shyness and dive right in to the bolts and patterns -- though she never understood keeping a "stash."
During the day, one must dodge the couriers, dashing about with their carts hanging with ready-to-wear or piled high with bolts of fabric. Walking Seventh Avenue is definitely an "only in New York" experience.
