Men Say Bye to the Bar, Hang Out in a 'Manspace'

June 17, 2007 — -- Sports bars and pool halls used to be the haunts of men craving time alone.

But now, some men are creating guys-only spaces in their own homes.

Tired of being sidelined to the neighborhood pub, basement or garage, they're creating chic retreats for their enjoyment -- and no one else's.

These spaces include an old water cistern in California, a backyard barn outside Boston, a room in a Harlem apartment -- each different, each a "manspace."

Sam Martin, who literally wrote the book on the subject, explained that a manspace is an area a man carves out just for himself.

"Guys, for one reason or another, they just need a space -- a space to get away," he said. "We used to joke that a manspace can be as small as a good set of headphones and a comfortable chair."

Today's manspaces have come a long way from a worn, old armchair.

Bill Sarni's is a barn, where he carves and paints wood duck decoys for hunting. Before he had his manspace, he had a room and a basement of his house, but it created a smelly mess for his wife and two daughters. So, three years ago, he built a barn in the backyard.

"It's the best therapy you could have," he said. "You get wrapped up in your work, you get wrapped up in a piece of wood that you're working on and you forget everything else."

Jeanette Sarni, his wife of 37 years, fully approves.

"He always wanted his own space," she said. "He always wanted the barn. The barn was always his dream, so that's why it's nice to see the dream come true."

Joe Masibay's manspace is smaller and simpler: he converted one of the three bedrooms in his Harlem, N.Y., apartment into a toy room.

"Once you have that space, it's really hard to give it up," he said. "It's really hard. Even if I didn't do anything in there, just knowing that you have a space to go to is really great."

Playing with toys for hours isn't all fun and games: Masibay is a professional toy designer. Sometimes he works in his manspace; sometimes he doesn't.