Meet Hammerstone
OUR MISSION
To empower women and gender minorities through crafts trades education.
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Since 2013 Hammerstone School has been fostering self-reliance through an introduction to building skills in a space absent of preconceptions about what we may or may not know or may or may not be capable of.
As machines have increasingly replaced manual labor, many of us have grown disconnected from the physical skills that once sustained our lives and communities. Hammerstone helps rebuild those connections—reminding our students of their capacity to create, repair, and care for the spaces they inhabit.
We believe in the power of physical work: the creativity, focus, and satisfaction that comes from seeing a project through from start to finish. With every class, we aim to rekindle that sense of purpose and pride.
Our courses are designed to counteract long-standing gender imbalances in the trades. By creating learning environments specifically for women and gender minorities, we offer students a place to explore their capabilities free from judgment or outdated assumptions. From our very first class, this intentional space has received overwhelmingly positive feedback for its impact and approach.
While our regular offerings are reserved for women and non-binary participants, we also offer custom workshops open to people of all genders. These allow anyone to engage with our curriculum in a format that meets their needs while staying true to our mission of empowerment and inclusion.
History
In her years as a carpenter, Maria has repeatedly found herself to be the only woman in building classes, usually the only woman on a job site. According to the Department of Labor, fewer than 3% of carpenters are women. There are some “women-to-work” programs addressing this issue, however these tend to focus on job-readiness rather than on craftspersonship and skills-building. Some craft-based carpentry schools offer a single course exclusively for women; these classes tend to be small, and not at the forefront of the school’s mission. Hammerstone School combines these experiences into a craft school teaching building classes that prioritize women as students and as future builders.
Teaching carpentry to women
While the idea of teaching carpentry for women classes had been percolating in Maria’s mind for quite some time, it wasn’t realized until the winter of 2012-2013 when a friend presented the perfect project around which to organize the inaugural classes: a tiny house. Maria designed two courses around this house: the first to frame the tiny home, and the second to work on trim and interior detailing. The tiny house classes quickly led to other opportunities: a two-day introduction to carpentry skills course, and a cider-press building workshop. With the success of that first year, we decided to expand our offerings; with a new schedule, we hope to also expand the geographical reach of our school so that more women from around the country are able to get an introduction to building in a safe and enjoyable environment.
