Meet Sophie: Carpenter’s Apprentice
Sophie sitting in the loft of the 2023 Tiny House
Sophie Vasseur was working in sports management in Paris, France, when she made the move to the US. Several months before the move, Sophie quit her job to help prepare for the move. During the pandemic, her landlord was going to replace their stone patio and Sophie, hesitant to have workers in and out of the house, offered to do it herself. Sophie had been drawn to manual work as a child having grown up with a father who had built the family home before she was born, however, her actual carpentry experience was minimal: “In France when I was growing up, high school was divided into the academic track or the trades track. The general view was that you only joined the trades track if you weren’t smart enough to make it in the academic track. I did a few little projects during elementary school, like building birdhouses, and I always volunteered to help with projects like repainting the wooden shutters on our house. But I had never worked on anything like a patio before.” But with a desire to work with her hands and YouTube at her call, she tackled the project and accomplished it. After that, she knew that whatever her next job was, it would be in the trades.
Sophie arrived in Ithaca in June of 2022 and shortly after heard about Hammerstone. Sophie kept busy with small household projects like painting and fence mending through the fall, and enrolled in her first Hammerstone class, Basic Carpentry Skills 101, in January of 2023. “[My partner at the time] dropped me off like a child on her first day of school and told Christina I spoke only a very little English. Then she left! After that first day, I was exhausted from learning something new while trying to understand English.
Luckily, Christina showed us everything as she was explaining it. The demonstrations were very useful, even for people who spoke perfect English.”
Knowing that she wanted to pursue a job in the trades, Sophie spoke with Christina after class who explained that the courses in our tiny house series would offer a breadth of experience, and could even lead to some additional volunteer opportunities in the fall. “I signed up for the Adirondack Chair class first, knowing I would learn some new skills and also the project looked interesting. Then I kept checking the website for when the summer classes were announced so I could be sure to get a spot in the tiny house courses!”
Sophie participated in six out of seven tiny house courses in 2023 (joining a cohort of 4 other students who attended the majority of the classes), and also joined us for Intro to Electric and Drywall Basics. Her enthusiasm for the work, along with her aptitude to pick up skills quickly, her willingness to tackle any task from climbing ladders to sweeping the shop, and her smiling demeanor, made her a top choice to ask to help volunteer to finish up the tiny house work. Sophie worked alongside our crew for the remainder of the year as we finished painting, installed cabinets and flooring, and wrapped up finish electric work.
Sophie (right) working on building the temporary exterior stairs for the 2024 tiny house project.
“Volunteering in such an intimate setting allowed me to observe Christina and Maria working and learn by watching. I was able to learn what steps were coming up next and how I could help prepare the team for success by anticipating what we would need. I also appreciated being given responsibility. You trusted in my competence and allowed me to tackle challenging projects. I remember at one point you [Maria] asked our opinion on the best way to approach a problem. You took all of our feedback, even mine, and shook it up to find the best solution.” I pointed out to Sophie that not every new crew member is given the responsibilities she has stepped into. Her competence and willingness to learn are exceptional. “But, it is the relationships you build with students in classes that allows you to clearly recognize their potential,” she responded.
In January of 2024, we were thrilled to offer Sophie a position on our crew. Initially she joined us part time, but ever since tiny house prep work ramped up in the late spring 2024, she has been a full time member of the crew, and now is indispensable!
When asked how she would have pursued becoming a carpenter were it not for Hammerstone, Sophie responded, “I would have found some classes to take, but they most likely would not have been for women only, and I would not have been as comfortable asking questions…
At Hammerstone, I don’t feel stupid asking a question, and when I do, it usually turns out that 4 other students had the same question. Also, at Hammerstone, if you don’t know how to do something, they show you by demonstrating on a separate piece, and then support you as you try yourself. In other classes, they don’t just show you how to do it, they do it for you.”
Sophie running electrical in the 2025 tiny house. She is so capable and we are so lucky to have her on our team!
Sophie’s favorite part of carpentry is framing. “It’s physically challenging, and you see the project go from nothing to a fully formed house in such a short amount of time! I love the gratification of seeing something I built with my own hands. I wanted to become a carpentry because I wanted to see the real value of my work - I didn’t just want to work for money alone. But really, the variety of the work on a small residential crew is what I love the most. You get to work with your body physically, and with your mind solving problems. Every day is different; you never get stuck just hanging drywall, or just sanding. And I love the fact that I now get to offer support in Hammerstone classes. I feel inspired to share with others the way Maria and Christina shared with me.”
Since joining the crew, Sophie has tackled more and more advanced home projects on her own, including refinishing her office drywall and trim, finishing her basement, and upgrading the electric baseboard heat in her entire house.
