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INTERVIEWER: So woodworkers out there, you know the word of the woodshop.
[WOOD CUTTING SOUND]
There's
the smell of it. The sound of it. There's nothing like it. But not
everyone is traditionally welcome in woodshop. A Minneapolis shop
dedicated to marginalized genders is changing that.
Fireweed
Community Woodshop reopened last weekend after shuttering during the
pandemic. MPR News reporter, Grace Birnstengel, is here to tell us more.
Welcome back to the show, Grace.
GRACE BIRNSTENGEL: Thanks for having me, Tim.
TIM: So what got you in there?
GRACE
BIRNSTENGEL: So I live in South Minneapolis, and I was familiar with
the shop back when it was called Women's Woodshop. I knew it was really
popular. And to my knowledge, it was pretty unique. You don't actually
have to have any experience to take classes there.
And I was
pretty bummed when they lost their first base in a few months of the
pandemic because I knew it was really popular. And a couple of people
mentioned to me that it was reopening, and I have several friends who
work in the trades and are not men. So I know from them how masculine
that world can be and, therefore, how important spaces like these are.
TIM:
Talked a little bit about the trades. Not all of them are the same, but
they're woodworking and carpentry. What's the difference here.
GRACE
BIRNSTENGEL: Yeah. So they're not the same, but there's an overlap in
the skills. Carpentry is constructing houses or buildings, or other
structures, and then putting the appliances in and stuff. And
woodworking is making things out of wood.
TIM: And what kind of things are they making at Fireweed? What are they working on down there?
GRACE
BIRNSTENGEL: Yes, so they generally have three types of classes. They
have furniture classes where people are making tables or stools. They
have craft classes. At Fireweed, they make baskets, wooden boxes, bowls,
wooden toys, and then there are really practical classes that are
geared toward renovation.
There are a lot of first-time home
buyers that go to Fireweed for classes. And one is called Be Your Own
Handy Person. There's also a Power Tools 101. And then, I also want to
add that there's a sliding scale for payment. And most classes also have
two seats saved for people of color to take them for free.
TIM:
And it's not just reopening. It's getting a little bigger here.
Location, I think, got much larger. Right? What are they doing with it?
GRACE
BIRNSTENGEL: Yeah. So in their old space in the Standish neighborhood,
all their tools were on wheels, and they had to be rearranged constantly
because it was so small. And this space is triple the size. It's also
in a more central location.
It's right off the Franklin Avenue
Bridge in Prospect Park. And it's really accessible by bus and bike,
which I know is something that was important to them for the new
location.
I was there the other day. And it's a really beautiful
space that has huge windows. It used to be an upholstery shop. So yeah,
the front of the shop has all these big windows.
And you can
see the bridge. And there was the sunset. It was one of those pink
sunsets the other day that we've been seeing. So it's a great spot.
TIM: Much better than the shop at Coon Rapids High School where I went. The cinder block bunker where I learned to do woodwork.
GRACE BIRNSTENGEL: I hope so.
TIM: But this place is doing quite well. I understand it was very popular before the pandemic.
GRACE
BIRNSTENGEL: Yeah. They had, I was told, 1,000 students every year,
usually, and about 100 classes and 40ish instructors. Mostly, I should
say, women and non-binary instructors.
TIM: And I believe you
said you were at a table making class on Wednesday. Are these stationary
tools? Hand tools? What's actually going on there?
GRACE
BIRNSTENGEL: Yeah, so there were seven students. It's a mix of
stationary tools and hand tools. Like, half and half, I would say. The
students were in their third week of the class. And they were milling
the wood they're going to use for their tables, which means, to my
understanding, using tools to shape the lumber into wood you can-- or
excuse me.
Shape the wood into lumber-- that's the way it goes--
that you can use for tables. It was really chill. Just people, kind
of-- they were confident. Confidently using power saws. Helping each
other out. It was a great environment.
And I was really curious
what types of people were drawn to that space. And the founder, Jess
Hirsch, she said that there's four different categories of people that
tend to take classes. It's friends that want to take a class together.
Not necessarily even woodworking, but that's what they landed on.
Sometimes people want to switch careers and get into the trade, so they
take a class there.
Woodworking class in high school. Like you
mentioned Tim, a lot of the times, young girls or non-binary people feel
unwelcome in those classes or maybe pushed out because they're pretty
masculine, like I said earlier. And then, there are also people who say
they have access to the tools from family members, but were never taught
how to use them and want to take advantage of that.
TIM: So
I've been at a couple of these places. The Minneapolis Tool Library,
I've been to their shop. It's kind of nice. What makes this place
different? What's what brings folks to this one?
GRACE
BIRNSTENGEL: Well, I think it's the safety and the support that they can
get in that environment and knowing that you can come in, no skills
needed. And I actually talked to one of the co-chairs of the board there
who also teaches spoon carving for people of color.
They have
classes that are just for people of color. And then, she also was taking
the class on Wednesday. So here is Vanessa Walton talking about why
this space is so important.
VANESSA WALTON: I am really thankful
for this space. I'm thankful for our community. I really want to
welcome people to come here. We certainly are geared towards women and
non-binary people, but we have classes that are open to all genders. And
we try to create spaces that are specifically also for BIPOC folks too
so they can learn from instructors who represent their communities.
And
I think, yeah, I just want to make it clear that we are open, and we
are here, and we welcome all people. And so we really want you to come
down and take a class. Check out our space.
GRACE BIRNSTENGEL: That's awesome.
VANESSA WALTON: Yeah.
TIM:
Spoon carving. An art after my grandmother's heart. You know, the
pandemic was really hard on a lot of these places that depended on a lot
of people to support them, places that help people come together. How
does this place make community beyond its walls?
GRACE
BIRNSTENGEL: Yeah, so they didn't actually completely shut down during
the pandemic. They switched to doing some Zoom classes where they could.
But, obviously, Zoom is not an ideal environment for learning how to do
woodworking. And most people don't have power saws at home.
TIM: Hard to be hands-on on the laptop there.
GRACE
BIRNSTENGEL: Exactly. So I think it's really community building and
that people are together, have actual access to the tools, and can give
each other feedback on their projects. And I asked the founder who I
mentioned earlier, Jess Hirsch, to tell me more about what you just
asked, and here is her on that.
JESS HIRSCH: It is so
supportive. It's like, people will clap for you after you use the table
saw for the first time. People feel-- If you have inhibitions about a
tool, you can ask for multiple demos. We can do dry runs without the
machine on.
It's never a space to judge or watch each other in a
negative way. We're just learning from each other. And that nurturing
space is really cultivated by our instructors and, pretty naturally, by
other students. It's a really supportive place. And I think just due to
the goals of the people coming to the shop, I think it maintains that
throughout.
TIM: You talked about power tools here. Do people have to have experience to go to this place?
GRACE
BIRNSTENGEL: No, they don't. No experience is necessary for most of the
classes. I think, some of them, you're required to take Power Tools 101
beforehand.
But most of them, you don't have to have
experience. And everybody there is really nice, so don't be intimidated
if you want to take a class. And their website is fireweedwoodshop.org,
which has a list of their roster of classes.
TIM: And that's Grace Birnstengel, a reporter here at Minnesota Public Radio News. Thanks for sharing.
Jerry Jondreau with a dikinaagan made for his family by Thomas and Nashay Howes. (Photo: Thomas Howes)
PETALUMA, Calif. -- Castle USA, a woodworking machinery
manufacturer, has extended the entry period for its student woodworking
contest, “What’s Your Angle?” until April 15, 2023.