girls garage: the all-female workshop teaching young women DIY design + construction

girls garage is an initiative of creative and constructive instruction, geared toward cultivating and fostering the raw brilliance of young women through rigorous, hands-on design and building projects in the classroom and communities. begun in april 2016 by design studio H (founded by designer emily pilloton), the project was originally born out a high school program entitled studio H.

the garage is located in west berkeley, california
all images courtesy of girls garage

during studio H sessions, the instructors noticed that young girls were not reaching their full potential in a co-ed classroom. this lead the team to set up camp H, an all-girls program for hard core building and community development schemes. after four years, the camp became a permanent fixture and girls garage was born.

each year, girls garage teaches over 200 girls from a huge variety of backgrounds hands-on, practical skills and creative approaches to every day projects. design, construction, wood and metal working, even drafting up plans in adobe illustrator, no task, big or small, is off the cards.

each year, the school teaches over 200 girls skills like metal-working, computer design and lock-picking

not only does the initiative equip its attendees with roll-up-your-sleeves experience, it provides young girls with confidence, enthusiasm and courage in approaching tasks that, traditionally, are oriented towards young men. the 3,600 square foot studio located in west berkeley, california, is home to a woodshop, metalshop, digital fabrication studio, and classroom.

here, girls are taught a myriad of different skills, including screen-printing, laser-etching, carpentry, craft-making and lock-picking. in the garage’s lofty and aerated workspace, it’s not usual to see girls donning hard hats and plastic goggles, manning power tools, saws and soldering irons. 

the garage teaches girls the skills needed to follow pursuits that are usually oriented towards men

the garage offers a number of different class types, designed to best accommodate the schedules of as many students as possible; from seasonal after-school programs, to week long summer camps and once off weekend workshops. driven by its motto, ‘fear less. build more’, the garage is a much needed space for young girls to experiment with and learn about skills and technologies all too frequently branded as exclusively male pursuits. 

the garage offers an after school program, week long summer camps and once off workshops
studio images courtesy of girls garage via flickr

the garage even has its own girls advisory board or ‘GAB’, made up of past and current students, that works alongside the permanent staff to provide insights and suggestions into the running of the space. so far, the initiative has been producing demonstrable results.

91% of attendees say they leave the garage feeling more confident and creative than when they come in, and 85% say they are more interested in pursuing a STEM career after taking part. the garage goes a long way to shattering and rebuilding not just a girls, but anyone’s perception of what they can or should do, and encourages the natural curiosity and vocational training for young girls to make the change they want to see in the world. 

the garage is driven by the motto: fear less. build more. 

one class saw girls imagine, design and realize their own skateboard

in addition to young girls, the garage also run programs for women aged 21 and over