Woman and Machine
EMPOWERING WOMEN IN AUTOMOTIVE
Karen Sullivan
Boston, MA
Karen is one of the co-founders of Woman and Machine, a company created for women (and men) starting out in trade professions. She loves educating the next generation of craftspeople, passing on her skills welding, fabricating metal, and more. Karen is also a friend of Capri Tools.
Who is Karen Sullivan?
How She Became A Welder
A Family Affair
Introducing Women To Welding
The organization started with the intent to teach women how to fix their own cars or just to learn their way around an engine. At the time, she was the editor of Girls ‘N Garages Magazine, and she took the teaching gig to promote it. She was a little unsure at first, because she didn’t know whether or not she would be a good teacher. But Todd talked her into it, and she was hooked.
She still teaches classes with Woman and Machine, and she now owns the company. While it’s still important to teach people about how to navigate their own car engines, classes offered by the company have expanded and now include welding and metal art along with car maintenance.
Karen teaches the intro to MIG and Intro to TIG workshops, which people can take to get a feel for which welding style suits them best. She also teaches art workshops, helping newcomers create unique sculptural pieces. In past workshops, students have created roses, abstract pieces, and seasonal works like snowmen and reindeer. Karen loves creating works of art with metal and enjoys sharing this skill with others.
Karen encourages young women who may be considering entering the field to go for it. She tells them to start taking classes and learn about different forms of welding to see what they enjoy. When they’re comfortable with their preferred style, she suggests looking for apprenticeships at local welding shops.
While the welding industry can be a challenge, Karen suggests looking for a mentor. She understands how the right mentor can guide people through the industry, which makes navigating the field less of a challenge.
Expanding Her Teaching Footprint
She notes that one class isn’t the best for perfecting technique, but students love learning about the different concepts and experimenting with techniques. She sends each student home with their work, so they can have a fond memory of their time in class and possibly be inspired to take more classes. With simpler teaching projects, many students who come to class with little to no experience using tools end up making unique and interesting pieces just by joining small pieces of steel.
She loves watching students come to understand how to use the tools and apply the concepts of welding. Even if they aren’t perfect within one class, she loves seeing her students become more confident as the class moves on, particularly if they come to more than one class and she can see their progress.
@KSULLIVAN_METALWORKS | @WOMANANDMACHINE
Karen inspires young women to pick up their tools and try things they didn’t think they could do. Check out Woman and Machine for upcoming classes, and follow her on Instagram to see what she’s doing next.