I'm kind of surprised you're asking this question, but anyway, here's my thoughts on it.
1) Guys will watch (in the beginning), naturally because of sexual interest. (Some girls too) 2) They will also watch to see if she has any real woodworking skills. (which would make her even more attractive) Let's not talk about the chauvinists who think a woman has only a few purposes. 3) Women will watch because it empowers them to be independent and just as capable. If not, then at the very least women will watch because it pleases them to see a woman do something just as well as a man, if not better, especially in an area that so far is mostly a man's domain. 4) A woman is generally less intimidating if you're learning or thinking of learning how to do something. 5) There's the uniqueness of a woman doing skilled woodworking. More woman are getting into it, but there's a long way to go before they even start to approach this "male" domain.Of course, there's downsides to using a woman. If she's not as skilled as people hope, she will lose credibility faster than any man. Or some male egos will kicks in and say that there's no way a woman can be as capable. But, I regress....
Those are just some of my thoughts as to why I think it makes a difference. I'm sure you get the idea. If I had my preference, I'd rather be looking at a good looking woman all day, than some man doing the same thing, but that preference would is easily outweighed by my wanting that person to be skilled in what they're doing and able to hold my attention with presence, presentation and being able to teach me something that I can apply in the real world.