October 15, 2007
Mother and son turn glass making into business
Glass Obsessions offers classes, supplies and art pieces.
By CAROLINA RUIZ-MEJIA
The Orange County Register
Phyllis L'Hommedieu planned to be a computer scientist.
But her interest shifted when she took a stained glass class at Cal State Fullerton.
Unfortunately, she had to drop the class after one of her son's suffered an accident and needed special care. Ten years ago she took an online glass class and began attending a conference in Las Vegas.
"I just thought it was really fascinating; I was hooked," said L'Hommedieu about learning to make art pieces out of melting glass. "I started playing with glass, melting it and I never looked back."
L'Hommedieu, of Placentia, and her son, Kevin Bellwood, co-partnered to open Glass Obsessions three years ago in Yorba Linda.
At Glass Obsessions customers can buy gifts from the artists' gallery, take a class to learn how to make glass pieces or buy supplies to make their own if they already know how to work with glass.
Glass Obsessions offers a variety of glasses such as frit, sheet, diachronic, color bars, stringer and rod glass.
Christmas ornaments, beads and jewelry are some of the items that can be made with the glass sold in the shop.
The products are imported from Portland and Seattle, as well as Germany and Italy.
L'Hommedieu said one of the main reasons why they opened the business was because some supplies like the color bars, which come from Germany, can't be found at any other store in the county.
Prices of supplies and gift items can range from $10 to $65.
Mother and son have colored coded supplies so customers won't have to worry about compatibility issues.
Customers can also choose to do a glass piece from the idea book. The idea book is just like a cook book, L'Hommedieu said, it tells you step by step how to put a piece together. The customer puts the pieces together and the owners fuse it.
"Why go spend at the mall $50, when you can come here and impress your relative or friend by saying 'I made it for you,' " L'Hommedieu said.
People who want to learn to do their own glass pieces can take the torch class in which they will learn to make small sea shells, beads and goblets among many other items. The glass fusing class teaches the student to make candle holders, picture frames, dishes and jewelry. The classes have several sessions and the costs depend on the class.
Bellwood always had an interest in glass.
"As a kid I saw glass blown at the Sawdust Festival in Laguna Beach and thought that was cool," said Bellwood, 29, who is majoring in business entrepreneur at Cal State Fullerton.
His interest grew when he attended a glass conference with his mom in Long Beach. Now they both attend the glass exposition in Las Vegas every year.
Besides being co-partners, mother and son have taken classes together.
L'Hommedieu has even developed a technique to make colored rods, which she wrote about in an article appearing in The Flow, a national glass magazine, in December.
Glass Obsessions
Business hours: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays
Location: 3940 Prospect Ave., Suite D, Yorba Linda
Phone: 714-993-7700
Online: www.glassobsessions.com
Phyllis L'Hommedieu
Family: Husband, Bob; four sons; two daughters; six grandchildren; two great-grandchildren
Hobbies: Working with glass and beads and all crafts
Glass: "The glass is so versatile; you can make so many things with it. Glass is so beautiful. "
Colors: Purple, blue and green
Kevin Bellwood
Hobbies: Besides glass making, riding motorcycles
Glass: "I enjoy the most the flexibility of glass and all the different things you can do with it."