Flameworking is ‘like a siren song’ to Glassworks KC fans. Here’s what it involves

On any given day, Sara and Robert LaGrand’s basement is full of people working with fragile, powerful material. The two run Public Glassworks KC from their home studio in Lenexa.

But don’t expect forges full of molten glass — like those displayed on Netflix’s “Blown Away” — in this home. The LaGrands focus on flameworking, which lends itself to smaller objects, such as beads and marbles for beginners.

With some practice, students can graduate to making pendants and even holiday ornaments.

For the LaGrands, it all started back in 1994 when they saw someone demonstrating how to make glass beads while on vacation in Santa Fe. Sara was hooked.

“There’s an impermanence to it. It’s liquid, yet it’s solid, and there’s so many things you can do with it,” she said. “It is like a siren song. Once you start doing it, you cannot stop.

“When somebody gets bit, then you know immediately. They start asking all these questions. You can tell that very first day whether or not they’re going to stick with it.”

That’s how Sara felt when they got home from Santa Fe. She looked for a teacher or even a library book to tell her how to try it but couldn’t find one locally.

She managed to make contact with the people she’d seen in Santa Fe and traveled around the country to take various classes.

Now, what was once a hobby is also a business. She and Robert first taught classes at the Westport Community Center, but for the past 10 years, they’ve drawn their students to their home.

Sara said she saw a lot of different home studios while traveling the world as a glass blowing teacher. That helped when she and Robert built their own studio.

Sara and Robert teach in the studio, but they also regularly bring in master glass artists who have different specialties. People travel from around the country for these classes. A recent class brought students from as far away as California and Texas.

Beginner classes run about three hours, while master classes can go all day. Those with experience can also book time to use the equipment and materials without a class.

Sara has seen an uptick in students since the pandemic started.

“Once you get a little bit of experience with the torch, it’s very meditative,” Sara said. “We have a lot of medical professionals come just to unwind. During COVID, we had a lot of people from the public health department, because their job was very stressful. It’s a good, relaxing thing to do once you get over the initial fear of the fire.”

The most popular class times are in the afternoon, although they do offer evening classes as well. Because the classes involve holding glass in an open flame, students must be at least 16 to participate.

Most people who want to take a class with them have already watched some videos online, Sara said.

Kansas City resident Fay Balk has been taking classes at Public Glassworks KC for four years. She’d tried the bigger, forge-based glass blowing and found it wasn’t for her, but flameworking was perfect.

“I love that you can melt it, manipulate it, do something with it, but no matter what you do, you aren’t 100 percent sure what’s going to come out,” she said.

She especially likes the environment at the studio.

“It’s nurturing and welcoming, and Sara and Robert both are patient teachers. I’ve learned from both of them,” Balk said. “Being so positive and encouraging — it’s infectious, and they open your eyes to a whole new world of glass.”

The LaGrands even helped her set up her own home studio for personal use and offered guidance for applying to shows and art fairs.

A basic three-hour class at Public Glassworks KC starts at $85, including materials. For more information about the studio or to sign up for a class, visit publicglassworkskc.com.