Today we’d like to introduce you to Rachel Burnstein.
Hi Rachel, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I started Bad Glass Shop in early 2020 after taking an intro to stained glass class at the Barnsdall in Los Feliz & sold my first stained glass mirror in September of that year. Like many others during the beginning of Covid, I wasn’t working. While some were learning how to bake bread, I was fortunate enough to be learning how to make stained glass mirrors. I turned the dining room of my old house in North Hollywood that I shared with two other people into a workspace & threw myself into cutting, grinding, & soldering and haven’t stopped since.
I now live in the San Gabriel Valley, eat extremely well (if you know, you know), and still create out of my home studio.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Being a beginner at anything is always challenging. When I picked up the soldering iron, I’d never used one before. I’d never cut glass or used a grinder. My art background was in weaving, and I still consider myself a weaver. And luckily you can be many things! My first day of glass class was humbling. I had big eyes and even bigger expectations for what I was going to make on my first day, and what I created in the end was…a lumpy, glorified coaster. And that lumpy coaster comes with me to all of the classes I now teach as an example of my first day learning something completely new so that my students can be easy on themselves and just have fun.
From the first mirror in September of 2020 to the mirrors I make now to the mirrors I’ll make three years from now, I’m forever a student, and the road ahead is going to be filled with challenges, new information, and hopefully a lot of growth.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I’m a stained glass artist who specializes in making mirrors & art objects. I’m most known for my curved organic mirrors with their tiled stained glass borders. This design started when I first started making mirrors and has continued to evolve over the years. I’m most proud of the reach, growth, and community that has been built from sharing my work with the world outside of my studio. I’ve been able to release small batch collections to so many through Instagram and my website, collaborate with interior designers, connect with and trade with artists I admire, show my work in a gallery in New York, and make collections for companies like Moda Operandi and 1stDibs. I’m grateful every day to be able to make art and share it with others.
Who else deserves credit in your story?
So many talented and generous mentors, supporters, friends, and collaborators have helped me along the way. It really is a community that has felt like an integral part in getting me where I am today. From Derek Yee, who first taught me stained glass at the Barnsdall, to Ron, Janel, and Molly at Stained Glass Supplies in Pasadena, who make you feel like you’re in it together, to my friends IRL and on the internet who endlessly have my back and encourage me to keep going — the list goes on and on. I love all my people that make me feel supported.
Pricing:
- Stained Glass Mirrors generally start at $500
Contact Info:
- Website: www.badglassshop.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/badglassshop/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/badglassshop
Image Credits
Rachel Burnstein Jose Pazos
