WORKING -- Peggy Jones

Noaki Schwartz

SHE IS ... driven by her hobbies.

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LEARNING THE TRADE

Peggy Jones knew little about cars 25 years ago.

And now, with a quarter-century of experience behind her, Jones can

rap about those sleek metal monsters with the best of them.

And she does.

Model Car Masterpieces caters mostly to adults -- the model kits can

be fairly pricey. Most of her clients, Jones said, are adults who admire

classic racing cars.

So working at the Costa Mesa shop, she has to know her material --

even if it means breaking the gender stereotype.

“There are very few women involved in model cars,” she said. “Many men

in the industry get their wives’ input, but there are not more than a

handful of women that build.”

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OTHER HOBBIES

Although some model shops carry a small selection of cars, most model

car sales are done through mail order. That gives Jones long stretches of

time to work on her own hobby -- knitting.

Over the years, Jones has won three knitting awards at the Orange

County Fair for her unique sweaters.

“I own a wardrobe that I’ve never seen anywhere else,” she said.

However, this year is a question mark. She’s yet to hear from the

judges and the fair is right around the corner, Jones said.

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FAMILY BUSINESS

It was Jones’ husband, Lloyd, an avid model plane builder, that hit on

the idea to open a shop that specialized in model cars from Europe.

The theme of models and cars appears to run in the family.

One of Jones’ sons grew up to work on Ferraris, which accounts for the

sleek white car parked in front of the shop.

Her other son, a graphic designer, gave his mother a personalized

matchbox replica, complete with her license plate number on the back of

the little white Ferrari.