Mixed-Media and Assemblage Art created by the altered mind of Jill Marie Stange
Registration for classes for the 2010 season opens today at Valley Ridge Art Studio in Muscoda, Wisconsin, and I am privileged to be one of the instructors they invited to teach there. I will be there May 1 and 2, 2010 teaching the workshop, "Re-sin-blage: a charming exercise in jewelry adornments." 
(Re-sin-blage Workshop Examples)
Come and experience the magic of creating resin objects. We'll make molds, fill bezel cups, and will explore the myriad of ways in which resin can be used. We will transform objects into elements which can be incorporated into unique jewelry pieces and embellishments to enhance your assemblage and journaling work. We will then take these elements to the next level, to assemble your own signature, one-of-a-kind, "charming" bracelet or neckpiece.
Valley Ridge is known for its beautiful surroundings, fabulous studio, yummy food, and top-notch known and published art instructors from throughout the United States and Australia. I've been taking workshops there for the past 5 years, and highly recommend going there. You'll be hooked, just like me!
If you are interested in registering for my workshop, or any of the other workshops at Valley Ridge, click here.
(Kim, Deb, Bernie, and Myself)But we didn't have to wait too long before she showed up. It was sooo much fun catching up with her! That girl always has a million different things going on in her life - I don't know how she does it! We did a lot of laughing, and never ran out of things to talk about.
When we left the cafe, we went to some nice shoppes and looked around. - And I thought I used to be a shopaholic... Geez, Bernie's got me beat! She did some real power-shopping and got a lot her Christmas gifts bought. And I'm proud to say I got a little Christmas shopping out of the way, myself.
But finally, it was time to say our goodbyes and head for home. I love getting together with the girls, and look forward to the next time Bernie comes to town.
It was all tucked inside this wooden cigar box, topped with a bow (recycled from a gift I gave to her for her birthday).
When I opened the box up, I found a collection of found objects to add to my stash! Here are some close-ups of the gifts that were inside...
The first thing I saw were some old window markers. Kim made sure I knew these babies were hard for her to part with!...
She knows how much I love old religious items. There were two wonderful rosary boxes, and inside each one she tucked in some vintage medals...
This is a medal from the other rosary box...
She even packed some 8mm film. Too bad we couldn't figure out what was the subject matter was...
And here is a strand of the cutest little pearls!!...
She even dismantled her husband's old binoculars, piece by piece...
And here's a tiny little bottle...
And some brass doo-dads...
Here is its humble beginning...the pages are in little bundles between two wooden covers, waiting to be sewn together...
And here is the finished book. I made my clasp quite small, and was very unhappy with its size, so I designed a plate to go around it. Anyone who knows me, knows that I like big and bold, not small and dainty, so I 'Jill-afied' it.
On Saturday evening. I left the studio earlier than I usually do. I was not happy with my dinky clasp, and I was tired and my shoulder hurt. I went back to the farmhouse and put on my pajamas. I decided I'd deal with book in the morning. My friend Kim Nugent, who I brought along with me for the workshop (she's never been to Valley Ridge before), came in shortly after I did and put her jammies on too. We decided to sit at the kitchen table together and work on our journals that we each brought along.
But an hour and a half later, there was still light on down in the studio, and it was bugging me what the other gals were still doing in there. I thought they were getting farther ahead of me with their books, and I guess 'curiousity killed the cat.' Kim and I headed back down to the studio in our pajamas to see what they were up to. But they were just sitting around talking. So Kim and I wandered back to the house...but not before we each grabbed a cookie to munch on. And no, we didn't plan on coordinating our sleepwear. It just happened that way!~
And finally, here's the group shot which was taken yesterday afternoon, just before we all started packing up our things to make our long drives back home.
(Myself with Susan...she's a great instructor and a lot of fun to be with!) 
Just a few days later, I attended RaeVn's Nest Art Retreat in Cedarburg, Wisconsin, to take three workshops from Richard Salley. He's another artist that I have never taken any workshops from, and I love his jewelry. I think I'm particularly drawn to his work because he works with iron wire like I do.
(Myself with Richard Salley)
(The interior of the pendant - Yep, the roman numerals are upside-down, but that way I can find my way around when I'm wearing it, 'cause there's a compass in the middle!)
(The faux bone bracelet I was working on Friday nite -I still need to finish it.)
(The pendant I made in Saturday's Workshop. I plan on adding some found-
(The Interior of the Pendant - the round plate began as a large washer, and
Each artist that they invited to contribute to the book had to make an 'odd doll' - something created with objects that took on the form of a doll. And this is the piece that I made. It is called "Treasure"....
The piece began with a ring I made from precious metal clay, fired in a kiln, and topped with antique Bible text set in the bezel. For the body, I made another bezel from an old brass rosette and sterling silver bezel wire, and placed a photo of my great-grandmother inside, and set an old lens over it. The ring is secured behind that bezel, and is constructed so the ring can be taken off the piece and worn separately, if desired. The body is comprised of an antique victorian wall clip, part of an antique iron thumb latch and an old silver serving fork. I assembled the piece by doing extensive wire-wrapping techniques, using various gauges of iron wire. The chain is also hand-forged from iron wire, using an antique key for the clasp.
I am soooooo honored that Opie and Linda asked me to be a part of this wonderful book. It is jam-packed with techniques and examples, and all of the artwork is truly amazing!
The auction will go live on eBay at 12:00 am on Oct. 15th, and will end on Oct. 19th. Each piece of artwork is listed as a separate auction. Each piece in the auction has the title "Party Animals Auction" so when you enter that search keyword, everything should come up. Check out my July 28th post for more info!!!
So the first four weeks, I was camped out in the bedroom. My two little 'boyz' were always eager to visit me, but when I wasn't up to having them playing on top of the bed, they were resigned to watching me from the doorway, where I had a baby gate placed to keep them out.
Kim Nugent came over to visit me many times during the course of my recovery. I am so lucky to have such a wonderful friend.
She even brought me some cool gifts while I was recuperating. I got a nice assortment of found objects, including odd dental items she scored during one of her rummaging excursions. 
Over Labor Day weekend, I felt well enough to go to Valley Ridge Art Studio, where I had signed up for a soldering workshop with Thomas Mann. I knew I was going to be unable to do any sawing or pounding, but I was keeping my fingers crossed that I would at least be able to attempt a little soldering. At that time, I was still wearing that huge sling that I came home from the hospital with, but I took it off when I tried to solder.
Tom was great, and had metal pieces sawed out for me ahead of time, since he was aware that I would be unable to do it myself. I tried very hard to solder the little pieces together like everyone else in the class, but my shoulder just couldn't handle it. So Tom cut out and formed a much simpler "handicapped" version for me to do.
I managed to get half of it soldered, but that was it. My shoulder was too weak and terribly painful, so I reluctantly had to give up. And that was sooo difficult for me, because I wanted so badly to be able to fully participate in the class. The tears were in my eyes many times when I couldn't do what everyone else was doing, and I became quite frustrated at my inability to do something that I was looking forward to for months.
Fortunately, I have signed up for several other workshops in October and November that I am looking forward to. I am still somewhat limited in what I will be able to do, but I am in much better shape than I was a month ago.
A few weeks ago, I stopped at a rummage sale on the way to a doctor's appointment. It was an assemblage artist's dream-come-true! Junk, junk, and more junk!!! Three big hay wagons heaped with knobs, antique tools, old castors, and gadgets galore! Karl, an old antique collector/dealer that I knew from years ago along with a friend of his, had set up this array of goodies behind Karl's barn. I hadn't seen Karl in years, so he was tickled to see me. There was sooo much to see, but I was pressed for time. I quickly scanned over each wagon, and picked out a few things I wanted. Karl told me not to worry, he would set my stuff aside, and I could come back later when I had more time to look.
When I got home from my appointment, I immediately called up Kim, the rummage 'queen,' to see if she wanted to go back to the sale with me. She didn't have to think twice, and before I knew it, she was already at my house, ready to go. We had sooo much fun there. Karl is quite a character! 
Kim was thrilled to find a box filled with old castors. She's been using them in some projects recently.
Karl took us on a special tour of his 'war room,' where he has a collection of old memorabilia from world war II and the Korean war.
Finally, it was time to pay for our purchased and say goodbye to Karl. I came home with a bunch of treasures, but Kim found even more stuff than I did! We both almost peed our pants laughing when we realized that we were there for 2 hours!!!