Fancy a pair of earrings made of coffee pods or a necklace made of piano keys?

They may be made of discarded objects, but these upcycled works are good enough to wear.

Artist Ruth Downes has perfected the craft of wearable art – come and see for yourself when her exhibition opens at Manly Art Gallery & Museum on 9 December.

Barely Wearable is a delightful exhibition exploring body adornment for the age of overconsumption. It challenges us to think about just how much we consume and throw away.

The 30 wearable artworks were crafted from computer keyboard parts and adaptors, airplane headsets, discarded razor blades, used coffee capsules, disposable face masks, bra underwires, wire springs, beer bottle caps, single use toiletries, cosmetics, pens, garden hose, coat hangers, disposable spoons, lightbulbs, rubber bands and many other everyday items.

Natural items have also been salvaged and crafted into fashionable works including Norfolk Island pine needles, jacaranda needles and eucalyptus pods.

The artist said the exhibition is more than a simple ‘up-cycling’ exercise.

“Each of these items has an intrinsic beauty that is often taken for granted. By reappropriating these materials, I am celebrating that beauty, while questioning our accepted values,” Ms Downes said.

“These items have a preciousness that confounds our expectations irrespective of their humble origins. I am projecting these materials into the real of art to question how we decide what is and isn’t valuable.”

Downes work was featured in the 2021 Environmental Art & Design Prize with Masking the problem – an Elizabethan neck ruffle made of disposable face masks, which highlighted the amount of waste created from discarded everyday items.

Barely Wearable will run from 9 December 2022 to 26 February 2023 at Manly Art Gallery & Museum. A special meet the artist event will be held on Sunday 12 February. For more information visit the MAG&M website.