A Normanville artist is creating stunning jewellery from items that could otherwise be set for landfill, including the humble coffee pod.

Maddie Gibbs describes herself as “a bowerbird”.

“I can’t seem to be able to go past any piece of shiny rubbish,” she says.

Much of Maddie’s work is about creating new from old. She strips back electrical cords from unwanted gadgets to collect copper wire and metal. The trained silversmith also works with sterling silver and hand-painted silk, and uses beading and wire-wrapping techniques, to come up with her striking pieces. 

But it’s her latest range, which recycles leftover remnants of the morning coffee, that has tongues talking.

After always going through her brother-in-law’s garbage, asking “can I have this? Can I have that?”, Maddie says he gave her a handful of coffee pods and challenged her to do something with them.

Maddie discovered some instructional videos about creating coffee pod jewellery online, however she wanted to create her own designs, so she began experimenting, to some pretty impressive results.

Coffee pod jewellery by Maddie Gibbs from evesbeads.

To create her swirly drop earring design, she flattens the pods out, cuts them up, bezzles them together and then attaches the hooks. Maddie is currently working on some designs for some big, bold coffee-pod necklaces, using her silversmithing techniques.

She has been making jewellery on and off for about 30 years. 

“It has been a hobby and then a business - and definitely plays second fiddle to family,” she says.

After taking quite a large break, Maddie resumed jewellery making more seriously around nine years ago, and in the past 18 months it has really taken off, with some newfound free time. 

Maddie, her husband and son have been connected to the Normanville region for about 12 years, after buying some land in the area. They’ve been living in the region, in the home they built, full time since 2012. She works out of a home studio.

“It’s a big mess but it’s an organised mess, a creative mess I suppose,” Maddie says.

She loves the region’s natural beauty, and the friendliness of the people.

“You have to wave about 20 times just to get from one end of the street to the other,” she says.

The region seems to be a hub for creatives. Maddie feels fortunate to have her work featured in A Birdie Told Me, a gorgeous Normanville store, run by Tracey Taylor as a sort of artists’ collective. It features work from around 115 local artists and craftspeople.

“It’s an amazing little shop,” Maddie says.

She speaks with excitement about some of the work on display from other artists, such as baskets woven from items collected on the beach, and “the most beautiful insect paintings”.

“Some of the stuff there will blow your mind,” Maddie says.

She also has her art at some selected stores in Adelaide, and online at evesbeads.com

Recycled wire pendant by Maddie Gibbs of evesbeads.