The plastic girl

I've been searching for any information on Mikiko Minewaki and her work. She is a Japanese jeweller who cuts up plastic objects to create jewellery. I've seen the cigarette lighter rings before but the necklace made up of sections of a toy gun was a real eye opener!

As I looked at her work I realised I hadn't seen any metal, just plastic. It has often been suggested to me that the non-precious materials I use, plastic and previously porcelain, need to be incorporated with precious metals to make them more valuable/desirable. I can understand the point and enjoy seeing a contrast of materials (Helen Britton) but I've never been totally convinced.