Episode 15 Money for Nothing

-Can I have a little rummage around in your rubbish?

-Yeah.

How do you make money for nothing?

I love that.

The answer could be hiding in the 30 million tonnes

of household waste we throw out every year.

So heavy. They don't make them like this any more. Look at that.

That's why entrepreneur Sarah Moore wants to get her hands on things

before they hit the skip.

I'm a passionate maker, buyer and user of old stuff,

and I've turned that passion into a money-making business.

I make new stuff out of old stuff and I sell it for a profit.

And with some of the country's elite designers and makers...

Say something nice about it.

My juices are flowing in this one. They are going to be wow.

..she can transform her finds into desirable...

Isn't that stunning?

..valuable...

Oh, wow.

..and, hopefully, saleable items.

That is bonkers.

If Sarah is successful, then she can hand the profits back

to the very people who had no idea

there was cash to be made from their trash.

Got, um, £350.

No.

Today we're at the recycling centre in Walsall,

where Sarah is searching for those ever elusive hidden gems.

Old cardboard, decimated flat-pack

and polystyrene are not going to cut it.

I'm after those solid pieces I can attach a serious price tag to.

She's been given special permission to ransack the rubbish tip,

and her challenge is to find three items

she can bring back to life and sell on for a profit.

Is it comfy?

I have no idea. I've never sat in it.

Come on. You've just started.

You can't be needing a sit-down already.

Get a move on.

Your days are numbered.

Scary stuff.

Now she's back on her feet,

she's spotted a vision in red leather in Zia's car.

-Hiya.

-Hi.

-Getting rid of the sofa?

-Yes, we are, yeah.

-Oh, it's a chair.

I thought it was a sofa.

Is it...? It's yours? You're just chucking it out?

-It looks in really good condition.

-It is, but the springs have gone.

-OK.

-So...

-If it's not comfortable...

-No...

-No, I totally understand.

The chair is a red herring.

It's the red leather that's caught Sarah's eye.

I really like the idea of using the leather

from something like this,

so yeah, definitely be great to have a look at it.

-Shall we get it out...

-Yes, absolutely.

..to have a closer look?

The price tag on leather goods is growing.

Repurposing the leather from this sofa could be a real money-maker.

I think...if we might only use the...

Can I have a look at the other cushions?

I think what I might do is just take the cushions away.

I think I should be able to get enough material out of those,

and then recycle the chair, if that's all right.

-That's fine.

-Cos those are some really lovely cushions.

Any ideas what we might make out of them?

Uh...

I think cushions would be a nice, easy option.

Hmm. A little too easy, Zia.

I think it would be great to take those away, if you don't mind.

No problem.

What does Zia think of Sarah scarpering with his cushions?

Hopefully, somebody can get some use out of it

rather than just throwing it in the rubbish bin and go to landfill.

Sarah is going hell for leather to makeover this item,

but could she be on a hiding to nothing?

Now, there is just heaps of leather in these cushions.

I really want to see what it's like on the inside

but I can't do that without ripping... Oh, no, look.

OK, so, it's a sort of pink suede on the inside.

I'm thinking maybe this would make, you know,

loads of handbags out of this, or maybe even a coat.

Really good find cos there's just heaps of potential

with what we've got here.

And Sarah knows just the man

to turn all that potential into profit.

When you think bags, think Neil Wragg.

From salvaged unwanted materials,

Neil creates everything from handbags to haversacks,

and prides himself on the fact that his handmade bespoke bags

will last a lifetime.

I love being able to create something

from what would be rubbish, I suppose, to other people.

You could have, for example, a tent that was at Glastonbury

and saw the Rolling Stones and then now it becomes a bag,

and it's seen quite a life already.

So, everything here has got a personality.

All the bags have lived a life,

and they're now about to live a second life.

But will Neil be able to raise the old leather cushions

from the dead too?

One item down, two to go.

The weather's taken a turn for the worse,

but I'm not going to let a little rain dampen

my naturally sunny disposition.

Will Jamie and his dad, Jeff, rain on Sarah's parade?

Oh, wow.

-Hiya.

-Hello.

-Whose is that then?

My nan's, it was.

Oh, really? That is a fantastic sofa.

-So, you just...

-In the skip.

-Really?

-Yep.

I think it looks amazing. I like everything about it.

The style of it, the fabric's really retro.

This is your...?

-My mother's.

-Your mother's. Do you remember growing up with it?

-Do you know when she got it?

-Oh, yeah. Ages ago.

-And did she buy it new?

-I think she did, yes.

So, was that something, like, in the 19...? What was that, 1950s?

-19...?

-'60s, wasn't it?

-'60s. 1960s, yeah.

It's a good size. Not too big.

And it's got that kind of

retro look that people are stuffing into their houses again,

-so if you let me have it, that would make my day.

-Yeah.

Absolutely love it.

It looks to me like Sarah might be putting

passion before profit on this one.

-Jamie, thanks so much for letting me have that.

-OK.

That's absolutely made my day. I love it.

Wow. That's going to take some work.

I have got the most amazing upholsterer lined up.

They are original, funky.

They're going to breathe new life into this

and there's going to be money to be made.

Welcome to the world of Anthony Devine.

Anthony's unique and quirky upholstery

has earned him the reputation as one of the most imaginative

craftspeople around.

Anthony can upholster almost anything,

but he loves a good chair.

Some chairs you just know.

You know that this is the one

and you just know you're onto a winner.

You can look beyond the kind of dirt and the holes and the grime

and you think, "Yes, we've got a gem here,"

and then it's a matter of teaming it up with the right fabric.

And then from ugly ducklings are beautiful swans.

Well, Anthony, can you transform this into a beautiful swan?

Two items found for Neil and Anthony.

Now Sarah has to find an item that she can get to grips with.

There's all sorts flying about,

but will Sarah like the look of what's in Frank's boot?

Excuse me, are you chucking them all?

Yeah, you can have those if you want, yeah.

-Are they all broken or...?

-No, they all work.

-Really?

-It's just that nobody wants them any more.

-So, where are they from?

They're from out of cigarette machines.

All of these were taken out, and we're just dumping them.

I've no idea if I can do something with them,

but they look amazing.

It'll be a very special thing if I can make something.

-Yeah.

-Thanks so much.

Sarah's face has lit up

now she's got a little bundle of joy.

What does Frank think she'll do with his old fluorescent tubes?

Something artistic, I think.

Yeah, I think that's what she's going to do.

You're not wrong there, Frank.

I'm thinking maybe a big chandelier.

Perhaps a whole wall of lights,

or maybe just using them with something in front to light up,

but really cool stuff.

I just need to have a bright idea about what to make out of them.

Oh, yeah. I see what you did there.

Success.

Sarah has all three items.

Neil will repurpose the red leather.

Anthony will get busy bringing the old-fashioned sofa

bang up to date.

And as for Sarah's lights,

she'll need to be switched on to make them saleable.

It never ceases to amaze me what people throw away.

I'm so pleased I was here today to save a couple of pieces

that I think are dumped diamonds that'll bring home big bucks.

Nestled between Salford and Manchester

is master upholsterer Anthony Devine's workshop,

which he runs with his partner, Susie Milner.

He's got an amazing track record of transforming crumpled couches

into sexy sofas.

Hopefully, he'll appreciate what Sarah's dragging in.

When the doors are opened and you get the first glimpse,

you see one and you just know you're onto a winner.

-Some things just kind of click.

-Anthony!

You brought a sofa.

-Tell me you love it.

-I love it.

-Come on.

-Yes.

-Let's get it in. Let's do the business.

Yes. Now you're listening to what I want.

Anthony clearly wants very strange things.

-It's not too heavy.

-Oh, this is perfect.

Up we go.

This is one of my favourite finds.

I could hug you. I love it.

I love it, love it, love it.

This needs to be sharp and crisp.

-All the potential.

-Huge, isn't it?

Yeah. We could do a bit of chintz on here. Some flowers up...

-Patchwork on it.

-Just taking the mickey now.

There is just something about it.

The '70s-ness of it is oozing out of it.

It's like a Star Wars sofa.

I'm not sure oozing is a desirable trait

in a discarded sofa,

unless Jabba the Hutt's the target market.

It's going to be a nice one to do. We are at the absolute top end.

Everything has to be thread-perfect on it

if we're looking at the penthouse.

OK. So, this is now going to be called the penthouse sofa.

Yeah, just don't tell its glamorous new owners

that it was nearly the skip sofa when they buy it.

Now, colours, design. Bear with me on this.

I know. Go on.

I was thinking... You're going to love this.

-HE LAUGHS

-OK?

..pink.

Right.

I'm thinking quartz pink, rose quartz. It's bang on trend.

It works beautifully with gold.

I think it would look beautiful in it.

What do you think?

Anthony's clearly delighted.

-Um, I...

-Can't hold back his enthusiasm...

-Uh...

-..for Sarah's artistic vision.

-Yes.

Don't worry, Anthony.

Sarah knows exactly what she's doing.

But can she afford it?

I'm thinking around the 1,250 mark.

We'd give enough good fabric and it gives me enough to be able

to put everything back and make a little bit for me.

Wow.

With that huge budget,

the pressure is going to be on for Anthony to deliver,

and deliver big.

I would see a very strong profit in this.

I hope so. That's more than a new sofa.

Hopefully, I'll be able to sell it

and hand over a good wad of cash to the people who dropped it off.

This is where we're aiming at. We're up there.

Nothing like aiming for the stars. It'll be quite a transformation.

Loving your work. Oh, I've done it again!

That really is one of my favourite skip finds.

The transformation is going to be amazing.

Anthony has taken on board some of the things I've suggested,

and I'm just hoping that I've made the right call on it.

And Anthony, how does he feel about Sarah's suggestions?

This one I really like.

Between you and me, I'm a big fan of this one.

I'm just going to enjoy making it

rather than kind of selecting the fabrics and the outcome of it.

It's almost as if he's distancing himself from the design.

I... Yeah.

Pink.

That's going to be all kinds of interesting.

With labour costs of £1,000 and another 250 for fabric,

Sarah will be expecting something pretty spectacular

for her 1,250 spend.

I hope Anthony can pull it off, regardless of the colour.

Sarah's next stop is Marlow near High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire,

where Neil Wragg is on a mission to rescue pretty much anything,

from offcuts to inner tubes,

and turn them into beautiful handcrafted bags.

Sarah is coming today, and we shall see what she brings.

Hopefully, it'll be something I can sew together

that doesn't break too many needles.

You know, it's very difficult making a bag from paving slabs.

You're in luck, Neil.

They're not made of concrete, and she's not after much.

Now, in my wildest dreams,

I would like these tired, red sofa cushions

turned into a whole range of designer luggage.

I hope Neil likes a challenge.

Yeah, me too.

-Hello.

-Hi. Hi, Sarah. How are you doing?

I'm really well. I've got presents for you.

Right. I'm a little worried.

There's loads here, aren't there?

Right, well, we've got some funky red cushions.

One, two, three, four, five.

Do you know something,

I thought there was more than enough here

to make something out of,

so you must be able to make a purse out of this lot, Neil.

-Come on.

-I think we can do more than a carrier bag, yeah.

So, we're game on for a bag then, you reckon?

Yes. You've brought be something that I can sew and it's not alive.

Yes, it would be awkward if one of the cushions started to moo.

Time for Sarah to drop the bombshell.

I was hoping for a bespoke range of designer luggage.

That's not difficult, is it?

Luggage I can do. It's just the design.

I absolutely love the messenger bags that you make,

so I was wondering about maybe one of those out of it.

-Easily, yeah.

-And a big, usable, expensive weekend bag out of it.

OK, well, we can do that as well.

But the idea is that things would last a lifetime,

so we've got a good start with the fabric.

I love what you're saying because this has already had its life,

so now if we can make luggage out of it,

another 50 years of wear, that's brilliant.

Phew. That went better than expected.

Neil seems pretty unflappable, but there's always a snag.

I don't like the colour,

and I'm worried that it's not as saleable in this colour,

so I'm wondering if you've ever dyed stuff before

or if you think you might be able to make it a bit more stylish,

a bit darker, a bit richer.

Well, that would be a journey, won't it?

We have enough fabric. We can do some tests.

We can give it a go.

Not the most confidence-inspiring answer from Neil.

I'm not sure dying is something he's keen on.

And there's still the matter of the material for the lining.

The ethos of what I do is to make things

out of something that would end up in landfill.

So, this used to be an old Scout tent.

It's heavy-duty canvas, so I think we use that as lining.

-That is right up my street. Scout canvas. Perfect.

-Great.

That has now got a nose-to-tail kind of story.

Once upon a time, there was some manky tents

and a smelly old sofa.

Is that the kind of story, Sarah?

So, I think I'm sold.

I've got a messenger bag on one shoulder,

I've got beautiful, scrunchy, rich-looking holdall on the other.

-How much is that going to cost me to make me two of those?

-OK.

We're looking at £95 for the messenger bag

and then the holdall, we could say the same thing.

Thank you ever so much. I hope the dying goes well.

-Part of the journey.

-Ooh!

Well, that is another load of old rubbish off my mind

and into Neil's.

And if he gets it right, I shall be making bags of money.

It wouldn't be Sarah if there wasn't something awkward.

She wants me to recolour it, so that's going to be the challenge.

So, we'll see.

That's £95 for Neil's tried and tested messenger bag design,

and the same again for a completely new holdall design.

In total, that's £190 committed.

With a new dying technique to master

and some worn-out leather to work with,

I do hope Neil can pull it off.

With the knackered old blue sofa

and those red leather cushions in safe hands,

Sarah has travelled back home to Sussex

to turn those lighting tubes into treasure.

Sometimes I pick things up at the recycling centre

and then I start to work on them and I think,

"Why did I choose these?"

We're all in the dark here.

Illuminate us, Sarah.

I've decided I can use them as droplets for a chandelier,

and I managed to scavenge one of these for 20 quid,

which is nothing, to hang them all on.

OK. And then they all light up, right?

I'm going to take each one and then wrap it in fabric.

I see.

So, she's planning to use them as very fragile decorative poles.

Typically, Sarah is getting floral.

First, Sarah grabs some vintage offcuts from her fabric store.

Then she rips them into strips

and glues them directly onto the tubes.

This is just PVA glue,

the kind of stuff you get for doing craft with children.

But with delicate glass like this,

I'd recommend keeping the kids well away.

I like this cos if the fragile tubes ever were broken,

they'd be completely contained inside this fabric.

That's the first one done. Just another 30 to go.

You've only got yourself to blame, Sarah.

You could've found something else, anything else,

but she seems to be getting into the swing of things.

I love this purple because it works really well with the gold.

I think I'll probably end up using all the same material.

It's actually really old -

probably from 1940, something like that.

I think it's going to look good.

It's going to be huge, though, isn't it?

Well, put it this way. I don't think it'll fit into my house.

At the moment, I'm not sure I'd want it in my house.

That old light fixture came with some of the original glass.

Perhaps that'll improve matters.

A chandelier really should have a little bit of sparkle to it,

shouldn't it?

Good try, Sarah, but if you can make that saleable,

I'll eat my hat.

Sarah has spent £35 on that used chandelier, glue and bulbs,

and she'll need to pay another 30 to her electrician

for wiring and safety testing, making a total of £65 in costs.

Let's hope the added sparkle from those glass pieces

rubs off on the rest of it so she can turn a profit.

In Manchester, Anthony is having a rip-roaring time with the sofa

with partner Susie and daughter Poppy watching on.

The plan is to finish it in this season's luxury pink

and sell it for millions.

Luckily, Anthony enjoys this bit.

To be honest, stripping is never a chore.

Crikey. I thought this was a child-friendly show.

I think this one is trying to warn us.

It'll be nice when you can start to help.

Oh, money, money, money.

Ah, that's money for nothing.

Sarah is hoping to make a bit more than that.

With its innards exposed,

Anthony can get a good look at its bottom.

This has probably had thousands of hours of people sitting on it,

and, you know, looks all good.

Nicely intact. Things were just built to last.

Until you get your hands on them, Anthony.

It doesn't look great.

Most people will be thinking, "Oh, my God. Look."

But this is how a sofa looks.

Uh, yeah.

Let's hide those ragged bits of wooden springs ASAP.

First, Anthony covers the base with hessian

and then glues new foam onto the arms.

If you want to be bang on trend, you need bang-on tools.

Sharp knife, sharp results.

Are you trying to create, like, a catchphrase for yourself?

-Yeah.

-THEY LAUGH

Starting with one of the arms,

Anthony is making a base layer of calico shaped to fit snugly.

This bit is kind of critical, really.

This was the one that provides the shape -

almost the foundations for putting the top fabric on

and the overall look.

SOFA, so good.

Oi, I'll do the puns, thanks.

I'm sure Sarah will be tickled pink with the progress.

So, the fabric's arrived.

I can't wait to see that specific shade of rose quartz

Sarah was going on about.

We were struggling to find the rose pink quartz,

so we just decided to go for this more subtle bright gold all over.

Clearly a new definition of the word subtle.

Sarah knows nothing about this at this stage,

and she is probably going to kill me.

I think Sarah might go from pink to incandescent crimson

when she hears about this.

This is going to go in here, like so.

Then we have to sew a piece of piping around here, like so,

and then sew the actual arm itself,

pull it on and hopefully that'll be as crisp as a cucumber.

Are cucumbers crisp?

Yeah, I'd say so.

With a lot still to do, Anthony's going for gold.

You are going to work, arm. You are going to work.

You're a very naughty boy.

I think it'll be you that gets a spanking

when Sarah hears about the new colour scheme.

Yeah. That's what I mean by...

..as crisp as a cucumber.

Very nice, Anthony.

Just the other arm, the back, the base,

the cushions and the buttons still to do.

Oh, and shouldn't it be pink?

In Marlow, Neil is getting to grips with all that lovely red leather

that he's transforming into a messenger bag and holdall.

And he has lofty ambitions for his work.

These bags don't just hold stuff. They save the planet, you see.

Introducing...super bags! HE CLEARS THROAT

First, Neil cuts the leather to his ready-made templates.

Sometimes it's quite cool to keep these seams in

so that it looks like it was a sofa.

Sarah has always asked that these leather-clad superheroes

transform from Superman red to Batman black.

Don't mind us.

Oh, look. Catwoman. CAT MEOWS

Dying can be a messy business,

so Neil has moved outside with the leather pieces

he has cut to size and cleaned.

He's painting an oil-based dye directly onto the surface

until it soaks in, being careful to keep it even.

They need 24 hours to dry, but here are some he made earlier.

Get a few coats buffered up and finish it off with some cream.

Despite all that fuss, it looks like this dying malarkey

is not so scary after all.

With the leather now ready, Neil is choosing and cutting

parts of the Scout tent canvas he's using for lining.

You don't know where it's already been.

It could've been a tent that saw the Stones at Glastonbury.

It could've been a tent that has done a trek to the Himalayas.

Or perhaps more likely it housed loads of freezing children.

You don't want to lose their personality,

so we might keep in some of the old writing or labels.

We can keep some of these in. Makes it look very tent-like.

So, the only problem with doing this is it's going to make

some parts of it really thick.

Luckily, his heavy-duty sewing machine,

nicknamed The Blaster, is up to the task.

And it's important to Neil that his bags are fit for purpose, too.

Nowadays, you've got laptops, iPads, tablets.

There's so much to carry.

People just want to carry something that's going to last.

Neil clips and sews the gusset and the back pieces

using The Blaster.

I have to use the clips cos you can't use pins with leather,

cos you'll end up with holes all over the place.

I'm sewing everything inside out, so there's no stitching being shown.

So, this is the body of the bag.

See, if you've sewn everything upside down,

back to front, inside out.

We've got one pocket there, which is obviously the old tent.

One pocket there for your tablet.

One pocket there for your mobile phone.

Better get on the next phase.

That messenger bag still needs a cape. Sorry, flap.

And he's also got to make the holdall,

and Neil has never made one before.

I need to attach it to the top...

..first, and then I can turn it right side out afterwards.

Shall we just leave him to it?

In Manchester, Anthony has also hit a bit of a snag.

I've put a halt on the sofa.

It's starting to show scuffs I'm a little bit concerned about

for the strength of the fabric.

It's unfortunate and it's a decision

I don't want to take, but I really think

we're going to have to try and think of something new on this one.

I thought that gold finish was something new.

But with Sarah after the top end of the market,

a scuffed finish isn't really going to cut the mustard.

Back to the drawing board, Anthony.

In Sussex, Sarah is putting the finishing touches

to her glamorous fluorescent tube chandelier extravaganza.

You know the one.

Well, this is definitely coming together.

I'm just finishing off the last bits and getting the crystals in between,

and then hopefully I'll have made something

that somebody will want to buy.

Hopefully, but I'll reserve judgment until the great switch-on.

Moment of truth.

Oh. I'd say that works.

Before, those used glass tubes were fit for nothing.

Now, combined with a tired old lighting fixture

and some plumbing bits, Sarah has transformed them

into a dramatic and original centrepiece blazing with light.

It'll need a heck of a hallway to house it.

Now the lights are on,

I think the crystals could do with a bit of a clean,

but I think when that's done and dusted,

this should be a money-maker.

At the skip, Sarah lit up when she saw what was in Frank's boot.

But nobody wants them, so we're just dumping them.

And Frank had some idea of what she'd do with them.

Something artistic, I think.

Yeah, I think that's what she's going to do.

Sarah didn't disappoint,

with a striking and original transformation

that had me eating my hat.

It was bought by Morag Smith,

a furniture and interiors dealer who trades in Berwick-upon-Tweed.

I haven't seen anything like it before.

It's a very innovative design, so it's upcycling at its best.

Now Sarah is back in Walsall

to see if she can dazzle Frank with the money she made.

-Hello again.

-Hello there.

-Hi, Frank. How are you doing?

Nice to meet you again. Yes, all right.

-Come on out so I can talk to you.

-OK. All right. Yeah.

Well, I really loved those light tubes that you were dropping off.

When we took them away, did you wonder what might happen to them?

Something artistic, I thought, so I don't know.

-Yeah, it'll be a surprise.

-They're quite fragile, aren't they?

So, I had to be quite careful what I did with them.

But I have made something out of them.

-Do you want to see?

-Oh, yes. I would love to, yeah.

Here are your light tubes made into a big chandelier.

Oh, that's amazing. Yeah. Absolutely. Yeah.

-I've actually got a little bit of profit to hand over to you.

-Oh.

That's a surprise.

Well, it was sold to a shop in Berwick

and I've actually got £20 for your old light bulbs,

so thank you very much.

That's very kind of you. Thank you.

Hopefully, you can buy something for yourself or have a treat.

Oh, yeah. Something for the wife, yeah.

-That sounds like a very wise move.

-THEY LAUGH

Well, it was great to catch up again.

Thank you very much for letting me have them

-and for your time on this...

-Thank you.

-..freezing cold day.

-Oh, your hands are cold.

But my heart is warm.

-Thank you ever so much. Nice to catch up, Frank.

-OK.

-Bye-bye.

Thank you. Thank you. Bye. Bye.

Sarah spent £65 transforming the old strip lights,

and with a sale of £85,

it means Frank is walking away with £20 to treat the wife.

In Manchester, Anthony has had a very long night

putting the final touches onto what was an old blue sofa

and then went gold for a bit.

It's anyone's guess what colour it is now.

I think Sarah is going to love it.

And you know, on this one, I might have even pleased her

because it'll be exactly what she's asked for,

and that's just not like me at all.

Sarah's invested heavily in this one, Anthony.

I hope you've done the right thing.

I am so excited to see what Anthony has done with that sad '70s sofa.

If he's realised its potential,

it should be a fantastic interior design piece by now.

Sarah asked Anthony to transform

a dilapidated old settee from the '60s

into a bang-on-trend penthouse sofa.

It's now a delicious rose quartz vision.

Anthony has given it clean lines

and improved its proportions with a single raised cushion.

He's added sumptuous piping detailing on the arms,

and with flashes of gold on the buttons,

he's created exactly the penthouse sofa Sarah was looking for.

-Hi.

-Hello.

Oh, my word.

-Liking it?

-It's front cover, isn't it? Really cool.

I can't believe it's the same thing. Isn't it amazing?

Where's the enthusiasm? Look at it.

-Sorry, I've been up all night.

-Look at it!

I think Anthony has got some owning up to do.

-Beautiful. I love the little gold touches.

-Just a little hint.

A little bit.

A hint, Anthony? Anything to confess?

There was going to be a lot more gold.

We were going to have this all over.

We got the arm on,

we got all the front done and then we had to call a halt

because it just wasn't stable enough.

And Sarah breathes a huge sigh of relief.

Whatever trauma you've been through, I think it's worth it.

-This is stunning.

-I wouldn't say that.

And just as a little reminder, we also have a...

-Aw.

-But the problem is you'd have just slipped off it.

Wouldn't that have been the same, though,

if the sofa had been in gold?

Oh, it looked amazing.

-I know you're tired, OK?

-Understatement.

I know this is a lot of hard work, but that is stylish.

It's got it. You know that THING? That's got it.

Despite the whole experiment in gold,

Anthony has also managed to bring the sofa in on budget too.

I'm really pleased I've come here, and it is pink, and it worked out.

I'm going to shake your hand,

and I would like you to properly say...

Well done. I'm so pleased. Thank you so much.

Thank you, Sarah. Thank you.

It was all worth it in the end, Anthony.

Wow.

That kind of transformation makes a long workday at the tip

really worthwhile.

And I know Anthony is not pleased it's not covered in lame,

but as far as I'm concerned,

rose quartz means I'm going to be sitting on a gold mine.

I just can't believe it's gone from the back of a car

to looking like it should be on the front page of a magazine.

To be honest, what I'm going to do from now on

is just please people, because that was easy.

She fell in love with it. I'm happy. Job's a good 'un.

But it's just not in my nature to do that.

-Sarah swooped in on Jamie and his dad...

-Hiya.

..to rescue a threadbare sofa.

-Jamie, thanks so much for letting me have that.

-OK.

-She suggested Anthony turn it pink...

-Uh...

-..and after just a little dithering...

-Yes.

..he did exactly that.

Now Sarah is back in Walsall to update Jamie and Jeff

on what became of the dilapidated sofa.

-How are you both?

-I'm fine, thanks. I'm fine.

So, you were clearing out things from your mother's house, right?

That's right. That's right, yes. She had an accident.

She had a bad fall and she suffered brain damage.

She's been in the nursing home now for several months.

She was quite happy for it to go to the tip, so that's where it went.

-You can't fit somebody else's house into your own, can you?

-No.

We all have our own stuff, and I think...

-I've got enough with all his junk.

-THEY LAUGH

Excellent. You sound like you're in trouble.

-Would you like to see some pictures of how it ended up?

-I would.

-Take a deep breath, OK?

-Go on, then. Oh, blimey.

-Do you recognise that?

-No.

-That's amazing, that is.

-What do you think of it?

-Amazing.

-Does it look like the sofa you remember?

-Nothing like it.

Now, I've shared it and I've had lots of interest in it,

-but I haven't managed to sell it yet.

-Right, OK.

But I think there is a buyer out there who's going to love that,

and I just need a little bit more time and then hopefully

I'll be back in touch with some profit to share with you.

It isn't about the money anyway. You've done something with it.

It's sad going to landfill or being burned.

-Mum will be delighted when she sees that.

-Really?

-Thank you very much. Thank you.

-Lovely to see you again.

-Thank you. Bye-bye.

-Bye-bye.

With Anthony's labour and materials

coming in at over £1,200 and no sale,

that equals a substantial potential loss of £1,250.

But once that certain buyer with deep pockets has been found,

Sarah will be back with a profit for Jamie and Jeff.

In Marlow, Neil has transformed

those old red leather cushions into bags,

and he's doing the last few stitches ahead of Sarah's visit.

I've enjoyed it.

It's been nice to get a really high-quality finish product

from fairly challenging leather.

The transformation has been pretty huge,

so I think she'll be pleased.

I hope so.

Well, Neil's confident, but will Sarah agree?

I'm back in Marlow to pick up hopefully some high-end luggage,

but I have been a little bit anxious

because the materials I left Neil with were anything but high-end.

Sarah left Neil with some unsightly and worn red cushions,

hoping he could make some luggage.

They are now two beautiful handcrafted bags.

Neil has carefully dyed the leather to give the bags a high-end sheen.

The messenger bag has been dyed black and has pockets galore,

incorporating charming details from the Scout tents he's used as lining.

And that holdall, now a dark brown, is almost indestructible

with sturdy straps and reinforced corners.

Sarah's got to be impressed with these, Neil.

-Heya.

-Hey.

-How are you doing?

-I'm very well. How are you?

-Yeah, really well.

-Good. Come on in.

Where are they?

Here they are.

So, we have what they started off as and what they finished up as.

Neil, they are amazing.

-Good. I'm glad you like them.

-I'm blown away. Honestly.

-Good.

I'm really... Don't look. I'm...

I'm getting emotional about them. I can't believe...

Sorry. Just give me a...

Look at the detail. I've even got little...

-Yeah, so you can lock...

-I'm going to cry. Stop the...

Honestly. I don't often get moved to tears by...

by bits of leather from the tip.

It was fun.

The transformation, the dying, the changing of the colour.

The leather is good enough quality, so it's made a decent bag.

It's actually a work of art. I'm crying. Don't look at me.

Oh, dear.

And then messenger bag as well.

Yes. So, again, slightly different colour. We've gone for black.

As much leather as I could use.

And we've got the old toggles from the tent.

That was a window, which is now magnetic.

It was a big journey from the old burgundy sofa.

-It's fantastic.

-Yeah. Great.

Sarah is delighted with Neil's craftsmanship,

but has he blown the budget?

I don't even want to talk about money,

but I know I think I left you with £95 per item.

Even though there was some extra designing

and some extra dying to do, it was straightforward,

so they've come within budget.

I shall have no problem selling those.

Brilliant.

Thank you so much. They are just brilliant.

It was a pleasure.

I could not have been more surprised and delighted

with what Neil has managed to produce -

two stunning bags on budget.

Absolutely amazed.

I didn't expect her to be quite so emotional

about a pair of leather bags,

but she seemed to be really pleased with them.

At the recycling centre, Zia's leather armchair

was being put out to pasture,

and his ideas for it were lacking imagination.

Any ideas what we might make out of them?

Uh, I think cushions would be a nice easy option.

But Sarah had bigger ideas for Neil to implement.

He gave the old leather a new life as luggage.

They were soon bagged by Nick and Kim,

who run vintage and retro retailer Smithers of Stamford.

-What do you reckon?

-Yeah, I like them. I love the stitching.

Yeah, apparently it was made from an old sofa, a leather sofa.

-Done a good job, hasn't he?

-Yeah.

-Quality.

Now Sarah is back in the Midlands with some cash for Zia.

-Hiya.

-Hi.

-Zia, lovely to see you again.

-Nice to see you again.

-How are you?

-I'm very well, thank you.

Now, I last saw you at the tip and you were dropping off

your old sofa cushions.

-Had you had the sofa for ages?

-Around six or seven years.

Obviously, we were about to dispose of it.

Quite interesting to see what you've done with it.

They went off to a lovely guy called Neil in Marlow.

He specialises in making bags from refound materials.

I've got some pictures here of what he made.

-I want to see what do you think.

-OK.

Wow.

That's amazing. It looks nothing like the cushions we gave you.

There's more.

He made a messenger bag and a going away back.

That's absolutely amazing.

I was really surprised about how they looked.

I'd never have imagined they'd turn out like that.

And we have actually sold those two bags,

and I've got some profit that I'd like to share with you.

Thank you very much.

So, I've got £60 here to give to you that came from those bags.

-Thank you very much.

-So, that's... Absolute pleasure.

Is there anything that £60 is needed for at the moment?

I think I'll treat the kids, really.

-They just got back from school, so we'll give them a treat.

-Lovely.

-Thank you so much for your time today.

-No, you're welcome.

-Thank you.

-Take care. Bye-bye.

-Bye.

Well, I think Zia was quite surprised

with what we did with his old cushions.

And as a transformation, I think it would be difficult

to beat sofa into luxury luggage.

Neil charged a total of £190 for labour and materials for the bags.

Sarah sold them for £250, leaving a profit of £60 for Zia

and his kids.

Sarah took three tawdry treasures from the tip in Walsall.

Whose is that then?

Jamie and Jeff's blue settee was transformed

into a stunning pink penthouse sofa,

Zia's worn leather cushions were dyed and stitched

into stylish bags,

and Frank's fluorescent tubes were delicately dangled

to make a unique chandelier.

Well, I love those transformations

from drab old trash into something rather flash.

And with the help of Neil and Anthony's amazing talents,

I think we've managed to create some pretty classy items.