Episode 16 Money for Nothing

Oh, no, I like the look of your rubbish.

How do you make money for nothing?

I love a little rummage.

The answer could be hiding in the 30 million tonnes of household waste

we throw out every year.

I think that I might be able to make something out of that.

That's why entrepreneur, Sarah Moore,

wants to get her hands on things before they hit the skip.

That... That's wartime.

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

and I've turned that passion into a moneymaking 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...

-That was brief.

-Oh, the potential!

No!

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

A work of art.

..valuable...

..and hopefully saleable items.

Holy moley!

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.

Thank you, I'm astonished!

Today, Sarah's in Witley,

where over 600 tonnes of rubbish is sorted and recycled every month.

That's the equivalent weight of 50 double-decker buses.

There is everything coming in here today, including the kitchen sink.

Sarah's got special permission to traipse among the trash,

and she's always got her eye out for something useful.

I might keep this for a tea break.

I'll be lucky to get a break round here, it's so busy.

I'm sorry, no time for tea, Sarah.

You've got three pieces of glorious garbage to grab.

Luckily, Sarah's spotted something a bit sexy in Sam's Land Rover.

-Hiya.

-Hi.

Look at the legs on that.

Is that your old broken table, then?

It is an old broken table, yeah.

This is Grandpa's, he's decided to get rid of it.

It's been in storage for a while. Time to go, I think.

-And was it quite a stylish house?

-It was very '70s.

I think that's when they stopped buying furniture, so...

-It's time-warp furniture, then?

-It is, massively, yeah.

-Yeah.

It's a fantastic piece of English furniture.

It's made by Ercol. It's got that look to it.

You haven't got the end bit, have you? Oh, you have got the end bit!

-I believe we do.

-If that marries up on there...

It does, yeah.

Then you've just made my day.

-Fantastic.

-Rather than putting it into wood and timber,

-can I take it away?

-Yeah, absolutely, no problem at all.

-Yeah, see what you can do with it.

-Brilliant, thank you.

That's definitely made my day.

I don't think I've ever seen Sarah so excited.

But what does Sam make of it?

I'm not sure what Sarah can do with that, it's been sitting around the house for quite a while.

It's in a bit of disrepair, it's quite old,

but I'm sure someone out there will find something in it.

If somebody had asked me what I really wanted to find today,

it would have been a piece of Ercol furniture.

Admittedly, this one's in two pieces,

but, still, it's a fantastic find.

And Sarah's lined up a fantastic craftsman to restore it

to its former glory.

Jay Blades is a man with many talents,

with furniture restoration being at the forefront of his skills.

What I love about furniture is the playfulness.

It reminds me of my childhood,

where I used to make Meccano sets, and just making stuff.

Now, with furniture, I'm allowed to take things apart, re-glue it,

add some paint, add some fabric, and just basically add a bit of me.

Jay has an appreciation for classic, mid-century design,

and a love of traditional craftsmanship

to which he adds his own modern twists.

Personally speaking, I think adding colour is very important.

Give me the most ridiculous piece of furniture and I will turn it into

something beautiful. That's my claim to fame.

I know I can do it.

Well, Jay, that confidence

is certainly going to be put to the test when Sarah

arrives with this broken table.

One down, two to go, and Sarah's wandering into some choppy waters.

What do you think? Does it float your boat?

Maybe keep looking...

Oh, land ahoy!

Sarah's spied a couple of chairs belonging to Claire.

-Are they yours?

-They are.

How long have you had them,

and why have they got to this stage that they're going?

They've been passed from pillar to post.

They came to us from another friend who got them from another friend, and they are not comfortable at all.

I sat on them for a while...

I'm going to have a go now you've said that!

They're not too bad.

-After a while...

-You actually feel...

You feel a little bit...

They're all right for five minutes, but try them for 20 minutes...

They are slightly, I can feel it going over.

And that one's got wobbly legs, so...!

Right, so, you've totally convinced me why you're chucking them out.

What I need to know now is, can I have them and play with them

and see if I can do something with them?

If you can do something with them, that would be wonderful.

They are absolutely charming, you've made my day,

so thank you so much for letting me have them.

-Enjoy.

-I'll take one, I'll be back for the other.

While Sarah gets to grips with furniture removal,

let's find out what Claire thinks will become of her pair of chairs.

I think she'll probably re-upholster them, put lots of padding in them,

sort out the legs, maybe paint the legs,

and she'll probably make them look absolutely beautiful.

And I'll probably really regret giving them away today!

I don't know why they're being thrown away,

other than the fact that they're looking a bit drab at the moment.

But in the hands of the upholsterer that I've got in mind,

they're going to end up looking fantastic.

And we're going to make money here.

Anthony Devine is one of the UK's most talented teachers

and practitioners of upholstery skills.

Anthony's appreciation of furniture design provides him with the skills

to bring old pieces bang up-to-date.

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.

It's going to need all of Anthony's creative skills

if the beauty of this pair of old chairs is to shine through.

Having carved out two of her three items, Sarah's on a roll.

She's got to renovate the third item herself,

and it looks like there's something she can settle on

in Barbara and John's estate.

That looks quite cool.

They don't make them like that any more, do they?

Look at that! What's the story behind this one?

It was one of two sun loungers, camp beds,

that my parents had at a holiday home they had down in Devon.

Is it just me or does it look sort of quite cool?

Well, I suppose...perhaps somebody younger than me might think

that it was cooler!

I think I've probably seen too much of it in my time.

It might be something that could have another lease of life,

and it would be great to take it away

-and see if there's one last gasp for the lounger.

-By all means.

-That would be lovely, thank you.

-Yeah.

It'd be nice if it had some other use again.

Either Sarah's expecting some sun,

or she's got a clever idea up her sleeve.

What do Barbara and John think that might be?

Not much you can do with the chair except lounge in it.

I hope she finds somewhere nice in the sun.

But it's a very nifty piece of kit, isn't it?

-I think she'll have a great time on it...

-Mm.

..relaxing away!

You're probably wondering what I want to do with the retro camp bed,

but it's got style, it's got class!

You can't let things like that go in the tip.

And I think, with a bit of funking up,

that thing is going to make some money.

That third item means her trash tasks are all taken care of,

and with her other two items stashed, it's game over in Witley.

I might be here some time. You might want to go away.

Jay will transform that broken table.

Anthony will primp and preen the pair of chairs,

and Sarah will sort out that sun lounger.

I have been stalking,

salvaging and squirreling away my favourite bits of rubbish all day.

Now, I've got to go and turn that trash into cash.

Wolverhampton is home, of course, to Wolverhampton Wanderers FC,

one of the founding members of the Football League.

It's also where Jay Blades undertakes his unique approach

to furniture restoration.

Sarah's coming along,

and hopefully she'll bring me something that's timber.

That's my favourite material, I enjoy working with timber.

Well, you're in luck, Jay...I think.

Admittedly, the table is not in the best condition,

but I'm hoping Jay will see past that and take it on and make it into

something fabulous.

-I need help.

-You need help?

-Come with me.

-OK, let's go.

So this is a...

manufacturer that I enjoy the most working on.

-This is Ercol.

-Other furniture manufacturers are available,

but this particular brand has been turning out quality British pieces since 1920.

Their sleek, mid-century designs are particularly en vogue.

But this one's more "en bits", really, isn't it?

He has...seen a bit of water, I would say,

and that's what opens up these joints

and allows that piece to come off of there, but...a brilliant find.

These tables are, as far as I'm concerned, timeless.

Even though you've got all of these marks and stuff like that on there,

when this is sanded,

the beauty of what this will come back like is just phenomenal.

I know exactly what I'm going to do with this.

And I know exactly how to fix this and make this worth every penny.

Have you got a rough figure in mind about what I'm going to leave you with?

The figure that I believe

I would need to do this is 150 to start off with,

and with probably 175, maybe 200 maximum.

It depends on the gluing and how long that's going to take.

OK, if I can leave you 175 quid, if you can, it would be great to bring it in on that.

See how you get on with the cracks.

Obviously, if it's a lot of work and pushes up to 200, that's fine.

I'm going to pull all of my creativity from everywhere to work on this,

so when you come back, hopefully you will be totally impressed with it.

-I hope it doesn't cause too many problems.

-Thank you. All right?

-Lovely to see you.

-Likewise.

-Take care, Jay.

Well, that is just the reaction I was hoping for from Jay.

Yeah, I can't wait to start working on this one. She's had a good find.

And I'm really pleased about that price - £175 roughly.

I should be able to make money out of that,

and I'm talking about big money.

Not too much pressure, then, Jay.

With a maximum spend of £200 on materials and labour,

fingers crossed Sarah won't be disappointed.

Manchester, one of the great cultural centres of Britain.

Famous for music, industry and of course the no-nonsense Mancunian

attitude, which upholstery star Anthony has in spades.

So, Sarah's on her way.

Over the years I've been doing this,

we haven't exactly seen eye-to-eye on everything, but that's good,

because that means it's always a challenge,

always something I look forward to. But don't tell her I said that.

Psst, Sarah, Anthony's looking forward to seeing your chairs.

I'm optimistically describing these as cocktail chairs,

I think they're 1950s,

and I'm hoping that I can create something really sophisticated

for Anthony to latch onto.

But they've got to look expensive.

-Anthony? Hey!

-Hello, how are you, you all right?

-I'm very well, how you doing?

-Very well, good to see you.

And you. I've got some gems for you, check out these!

Hopefully, Anthony will be feeling a lot more stirred than shaken by

Sarah's so-called cocktail chairs.

-Aren't they amazing?

-They are.

They are really uncomfortable to sit in, apparently,

and they need a really fresh update.

I was thinking you could loosely describe them as cocktail chairs, couldn't you?

You could sit and have a cocktail on it.

Yeah, well, I could sit and have a cocktail on a rock, Anthony.

Doesn't make it a cocktail chair, though!

So I'm kind of channelling Riviera,

something gold going on... I can't help myself!

Erm, yes, it's all lipstick and glamour.

Erm, yeah, I know what you mean.

Wow, they seem to be agreeing!

So I'm thinking fluffy, feathery, flouncy.

I'll make a pair of flouncy chairs for you.

Well, if anyone can, Anthony can,

and he'll have £300 for the makeover.

I think I stand a fair chance of making a few quid, don't I?

Yeah, I mean, I think it's just capturing the right thing with this.

-The right level of flounciness.

-OK.

So, flounce-o-meters at the ready.

I, for one, have no idea what we will be coming back to.

Anthony has got such an amazing skill set.

He can pretty much work with anything, so I've left him with

the brief to get on with those chairs and make them fabulous.

Who knows what he's going to produce?!

There's something just screaming out about one in the kind of volume -

a perm or something like that.

A perm?! If you say so, Anthony.

With £300 at stake,

let's just hope Anthony's transformation of those chairs is a success.

I can't wait to see what becomes of them.

Back home in Sussex, I bet poor Sarah's hard at work

turning the old sun lounger into a money-maker.

Oh, well, maybe not.

Absolutely nothing wrong with this. Just like this, perfect.

But it's not going to make much money.

The sun worship will have to wait.

Time to get the lounger into the workshop.

I loved this lounger the first moment I saw it.

I don't know why, I suppose it's because retro.

And I can tell its really well made.

It's got a fantastic ratchet system on here,

which means the end go up and down and stay in place,

so it's designed to be really comfortable.

There's a blow-up pillow under here.

That's done well to survive in such good nick for...

Well, it must be...

I'd say nearly 50 years old.

Some things actually improve with age, I think you'll find, Sarah.

Take me, for example.

The only thing about it is, at the moment, it's really looking tired.

Actually, I haven't been sleeping well lately.

There's a bit of rust on the legs.

I'm not opposed to a rubdown.

And there's some marks on the canvas.

Well, you can't make an omelette without cracking a few eggs.

So, I'm thinking, a little bit of an update,

and I might be able to make a few quid on it.

Oh, there's definitely life in the old dog yet.

But back to the sun lounger!

The cover's in good nick, so Sarah's going to use it in the final piece.

It just means removing and washing.

But what exactly is the master plan for this project?

So, I'm thinking, if I can reposition this from sun lounger into daybed,

or make it into something that people want to have in their conservatory

or even as a spare bed in their bedroom,

then I might stand a chance of making some money out of it.

So it needs some careful thinking,

but I'm going to get this washed and at least know that I've got that to

work with if it comes up in good condition.

So, it's a makeover that promises quite the transformation.

As the canvas is edged with plastic,

Sarah's cleaning it by hand using a mild washing powder in warm water.

One more rinse.

Then it's just a matter of hanging it out to dry.

Actually, that's happened to me a couple of times, too.

Hmm, who knew I had so much in common with the sun lounger?

Time to sort those legs.

Spray time! I'm doing it out here because if I get mess everywhere,

next week, it's going to be mown off

and it'll be completely gone by then.

I'm going to have it upside down.

Hm!

Maybe it's a table.

Let's stay focused.

Oh, yes!

It's definitely called "shocking yellow" for a reason.

OK, the similarities between me and the lounger end right here.

I wouldn't be seen dead in that.

I hope you know what you're doing, Sarah.

Hold back.

When you're spray-painting, it dries so quickly. It's better just to do

very fine layers, and then you don't get all these dribbling marks on it.

And you want to go past the object every time,

and then you don't get over spray, which is this kind of film of little bits on the surface.

So, it dries very quickly, do it quickly, move on,

come back and give it another layer.

The legs may need a couple of coats,

but there won't be any need to lacquer it,

as the spray paint should prevent any further rust.

But, of course, yellow legs and a clean canvas isn't enough for Sarah.

Well, I've managed to get the first coat onto the frame

and that looks great, and the cover has washed up really well.

Now I want to add some 1950s-inspired floral design to the cover,

and I'm hoping that my potatoes are going to help me out.

I'm not going mad - these work really well as an instant printer.

They carve really well and they're slightly porous,

so that when you pick up the paint on it,

you get enough to do a few good prints before you have to dip again.

If you've never used them, you need to try.

A potato stamp - now there's a thrifty thought.

First, Sarah needs to carve her design into the cut spud.

You can draw an outline with a pencil or freestyle it as Sarah's doing.

Well, I'm happy with that. Time to give it a quick test.

Sarah's using some left-over emulsion paint.

It may fade once it's washed,

but it all adds to the overall rustic charm.

Definitely worth practising.

Once you get stuck in on the real thing, there's no going back.

I think that sample looks really cool.

I'm a little bit scared about doing it on the real thing.

Don't worry, Sarah -

if you mess it up, there's only your reputation on the line.

Oh, the pressure!

She's hoping to keep costs to a minimum

and profits to the max with this one,

but with such a bespoke look, will she find a prospective buyer?

At his studio in Wolverhampton, Jay's about to make a start

on the table Sarah left in his very capable hands.

It's only until you've taken it all apart that you can actually see

what you're working with.

Originally constructed in panels, a lot of them have started to split,

and one of the drop leafs has completely broken off.

It's just a simple, classic design. It's timeless and it works well.

So, it's kind of like the Meccano of furniture.

It's really, really simple.

We all know that this part is never straightforward.

It's interesting, cos someone's had a go at this already.

And it's always quite worrying when someone's had a go.

See? What did I tell you?

They've done a trick, what I normally do,

which is put some timber, or something, into the hole.

This ensures a nice fit. Not a complete novice, then.

And here they've just put the whole of the matchstick.

Rather than snapping it off, there's a whole matchstick in there.

Then again...

Also, what I've noticed is almost every screw is of different size,

different thickness within that frame.

As it's different... Ercol does not do that,

all of them will be uniformed and stuff like that.

But surely a screw's a screw, isn't it?

Look at the size of that one...

..compared to the size of that.

And they're completely different screws, completely different.

And it's done some serious GBH to the table top.

So what has happened, by using a really long screw here...

So you've got one...

and two, they've come straight through.

So, basically, when I want to have this top as a showpiece,

I have to make sure that those holes are filled up.

If you're fixing furniture from a popular manufacturer,

the best thing to do would be to contact them for advice

on the right screws to use.

Now, onto the main part of the restoration.

With gluing, I've always been taught that more is more.

I normally say less is more, but more is more.

It's better to have more glue than less glue.

Cos it's only going to squeeze out in the sides anyway,

which we will then clear up.

The same theory as I use on my jam sandwiches.

Jay's using wood glue,

which is designed to set thin so there are no gaps in the joins.

If the glue works on this, it forms it and it holds it really nice,

brilliant. I can do all the rest.

The gluing is the hard bit,

because that's what's going to last the test of time, well and truly.

To make this strong again,

as strong as it was when it came out of the factory, is really important.

It'll be a tense 24 hours for Jay.

If the glue doesn't work, well,

he doesn't have a table and it will mean a complete rethink.

In Manchester, Anthony's hard at work on the pair of chairs

he's promised to transform into flouncy, glamorous beauties.

So, since Sarah's dropped these off, we're up to kind of this stage.

This one's all prepped, so we've done the webbing

and the hessian is all on.

Re-upholstering the chairs will be a multistage process using materials

including foam, recycled felt

and the all-important fire retardant, calico.

And all of that will eventually make the previously uncomfy pair

much more plush.

We want it nice and comfortable, but this will all squeeze down

and then make a really nice, sharp profile.

So the finished chairs should be comfy and shapely.

Once they're reupholstered,

Anthony plans to cover them in fluffy sheepskin.

But before he does that, he's got a trickier job.

So we're going to try dyeing these skins.

We're not entirely sure how we're going to do it.

This is a complete unknown science.

This could go brilliant, and stumble across something great,

or we could be thinking of a plan B.

Happily, Anthony's going to be assisted in this endeavour

by his partner, Susie.

-Well, we've dyed fabric before, haven't we?

-Yeah.

We haven't dyed sheepskin rugs before.

Cos need to get a specific colour.

We want to try and make rose quartz, because it's bang on trend.

Marvellous. To dye them,

they'll use a highly pigmented furniture paint diluted with water.

We have this colour here, this pink here,

which isn't quite the right colour.

We're going to try and put a little bit of this colour in to darken it.

Not only do we have to try and get this shade,

we have to get the right quantity and the right amount of water

so that we can get this the right colour.

They need all the sheepskins to dye exactly the same colour,

which might be a big ask,

as is agreeing on the shade in the first place.

Like anything in life, I prefer it being a bit more intense.

Erm, but just because of the volume of water

we're now going to have to mix with it to dye the fabric,

it will almost lose some of the intensity.

I think it's the right kind of...tone.

Shall we do that? Think that's enough?

With the colour agreed, Susie adds enough water to dilute it.

Nowt to this dying process, is it? It's quite easy.

It is for you, Anthony, because Susie is doing all the work.

I'm saying nothing.

-Come on, love!

-He might have to get his hands dirty during the alfresco

dipping, though. This is the important bit.

-Right, go on, then.

-Ready?

Ant's still looking work-shy.

Baaaah!

That's not helping.

-That's quite pink.

-You wanted it quite pink.

Seriously, is this how companies dye their fabrics?

Not exactly. They tend to use state-of-the-art techniques and equipment - not a rubbish bin.

At the moment, I'm a little bit like,

"Ooh, which way is it going to go?"

Me too!

It's not an exact science, so, yeah,

we just have to hope that it's going to work out OK in the end.

They've got a lot more careful work to ensure those sheepskins

all end up in the pink. The same shade of pink, that is.

Stop it! You're flicking it on me, stop it!

I think we'll leave them to it.

Back in Sussex,

Sarah's putting the final touches to the retro sun lounger.

Oh, fancy!

When Sarah rescued it from certain death at the tip,

it was a tad tired but still functional.

Now, the sun lounger screams of 1950s glamour.

Sarah has embellished the canvas with potato print leaves

and hand-cut fabric flowers.

She's re-covered the head support pocket with matching floral material,

and the vibrant yellow legs set the whole thing off a treat.

CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS

All we need now is a pool and a cocktail,

and I could be made for the day.

But that won't sell it, will it?

Sarah first discovered the sun lounger

in the back of Barbara and John's car.

It was one of two sun loungers, camp beds, that my parents had

at a holiday home they had down in Devon.

Perhaps somebody younger than me might think that it was cool.

I think I've probably seen too much of it in my time.

Well, I'd be willing to bet John would struggle to recognise

his old sun lounger now.

It did make it to the seaside -

it was sold to the Shed Boutique in Ramsgate,

where Lucy was very pleased with the new addition to her stock.

We are a seaside shop,

and this sort of mix of retro and arts and crafts really go together

nicely for us, and suit what we sell in the shop.

Sarah has returned to show Barbara and John what became of their old sun lounger.

But will she be handing over any profit?

-Hi, Barbara, hello.

-Hello, Sarah.

How do you do? Hello, John, lovely to see you again.

Now, it was down in Witley where I first saw your sun lounger.

In fact, it wasn't yours, was it? Was it your parents'?

My parents, yes, and in fact I can remember it since my childhood.

It's one of those things,

it was one of two that's been around for a long time.

Well, it had a certain look,

and it was that thing that first drew me to it.

But did you wonder why I took it away?

Well, certainly, because I've always found it incredibly uncomfortable!

Well, for ten minutes in the sun,

I'm sure it would be lovely to lie on.

I've actually got some pictures to show you.

-So here is your sun lounger after a makeover.

-Ohh!

-Oh, my God!

-It's beautiful, actually.

-My mother would have loved that,

because she was a great one for making all sorts of weird artworks and things,

and I think she would have particularly appreciated what you've done with that.

From an unpromising start.

I really enjoyed working on it. It was a sweet thing,

and it turns out that other people liked the look of it

and I've actually managed to sell it at a profit.

So I have some money to share with you here.

I've got £33 here that I've managed to...

-Blimey!

-There is a profit for you, so there you go,

there is a small windfall from the sun lounger.

That is probably about ten times what it cost originally!

-Thank you very much.

-What might you do with that?

I think I'd like to spend it on the garden, actually.

-I think that would be appropriate, wouldn't it?

-She really would have appreciated that,

-being a great gardener as well.

-I think she'd have been amazed.

She would, she'd have been absolutely gobsmacked.

Well, it was a really...

I loved working on it, it was a bit of fun, I've made a bit of money,

and if you're going to buy something for the garden, I'm really pleased,

cos I think that puts it very nicely back where it came from, doesn't it?

-Yeah, yeah.

-Lovely, thank you so much.

-Thank you.

-I look forward to seeing you and your excellent rubbish at the tip sometime soon.

-Thanks ever so much, bye-bye.

-Bye.

The old lounger cost Sarah £12 to transform.

She was able to sell it for 45,

which meant there was a profit of £33 to return to Barbara and John.

Well, the sun lounger might have been a bit of a laid-back project,

but I loved working on it,

and I'm pleased that £33 is going to buy something lovely

for John and Barbara's garden.

Back in Wolverhampton,

Sarah's about to see Jay's restoration of the broken table.

Well, if I'm ever lucky enough to find Ercol, I always think of Jay,

and if he's managed to work his magic on this piece of furniture,

there could be some real money on the table.

Ooh, I like what Sarah did there,

but will she like what Jay has done to the table?

The table is done and dusted. I'm really, really happy with it.

Compared to how it was when it first came in here,

it was a bit in bits, it wasn't really a table,

it was just bits of timber.

But it had the look to become a beautiful Ercol and turn it into

a beautiful black swan, which it is now.

So, hopefully, she'll like it.

Sarah left Jay with a battered and broken ugly duckling of a table.

But, left in the hands of a master craftsman,

the beautiful black swan has indeed emerged.

The table top is now a complete piece.

The legs Jay so admired are dressed in black lacquer paint, with little

colour splashes giving it a contemporary, modern twist.

But will it be to Sarah's taste?

Oh, my word! Look at that!

He's done and dusted.

It's a whole table again!

-It is a whole table.

-And, hold on...

I can see a little Blades magic going on here. What's...?

Just a little bit, just a wee bit.

I would always have to add just a little bit of colour,

so the flicks is what I'm kind of into at the moment,

it's my playful kind of time.

It's all due to my daughter, basically.

She likes flicking paint and just having a great time.

So that's why I did that.

Fantastic, and which end was the broken end?

-That end?

-This end was broken, this was broken as well, coming apart.

This, I've glued it as much as I can,

and this one had a little bit...

So all of them were coming apart, basically.

But this was the fully broken one.

-It feels lovely.

-Yeah, it should do,

it's had a really beautiful rubdown and oiling.

And, yeah, now it's just allowed to sing.

-It's really, really gorgeous, I think.

-It looks really cool.

-Did it give you any problems?

-There was a load of different screws,

different sizes - they had used screws from beds,

from different tables, from a whole load of stuff,

so I contacted Ercol and they gave me the right measurements for the

screws that I needed to then put them in there.

Which was absolutely easy.

It's nice to have a bit of authenticity, isn't it?

-Yes.

-It looks great.

-Yeah.

-Budget?

Budget, £200, bang on.

That's great news for me, isn't it, because with a £200 investment,

I really stand to make some money out of this one, don't I?

Yes, definitely!

They both seem very sure of themselves, don't they?

I believe this should just fly off the shelf.

This is something that is quite sought-after.

A lot of people are wanting these because of the dimensions.

Once you've dropped the leaves, they're easy to just put in a small space, a small kitchen,

so they're ideal, and they're a classic.

Little did Sam know when he was set to chuck it in the tip.

You might not like this, but there are people clamouring to get their

-hands on this stuff.

-It is in a bit of disrepair, it's quite old,

but I'm sure someone out there will find something in it.

You're not wrong, Sam.

Jay has made sure that this iconic piece

has at least another 25 years of use.

And Nick Smith, a regular client Sarah's,

snapped up the table to sell through his vintage and retro company,

Smithers of Stamford.

Sarah has now returned to Witley to show Sam what became of his grandfather's table.

And possibly hand over some cash.

-Hello, Sam. Hi there.

-How are you?

-DOG BARKS

-Really well, nice to see you.

-Good, good.

You've got the Hound of the Baskervilles.

We do, unfortunately. We've got a Jack Russell, I'm very sorry.

-No, they're lovely, aren't they?

-Well, it depends.

When I last saw you, you were being a very good grandson, weren't you?

I was, yes, helping with the dump run.

Your grandfather was clearing out some...

I thought the quality of his rubbish was excellent, actually.

-Really?

-Yeah.

-OK, good, good.

-I loved the look of his table.

-Did you know anything about that?

No, I was utterly clueless.

I just thought it was a very old table he was chucking out.

It was broken, but did you think we might be able to mend it?

I wasn't sure, actually. I thought, considering the damage to it,

I thought it was pretty much a write-off.

Yeah, it wasn't working as it should as a table, but if they do break,

they're reasonably easy to mend.

So your table went to a guy called Jay Blades,

he works up in Wolverhampton, and he was delighted to see it.

Even in the state that it was in, he was very enthusiastic about it.

-I've got some pictures to show you...

-Brilliant.

-..of what he did.

So, your table...

now looks like that.

Oh, wow, looks like a proper table, all fixed up.

Yeah, no, that's looking lovely now, actually, yeah.

It looks absolutely lovely, the quality of the finish was beautiful,

-and I've sold it.

-Oh, wow, brilliant. Fantastic.

With a little bit of profit, I think coming your way

after all your help in the tip with your grandfather.

I have got £50 here.

-Oh, wow.

-For you.

-Thank you very much.

-So, it's £50.

-Brilliant.

-What are you going to do with that?

-I'm going off to France, actually,

tomorrow morning, so it'll probably get spent over there.

Well, I think that is lovely, and please thank your grandpa so much

for letting us take away his rubbish, and for all your time.

And, yeah, I think you'll have a lovely time with that in France.

-I'm very jealous.

-No problem at all, thank you.

-Thank you so much, Sam, lovely to see you again.

-Thank you very much, you too.

-Bye-bye.

Sarah spent £200 having the table put back together by Jay,

and she was able to sell it for 250,

which left a £50 profit to hand back to Sam.

Well, that was a little reward for all of Sam's hard work helping his

grandpa at the tip, and he's got 50 quid to go and spend in France.

That is a good result.

It's back to Manchester now.

And Sarah's heading to Anthony's workshop to find out

how he's got on with the two mid-century chairs she brought in.

And you know what? Anthony isn't his usual confident self.

I have to say, I'm a little bit apprehensive this time

because it's far removed from my normal kind of modern, urban styles

that I'm used to, into something that, to be honest,

I don't think I've even named or could name, so...

Yeah, going to have to see how this one goes down.

Well, I optimistically called my pair of chairs "cocktail seating".

Well, if Anthony's managed to transform them into money-makers,

it's drinks on me.

These mid-century chairs

were more stale beer down the pub than cocktails on the beach

when they first came to Anthony.

Well, they've certainly gone from dull and dated

to striking and unique.

The sheepskin is a lovely rose quartz colour,

and gives the chairs a real wow factor.

The material is from a duvet cover

and delivers a definite floral punch.

Without a doubt, these chairs are full of character,

but I reckon they'll divide opinion, and Anthony's about to hear Sarah's.

-They rock!

-Do you like them?

-I love them!

-The twins are ready to hit the town.

They're fantastic.

-Slightly bonkers.

-Of course.

Really cool, well done!

Thank you very much. I think they have a little something about them.

They're interesting, they are funky, they have a sense of humour,

and they look lovely. They look comfortable.

Sarah thinks they're fantastically bonkers, and you know what?

I agree. Best of all, Ant's stayed bang on budget.

Cocktails are going to be on me.

Yes, so... Cocktails on you?

Well, look at them! I'm going to make money, cos 300 quid on the budget?

Yes, I mean...

easily get that for them, would you not?

Oh, yeah. You put them right back into the marketplace,

because think of the tip, look at them now - genius.

Yeah, they're quite...

They're really cool. I can't thank you enough. Honestly.

-Fantastic.

-Another successful one.

Really, really cool.

I'm going to sell those instantly.

I'll tell you when I do, all right?

Confident words there. Let's just hope you're right.

When Sarah spotted the pair of chairs at the tip,

Claire couldn't wait to get rid of them.

They're not comfortable at all. I sat on them for a while...

I'm going to have a go now you said that.

They're not too bad.

And that one's got wobbly legs, so...

So, OK, you've totally convinced me why you're chucking them out.

If you can do something with them, that would be wonderful,

and then I'll probably want them back, won't I?

I think it's safe to say, since Anthony's makeover,

Claire wouldn't recognise them.

But she won't have the chance to stake her claim,

as the sophisticated chairs also caught the eye of retailer, Nick.

They are absolutely lovely, love them.

Yeah. I think the wife is going to want to keep them, though, that's the only problem.

Everyone's a winner, and no more so than Claire.

Sarah's come to her home in Northchapel, West Sussex,

to show her what happened to the tip-bound chairs.

-Hi, Claire!

-Hi!

-How are you doing?

-It's nice to see you again.

When I last saw you, you were dropping off a pair of chairs.

Explain why they were ending up at the tip.

Well, they ended up at the tip because they were literally so uncomfortable.

And, try as we might, they just weren't going to work.

Yeah, so, we took them away, but did you think, "I wonder what they'll do with them"?

I did. I didn't know whether you would put arms on them,

whether you'd just keep them plain,

whether it would be a reupholster, so, yeah, I'm really intrigued to see what you've done with them.

Well, I think that they turned out really, really well.

Oh, my goodness, wow!

They have been given a proper new, new look.

They really have! I think it's amazing, it's really original,

and someone's obviously worked really hard to do that.

Well, in their normal state, they're 60, 70, £80, maybe,

for a chair like that, but with that kind of look,

they actually have a bit more value to them.

-Oh, really?

-Yeah, so I've actually got some profit here for your chairs.

They've been bought by a retro company in Lincolnshire,

and here I have £250...

-For you.

-That's amazing!

-For your lovely chairs.

Good grief, that's incredible,

considering we were just about to launch them into a skip!

Well, that's fantastic.

We loved working on them, they were really inspiring,

-and everybody who was involved with them really sort of enjoyed the whole process, so...

-Oh, good!

-Thank you very much.

-It's a pleasure, lovely to see you.

-And you.

-Bye-bye.

Thanks to the amazing talents of Anthony,

the chairs cost £300 to transform and sold for 550,

giving Claire a sizeable £250 profit.

Well, Claire's chairs could have ended up in a skip,

but they're now comfortable, beautiful and profitable.

Sarah's saved three items from the Witley Recycling Centre -

Sam's grandfather's table was rejuvenated by Jay,

Claire's chairs were given a woolly treatment by Anthony,

and Sarah stamped her mark on Barbara and John's sun lounger.

Who'd have thought it was possible to do all of that with a load of

old rubbish? We made lovely things that have gone to new homes

and made some money on the way.