Episode 22 Money for Nothing

Got to be able to do something with that, haven't I?

How do you make money for nothing?

I'll take one and be back for the other.

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

we throw out every year.

They're beautiful.

That's why entrepreneur Sarah Moore

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

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

and I've turned my passion into a moneymaking business.

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

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

You like to set a challenge for me, don't you?

Nice!

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

Isn't that clever?

..valuable...

What an original piece of design.

..and, hopefully, saleable items.

Oh, no way!

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.

Oh, my God! That is amazing!

Welcome to Bredbury Recycling Centre in Greater Manchester,

a nonstop hive of activity.

With the nation becoming more and more aware of the benefits

of regenerating unwanted possessions,

one woman is on a mission to turn your trash into hard cash.

It's a massive site here.

I've got hundreds of skips, loads of people coming in,

and I've got to sort out the chipboard from the Chippendale.

Before you make a beeline for your local tip, take note.

Sarah's been given special permission

to seek out three items...

Anything exciting in here?

..that she can rejuvenate, repurpose and sell on for profit.

And it's not long before Sarah spots Barry

and his car full of tree-trunk treasure.

You've been cutting that up beautifully, haven't you?

Yeah. It took me some time, that.

What kind of tree is it?

-It's a lime tree.

-Oh, OK.

So has that been annoying you in the garden?

Yeah, I was cutting it up that size for me son's log burner,

but it seems lime trees don't burn, don't make good firewood.

-Oh, really?

-It's good for carving or something, but that's about it.

Really? Can I have a closer look?

Yeah, of course you can.

The trouble is, sometimes I take things like this

and people just laugh at me at the end!

But I'd love to take a couple of the chunkier bits,

if that's all right?

What could you possibly do with a load of freshly cut lime?

Well, that looks like a great bundle there.

I'm hoping there might be something that can be done with,

-you say it's lime?

-Yeah.

Brilliant. OK, well, if I manage to get something done with this

or make something out of it,

I'll come and show you what I've done, OK?

-That'd be fine.

-I would unglove... Well, let's have a gloved shake!

-Thank you ever so much.

-Thank you very much.

-I shall be in touch.

-OK, thanks a lot.

-Bye-bye.

-Bye, love.

Sarah leaves with a selection of lime logs, and surprisingly,

Barry's excited at the prospect of seeing them again.

It'll be good, yeah, it'll be interesting,

cos she can obviously see things that other people don't

in her mind's eye, so let's see what happens.

Fiddlesticks!

So, a big bundle of wood.

It's got some redeeming features.

There's lots of it, that means you can do something with it.

And a profit would be good.

Is this a good acquisition or is Sarah barking up the wrong tree?

Sarah has just the people in mind who will help us decide.

In deepest West Sussex, Josh and Oli have forged a creative partnership.

They incorporate natural materials as well as metal, concrete

and glass, creating handcrafted furniture and sculpted pieces

with a contemporary style.

Yeah, definitely love what we do.

I think we're really lucky in that sense.

I think what makes us different is that we have got original ideas

and we have got our own style to bring to the table.

Josh's background is in woodwork,

but my background's in graphic design.

But it's a really nice combination and I think we've got

some pretty crazy ideas and think quite out of the box.

I think it does make us stand out from the rest.

Josh and Oli may be wizards with woodwork,

but will Sarah's collection of overgrown twigs

be just what they're hoping for?

That's her first item packed away nicely.

Time for Sarah to hunt down something to work on herself.

I'm looking for the treasure in the trash.

But sometimes the rubbish, it's just rubbish.

Oh, you used to be so happy.

I'll tell you what makes me happy - vanloads of potential items.

And today it's Andrew's van.

He's been back and forth a few times,

clearing out his mother's home, who has sadly passed away.

Well, that looks like a good van load. What are you up to?

It is, it's a full van load.

-Can I have a little root around?

-You can have a little root.

I tell you what's really catching my eye, I quite like your colander.

The colander for the vegetables?

Yeah, I quite like that.

And I'm liking this little collection of copper and pipe

-and all that.

-The old central heating.

Yeah. And actually, I even like your barbed wire.

That's security.

That's security, oh, of course.

Don't suppose you fancy letting me have a bit,

-see if I can do anything with it, do you?

-You can have a bit, yes.

-Really?

-You can have it, yes.

-OK!

Bit of copper.

That's fantastic, that one. Look at that.

Lovely.

I think that little bundle there.

Copper pipes, a colander and barbed wire!

What am I going to make out of that lot, then?

-A torching helmet.

-A what, a helmet?

-Is it my size? Do you think that would fit me?

-Yeah, yeah.

For such a small head, you've got some big ideas, Sarah!

I'm going to come back and find you and show you what I've done

and I'm going to make you eat your words!

Lovely, yes, we'll wait for that.

I'm not sure these two gentlemen are convinced.

But how does Andrew feel

about letting go of his dear old mum's odds and ends?

Quite happy. If someone sees something, then, yes.

I love copper piping, there's heaps of it here.

And this, all together, I've got to be able to make something good.

I've got the colander, I've got some wire,

and I've got this chunky load of copper piping.

Just got to make sure I make the best out of it.

I have faith in you, Sarah.

That's two items down.

With one still to find.

But Sarah can't hang about.

Day is turning into night at a fast pace,

so it's a relief when John arrives with his little red petrol can.

-Ooh, that's not going in the tip, is it?

-It was going to go in.

-Really?

-Yeah.

-I thought that was your work stuff.

No, no, it's been sitting round,

it used to be my father-in-law's, but he's no longer with us.

Oh, it is charming.

I love it.

That's all brass up there as well, isn't it? It's a really nice one.

-And it's still got a bit of typography left, hasn't it?

-A little bit.

It's so appealing, because of its worn look.

-I see these all the time and this is a really interesting one.

-OK.

I've kind of given up on the normal, new ones.

The old ones are just so beautiful.

Yeah, they're a bit more appealing, really, than the plastic ones.

I would love to take it away and try to make something out of it.

Yes, certainly. It's only going to go in the scrap, so...

OK, well, I would definitely like to salvage it

because I think it's beautiful.

And the patina on it and, you know, even the rust, I like.

-So I can have it then?

-Yes, you can certainly have it.

Sarah's obviously pretty keen.

But what does John think she has planned for it?

I don't have a clue.

Honestly wouldn't have a clue. To me it was just a bit of scrap metal.

So anything she can make is good, really.

I love this old, beautiful, patinated petrol can.

Brass lid, lovely handle, original typography on it.

And I know exactly who I'm going to take this to,

and what we're going to make out of it.

Just who is the lucky artisan who'll be carrying the can this time?

If you have a corner of a room which needs illuminating

with something quirky, we have just the man for the job.

Guy Trench.

Handyman Guy works tirelessly with his band of happy helpers

to make one-of-a-kind furnishings from...well, anything, really.

I used to be a North Sea diver and I spent ten years doing that.

My grandmother was an antiques dealer,

so I thought I'd try antiques.

And my wife said to me, Guy, you're good with your hands,

why don't you cobble together something old?

And so I got some old bowling balls and turned those into table lamps.

I thought, if I did bowling balls, why can't I do cricket balls?

And if I can do a cricket ball, let's try a cricket bat,

and did a cricket bat. And then I was really on my way.

Love using reclaimed material, can't beat it.

If preserving history is your thing, then the old petrol can

Sarah's salvaged should be right up your street, Guy.

A successful end to the day at the Bredbury Recycling Centre.

Josh and Oli will deal with the lime sticks.

Sarah herself has the eclectic collection of

copper pipes, barbed wire and colander.

And Guy will be glad to pep up that petrol can.

The sun is going down and my work here is done.

I've had another brilliant day, and I've been scrutinising,

salvaging and squirreling away some fantastic finds

that I'm sure are going to make some money for nothing.

The beautiful county of Sussex is Sarah's first stop,

where she's brought the collection of freshly cut lime logs

to deliver to Josh and Oli.

Lucky lads.

Well, there aren't many people who will see

a bundle of twigs as a business proposition,

so I'm hoping Josh and Oli are among the elite few

who can turn this lot into something saleable.

I think the boys may have their work cut out with this one.

Not exactly a dream delivery.

-Hello, hello.

-BOTH:

-Hello.

-I've got something for you.

-Oh.

-Shall I bring them round?

I'm tempted to say there's no need, Sarah.

-Some logs.

-Wow. What's this, then?

-It's lime. It's fantastic, isn't it?

-Oh, OK, cool.

I know I've seen people who've used natural wood like this that

-they make stools out of.

-Yeah.

Those kind of three-legged milking stool type things.

-Yeah, those are quite good.

-But I don't know if you've done anything

else with it or if you can think of anything that might be commercial

or... You know, we've got to make something saleable out of them.

I'm sure there's something to be done.

-THEY LAUGH

-No?

What if we...what if we used it to make a coffee table?

-Yeah, we've got some big old rounds of beech.

-Right.

Maybe we could introduce that and just use these

as some sort of leg and make quite a nice coffee table like that.

-That would be really cool, wouldn't it?

-That would be cool?

Yeah, it'd be cool if you had a big old ring of beech

with, like, lots of kind of random bits coming out of the bottom.

-What, like a centipede coming out?

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

OK, so it's a bundle of old firewood at the moment,

but do you think, if you introduced your lovely beech top to it,

then we're going to make money on it?

I mean, what kind of price would you want for making a big coffee table?

Well, I think because we've been saving those bits for so long...

We need to have a look at the rings as well,

but maybe like £600 to £700, depending on which one we use.

OK.

-That sounds good.

-Cool, OK.

-Yeah?

I just think turning that bundle of stuff into something,

you know, I'm kind of imagining something really beautiful

that you're going to do, it will be a fantastic process to watch,

so I'm happy, if you are, if you want to take that on.

-BOTH:

-Yeah.

-Go for it.

-Brilliant.

-Thank you.

-Thanks for dropping by.

-I can't wait to see what it looks like.

-Yeah, yeah.

-Bye-bye.

-Bye-bye.

So, a beechwood coffee table it is. With lime legs.

Well, that little bundle of sticks

could become one of our most polished projects,

but that is a real challenge that those boys have got on their hands,

and I hope they are up to it.

They're up to a big challenge.

Josh can even juggle, look.

With a hefty budget of between £600 and £700

and pretty basic raw materials to work with,

will the bearded dudes really be able to branch out and create

the classic coffee table they've promised Sarah?

Just outside Maldon, in the county of Essex,

is where reclamation expert Guy Trench calls home.

As long as it's old, I think that's...

And it's got rust to it and it's got something about its character,

its history, that's what were looking for.

In that case, Guy, it's your lucky day.

Well, this petrol can has got bags of what I suppose

you could optimistically call character. But...

Has it got something about it that people will like enough

to put into their house?

Guy and right-hand man Keith are going to be the judges on that one.

-Hi there. Nice to see you again.

-Good to see you.

-Hi, Keith.

-How are you doing?

-All right.

-I've got a little something for you.

-Oh, that's nice.

It is, isn't it? We've done a few of these before.

-Is that a good one, then?

-That's a lovely one.

That's going to look fabulous, absolutely. Table lamp.

It's lighting, isn't it?

-It has to be lighting, doesn't it?

-Yeah.

-OK.

There's an element about that that says it's too far gone

to go into somebody's house, so the fact that you are happy to,

you know, you can see that's got potential...

Yeah, that is how we like it.

It's the old-fashioned. It's 1930s.

It's an old can. It's got plenty of wear.

The colours... There's a bit of white writing coming through here.

The darker bit here, it's got marks on it. It will look amazing!

Really, really pleased with that.

Brilliant. I love your enthusiasm.

OK, you've convinced me of the lamp from an old rusty can idea.

But will the figures add up?

So it sounds like a bit of work to do on it.

What kind of price would it be for that made into lighting?

I think the can - and that will come up really, really well -

I think will be about £125.

Yeah, OK.

And if you would like a shade with it, Sarah, I think,

if we could do a second-hand one, would that suit you?

You're talking my kind of language now.

I mainly shop in the tip, so...

You might find one in the tip,

-but that one there I could do for £10 for you.

-So £135 all in.

I think that leaves me some room to make some money on it.

-I think it leaves you good room.

-I think it's in safe hands,

so, good luck making it over, and I hope it looks great.

-Thank you, Sarah.

-Fantastic. Thanks, Keith. See you soon.

-See you.

-Bye-bye.

-Bye-bye.

Well, Guy has certainly got me all revved up about that old petrol can.

It looks horrible at the moment, but the game he's talking,

it's going to look fantastic when it's converted.

Sarah is full of confidence, but there's a long road

before this diesel disaster becomes a design delight.

Although, Mr Bright Side Guy is raring to go.

It's a great, great, great can. Looking forward to doing this job.

With a budget of £135, Guy and Keith have their work cut out

giving the old fuel can a bright new future.

Back in Sussex, Sarah has discarded the colander and barbed wire

in order to work on the copper pipes

that she's hoping can be turned into cold, hard cash.

I love a bit of copper piping.

I always think it's going to be brilliant to make something out of,

until I get a hold of it, and then I find it a little bit intimidating.

But I have got a plan.

I'm thinking a candelabra would be lovely,

because these could be very fine and refined.

I've actually been inspired by my old gate post.

This has been lying around for ages,

and it used to be the farm gate coming into the...

into the garden, and I'm just thinking,

if we could use some of the lovely parts of this -

like the fact that it's got good colours on it

lots of age to it - and combine it with a bit of copper,

I might be able to make something beautiful

to go in the middle of a table.

First job is to get the old gate post cut to size.

Sarah wants each candelabra base to stand about a foot high,

so she should be able to make at least four.

You know, you just sit there, it's fine.

I wonder how many dogs have weed on this.

Well, there is that thought, I suppose.

Not sure I'd like it on my dinner table, if I'm honest.

I think the wire brush is the tool for the job

because I want to enhance all of the grain,

but get rid of any of those crumbly bits, cos these have to sit

on a very smart dining room table in the end.

This is the way forward.

But not before donning a safety mask.

Dust and dog wee are never a good combination.

But brushing will take off the top layer of the bark

and uncover the natural beauty of the wood.

So those four, I think, will look lovely,

but what I've got to do now is introduce...the copper.

What I'm hoping to do is drill some holes in the sides and have

the pieces of copper coming up, so they look almost like a cactus,

and I think the best thing to do is just cut them.

And then I've got a pipe bender.

I've never used one of those before, so that could be fun.

Of course, you'll be very familiar with the instructions provided,

Sarah, I'm sure.

I wonder where it bends.

Or maybe not.

To use a pipe bender, you should pull the handles

to force the pipe round the bend. Simple, really.

It's not that.

I reckon that bit goes on there.

Once the pipe is sandwiched between the former and the roller,

it's forced to bend when the handles are pushed together.

I guess that just goes like that, and then you pull.

You can also get hydraulic ones that require a little less strength.

Maybe we just make one candelabra.

Come on, use those muscles!

Brilliant. Oh, it's... Oh!

That's quite cool. I think I've stretched that a bit.

That's quite cool, though, isn't it?

So that, if I make a hole in that, and I just keep going round,

maybe some lower, some higher,

I think we'll have a lovely candelabra.

And I've actually got some copper bits for joining pipes together

to go on the ends, so when it's done,

we should be able to get lovely, fat candles coming out of here

and have a beautiful, high, decorative candelabra.

SHE SIGHS

So far, elbow grease is all Sarah's had to invest in the candelabra,

so any money back from selling them is profit.

That's if she manages to finish any, of course.

Not far away, Oli and Josh have made a start

on the lime-legged coffee table.

They've been to collect the large beechwood round

which they've been saving for a special project.

This is going to be just as it is.

We'll try and keep the bark on for the top of this coffee table.

Because it's such a wedge, and obviously we want a nice,

flat slab as the tabletop, we've just got to figure out

how we're actually going to flatten it off.

So we're just running through a couple of options,

trying to work that one out.

Option one, the angle grinder.

It's very effective, but to take a few centimetres' depth

off the whole surface will take Oli an extremely long time.

What about using the chainsaw in some way?

-Just have to be very, very careful.

-Yeah.

Might save a bit of time, though, if it does work.

I think it's worth giving it a go.

-Yeah?

-Simple.

For any youngsters watching at home just now,

customising your skateboard with a chainsaw may look pretty cool,

but honestly, it's not a good idea, which led to a rethink for the boys.

We're just trying to rig up some sort of jig where we can slice

a bit more off the beech with the chainsaw.

But who knows if it's going to work.

Looks like your jig needs a rejig to me.

Oli and Josh decide that a towel for cushioning

and ratchet straps are the answer.

Take two.

Without this bit of wood, their table is toast, and there are

no second chances if this goes wrong.

I can barely watch.

It's going to be nice grain in there, look.

So far, so good.

Good luck with the rest, Oli.

Meanwhile, Josh moves on to the lime logs,

soon to be table legs, hopefully.

Right, so I've just finished turning the tenons

on our three legs.

I've got to do the final sand on this top first,

and then I'm going to drill some holes for our legs to slot into.

So, really, the next thing is to take this beast

and go stick it through the machine.

Over in Essex, it's all hands to the pump

as Guy and Keith get stuck into their latest up-cycling challenge -

turning a pretty old petrol can into a pretty new table lamp.

It's got some nice lettering which is coming out now.

Just gives that little bit of,

you know, history, it's all original.

And let's try and keep as much of that on as possible,

cos I think that's important.

This is a lovely, distressed-looking can. Here we are.

We can start suddenly seeing the colours start emerging.

The red is getting redder.

It's great just to see things transforming under your eyes.

It's lovely to see.

OK, let's try a bit of Jacobean on it, Keithy.

Jacobean, eh? Nice and dark.

Look at the colours. Yeah, it's coming up beautifully.

Just a bit more polish down this,

trying to get into the grain of that. That's it.

You're doing a great job there, Keith.

Just wait, we're not ready yet.

We're going to have this looking really red in a minute.

Give it the once-over with a softish rotary brush.

Great teamwork, this.

The brass top, which we've just given a bit of life to.

Wire wool. Got the rest of the can to do now.

Ah, yes, the lamp fitting.

For that, Guy calls in the services of qualified sparky, Steve.

So I think what we'll do is drill a hole straight through

and we'll put a post in and then we're going to have a shade

that goes on the top of it.

What about the base? Is it stable enough?

I think if we filled that with sand, we should have...

Fill it up with sand, about this much, that will make it stable.

Give it some weight. Good idea. OK.

Young Steve is a dab hand with a drill. He can tap a screw thread.

I'm tapping a thread in the tube so you can fix the fitting to the top.

But most importantly...

-Here she comes.

-There we go.

..he can certify that the electrical work has been carried out

to the required safety standards.

All right, that's that bit done. How do you like that?

Er...

I don't really like this silver rod coming up here, Steve.

So, this is an antique ageing fluid

that we're going to paint on this...

..and you'll see that it will change colour quite quickly.

You know, we're trying to keep it as a piece of history.

We want to try to keep it,

all the similar looking bits and pieces on it, the same colours.

We don't want a sharp bit of silver metalwork showing

on something which is old, because you know it's been added on.

Let's try and keep everything in character, again, really important.

Little detail, but really important, I think.

I'm looking forward to seeing this one shining bright.

Back at home in Sussex, Sarah is putting the final touches

to her copper-pipe candelabra.

So, I think although the copper is looking quite good as it is,

I want it to look smarter and crisper and a bit more modern,

so I thought I might try spraying it

and see if it works well like that.

Worth a try, I guess. Also a good idea to be outside

when using spray paint,. You don't want those fumes going to your head.

That is looking brilliant. Love it.

Or maybe it's too late in Sarah's case.

There's no denying she's pretty clever, though.

She took a pile of old copper pipes and a rotting fence post...

..and made these.

Sarah has cleaned and buffed the copper uprights and joints

with metal polish and sprayed the arms

with bold and contemporary colours.

The old gate post that was rotting in her garden

provides a solid yet rustic base.

Together, the copper and wood fusion make a real talking point

for the centre of any dining table.

I think it was definitely worth pursuing the different colours

because they look much brighter and smarter

than that drab, old copper.

So I think the best thing to do now is get some pictures of them

and see if anybody fancies a look at them.

When Sarah first met Andrew, he was armed with an eclectic mix of stuff.

I quite like that.

And I'm liking this little collection of copper and piping,

-all that.

-The old central heating, yeah.

-And I actually...

I even like the barbed wire.

Sarah took away a jumble of items from Andrew's van.

But she focused on the copper pipes

and created a collection of cracking candelabras,

which were quickly snapped up by Leigh Farrer,

who runs online shop The Salvage Seller from St Albans.

I think they're amazing. They're gorgeous.

They're absolutely stunning.

I think they're going to sell really, really easily.

Sarah has returned to Greater Manchester to catch up with Andrew

and to show him what became of his copper pipes.

Hi, Andrew.

-Hello, Sarah.

-Oh, hi, Andrew.

-How are you?

-I'm really well, how are you doing?

-Hello there.

Lovely to see you again.

What a lovely little car you've got in there.

It's my hobby. I hope we're going to have some nice, sunny weather

-and then it will come out.

-Fantastic.

-You have to look after that kind of thing, don't you?

-Yes, yes.

It wasn't car bits you were dropping off when I saw you

at the tip, you were clearing out all sorts of things.

I was, I was, yes.

Did you think what we might do with all your old stuff?

I really didn't know.

I thought I would leave it up to you

and we'll see what sort of job you do.

Well, I always love finding copper pipes,

and it turned out it was something I wanted to work on.

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

-Yes.

So, are you braced? Because this is how your copper piping

ended up.

Oh, right! No, I wasn't expecting that.

That's an awful lot better than I would have thought.

You have taken me by surprise, so I think we'll say congratulations.

I'm really relieved.

There's always a responsibility,

that you want to make it into something special.

-They were received really well.

-Good.

In fact, we created four candelabras that have sold.

Right, lovely, lovely.

So I've actually got £100 here for you,

for your old copper.

-Really?

-Yeah.

-Didn't she do well?!

-HE LAUGHS

Someone used to say that, didn't they? Yeah, well done, well done.

-Thank you very much.

-It's an absolute pleasure.

Now, I hope that will come in useful,

what are you going to do with it?

It's money to buy something nice, enjoy.

-I'm not going to spend it on groceries.

-Excellent.

You enjoy whatever you do with that.

-Lovely to catch up and, yeah, see you at the tip again.

-Yeah.

-Nice to have met you.

-Lovely surprise.

-Thank you, Andy, bye-bye.

-Bye-bye.

Sarah spent £25 in total in transforming the copper pipes -

£24 on the plumbing parts and £1 on the spray paint.

They were sold for £125, which leaves £100 profit

with a very surprised Andrew.

Well, that was a fantastic reaction to the copper-pipe candelabra.

I think Andrew definitely approved

and he's got 100 quid to go and have a good time on us.

Flushed with the success from the sale of the old copper plumbing,

Sarah has returned to West Sussex to find out how Josh and Oli

have got on with the load of lime logs she left them with.

Let's cover this baby up.

Yeah, so I'm really excited for Sarah to come cos,

from the pile of little sticks that she gave us,

I think we've created something quite cool.

I think we're pretty happy with the final outcome,

so hopefully Sarah will be too.

I love commissioning a table, but leaving 600 to 700 quid

and a pile of old sticks, that is a real challenge.

I hope the boys have pulled it off.

When Sarah picked up the uninspiring limewood sticks,

they were ready for the skip.

Oli and Josh have exceeded expectations this time.

With a cross-section of beech tree,

they've created a beautiful woodland coffee table

using the limewood as the legs,

only three of which touch the ground.

The rest add a decorative feature, floating as if in mid-air.

The beech top has been sympathetically varnished and waxed,

showing the wood's natural characteristic to the full.

Finally, walnut wooden wedges have been carved and put in place

to prevent further expansion of the cracks.

Hello?

-Hello.

-Oh, it's busy around here. How are you doing? Hello.

-You all right?

-Yeah, really well.

-Good.

-Is that it?

-This is that.

-It's huge.

-It is, isn't it?

-Come on!

-Yeah?

Guys, it's beautiful.

That is amazing.

-Well done! That's fabulous.

-Thank you.

-I love it.

-Good, good.

Are you pleased with it?

-Yeah, very pleased.

-Yeah, we almost don't want to let it go, actually.

Oh, really? Well, maybe we can do a deal.

That is so clever.

It looks like hardly any of it is touching the ground.

-Is it supposed to be like that?

-BOTH:

-Yeah.

There's three legs.

-It's so interesting, isn't it?

-Yeah.

-Well, this slab of beech is such a nice bit of wood.

-It is lovely.

-So this is the bit you've been saving for ages, is it?

-Yeah.

I love what you've done with these bits.

They look like a nightmare to do. Are they difficult?

We make it up and cut it into the shape first,

-and then you can slice off your keys.

-OK.

And then you have to place your key over the split where you want it

and really finely draw around it,

and then you can, using a router, take out the meat of it,

and then you've got to finish it off by hand with a chisel.

-Just to get that lovely, sharp, crispy...

-Yeah.

-..edge to it.

So, these ties, it's mainly just a visual thing,

-making a feature out of the splits.

-Yeah. It works really well.

Have you counted? How old is it?

No, we haven't actually. It's going to take a while.

While you're counting that,

maybe we could discuss some other figures.

How was the budget?

-Well, I think we said £600 or £700.

-Yeah.

And I think we'd be happy with £700.

Well, I think you've done a fantastic job.

I'm very pleased with that.

-Good.

-So, are you going to help me out with it, then?

-Yeah.

-No.

Oh, Josh!

Some designers would be really stumped

if you left them with a pile of old twigs,

but Josh and Oli have completely made that their own.

Somebody is going to love that table.

She seemed really chuffed.

And, like, as are we.

I mean, this is a great project and I really enjoyed working on it.

And, yeah, it's something that we love to do as well,

working with big old slabs like this.

Sarah's spotted Barry back in Bredbury,

and he already had a handle on what his wood could be used for.

It's good for carving something, that's about it.

Really? Can I have a closer look?

Yeah, of course you can.

Sarah was so taken with the lime logs that she took them away.

In the capable hands of Josh and Oli,

it became the legs of a wonderful woodland coffee table.

In order to drum up a sale,

Sarah advertised the table on social media.

She has now returned to near Bredbury

to show Barry what became of his boot full of lime.

-Hi, Barry.

-Hello. How are you?

-Yeah, I'm really well. Nice to see you.

-And you, yes.

Loving your house. All these lovely old-fashioned details.

You're not dropping this off at the tip yet, are you?

No, no, I don't think so. Couldn't afford to replace it!

So, your big lime tree, that was in the garden here, was it?

Yeah, yeah. Yeah.

Blocking all the light out.

And I took the little bundle of logs,

I took it off to quite near me, actually, in West Sussex,

to some great lads called Josh and Oli,

who love using natural wood in the round and twigs and logs.

So, what do you think we did with them?

I'd have thought something nice,

I'd have thought something like a wind chime.

I'm sure it's going to be good, whatever you've done with it.

-I've got some pictures to show you.

-Smashing.

Your lime logs have been put to good use and made into a coffee table.

Well, that's good, isn't it?

They have put pretty much all the ones I collected underneath

to make some legs. Only three of the legs touch the ground.

-That's brilliant, isn't it?

-Do you approve?

What a good job. Yeah, yeah.

-Really, really good.

-I haven't managed to sell it yet.

It's one of those pieces I need people to get their hands on

and really appreciate all the craftsmanship that's gone into it.

-Yeah.

-When I have sold it,

I'm sure there'll be profit to bring back to you.

So I don't know... If I can make a bit of money,

I don't know if you've got any ideas what you might do with it?

I think something like Teenage Cancer Trust, you know,

they're always looking for money, them sorts of trusts,

but Teenage Cancer, I think, yeah.

That'll be a good stopping point, that.

OK, well, I'm spurred on even more to try and sell it and I'm hoping

there'll be a buyer out there who loves it as much as I do,

cos I think it's a great piece.

I look forward to you selling it,

obviously now, I can give it to charity.

Yeah, great, what a good job, yeah.

-Smashing.

-Thank you ever so much.

-Thank you very much.

-Bye-bye.

-Bye now. Bye.

The coffee table cost £700 to have commissioned from Josh and Oli.

As yet, it remains unsold, which could mean a potential loss.

However, I have no doubt that a sale is imminent.

Well, there's profit be made on that table, and as soon as I've sold it,

I'll be back in touch with Barry and hopefully handing over a profit.

In Essex, Sarah is on her way to see

how Guy has fared with the battered petrol can.

I think Sarah is going to like this a lot.

You know, she's a recycler like myself

and seeing it brought back into another life,

I think it will tick her box.

Let's hope so.

Sarah left Guy with an old, unusable petrol can.

The metal was rusted and it had holes,

but for some reason, Guy was over the moon with it.

And now I can see why.

The once useless can has become a quirky fully functional table lamp.

Guy has lost none of the character and has instead

brought out its features to the full, by treating the metalwork.

The simple shade complements it perfectly.

All in all, making it a shadow of its former self.

-Hi there.

-Hi, Sarah.

-Lovely to see you.

-Lovely to see you again.

That's worked really well.

-Hasn't it? Yes, hasn't it?

-Fantastic.

Now, it was a good, strong, starting piece, wasn't it?

But the scale of that is really good, isn't it?

I think it really does work well.

It's just lovely to preserve something

which is a bit of our history.

It says petrol can on the tin, and it really is.

But we've saved it from the dump.

They're not going to be making these again,

so I'm pleased you like it.

I know you said you were going to dig us out a £10 shade,

but I think I left you with £125 for the can.

-Anywhere near that?

-Yes, we're going to do it for £135, you're in budget.

In budget and in luck, because it's looking great.

The combination, I like the black with the red.

-Yes.

-It's got a great look.

You want to pick it up, carry it away

-and put it on your desk, don't you? I think it's lovely.

-Yeah.

So, why don't you do just that, Sarah?

-Thank you so much.

-Thank you, Sarah, I'm glad you're pleased with it.

I am pleased with it. Let me take it away right now.

And hopefully find a buyer desperate to put it on their desk.

That is a very successful project... in the can.

I think Sarah felt very happy about that.

It was something which was pretty ropey,

but I knew it was going to be a good one when we got our hands on it

and cleaned it up and electrified it,

and I think she's going to sell that well.

From its early days in the tip at the back of John's van...

It used to be my father-in-law's, but he's no longer with us.

It's charming.

To me it was just a bit of scrap metal,

so anything she can make is good, really.

..to a revamped lamp.

It certainly wasn't going to sit on Sarah's shelf for long,

as regular client Nick from online retro retailers Smithers of Stamford

was quick to see its potential.

Very nice. I think someone would like this for their man cave.

Sarah has travelled to just outside Bredbury to meet up with John

and show him what became of his father-in-law's rusty old can.

-Hi there.

-Hi.

-How are you doing?

-Not bad, how are you?

-Very well, thank you.

-Good.

So, I was trying to remember what you were doing at the tip,

because not all the stuff going there was yours, was it?

Not all of it, no. We're downsizing,

we're moving to a new house, so we had to get rid of some

of the stuff, and we had some of my late father-in-law's stuff

here as well, so, unfortunately, needs must, it had to go.

-OK, so it was the red petrol can...

-Petrol can, yeah.

..that really caught my eye,

so do you know how long he'd had it, or if he'd used it?

It's just something that's always been there.

He had oil in it for his chainsaw

and it's something that's always been there,

so it had to go, unfortunately.

Had you had any thoughts about what we might have done with it?

No, not really. It's a petrol can, what...?

But you said you could do something, so we'll see.

I took it to Essex, to a guy called Guy, actually,

who specialises in making lighting out of your kind of petrol can,

and I've got pictures to show you of what he did with it.

-Oh, right.

-Here is your petrol can.

-Oh, wow.

-Do you recognise it?

Sort of, but I didn't expect you to do that with it.

It does look pretty rustic, still,

but it's been transformed into a lovely, lovely light.

-That looks lovely.

-Yeah?

Do you think your father-in-law would have approved?

I think he would have done, yeah. That's amazing.

Well, it is something that has sold.

I have got £20 profit there.

-Thank you.

-To give to you.

Thanks very much. I didn't expect any profit.

Well, yeah, you might get enough

to put a bit of petrol in your car or something.

Well, my son's getting married in two weeks, so that will go...

I'm sure that'll go somewhere to him.

Maybe you could have a round on us, and just say thank you so much.

-Enjoy the wedding.

-You're welcome.

-Thanks a lot. I'll try.

-That was lovely. Thank you so much

-for letting us have some of your time today.

-You're welcome.

-All right then. It was great to catch up. Bye.

-Thank you. Bye now.

The petrol can cost £135 to have converted into lighting.

Sarah sold the finished light for £155,

and that left John with a profit of £20.

Well, that old petrol definitely fuelled Guy's imagination,

and I think John approved of what we did with it.

Sarah salvaged three items from the Bredbury recycling centre.

Barry's lime logs now hold up an amazing beech coffee table.

Andrew's copper pipes became colourful candelabras.

And John's old petrol can has been transformed

into motor-themed lighting.

Well, it never ceases to amaze me what can be done

with a load of old rubbish, a lot of hard work and a bit of creativity.