Small Occasional Table Upcycle Project

After finding this little gem in my local Salvation Army Shop i couldn't wait to get started on giving it a new look. I decided to go for a very simple style using 'Duck Egg' paint and a super high gloss finish.

Recent Commission - Distressed Dressing Table

After trudging the 4x4 through the snow, over a temporary bridge and past some very picturess countryside I arrived at my latest commission in Weybridge.

My Client had a lovely large dressing table with three mirrors that she had grown bored with and called me in to to give it a creamy french distressed look.

Using 'Grey Obsession' and 'Country Cream' paints I distressed her peice and polished it off with a jacobean wood polish.

'Sara has a seat at the top table' - Sara Prebble Design in this weeks Surrey Informer - page 12

Very excited to have a full page in this weeks Walton & Weybridge Surrey Informer Newspaper. 

Make a coffee, cut a slice of cake and turn to page 12!

For those outside of Surrey read the full interview here: 

      1.     What does your business do?

Sara Prebble Design is my furniture design and restoration business in leafy Hersham Village, Surrey. I take old, tired furniture and give it a new look to suit the current style of French Shabby Chic and gustavian distressed look. Using various different colour schemes to match in with a room’s decor, I transform each piece with a unique, fresh, current and revitalised style for any home.

saraprebbledesign.blogspot.co.uk

2. How many people do you employ?

I’m an independent furniture restorer. It’s just me.

3. What does your shop/business bring to your town?

A bespoke service offering the opportunity to breathe new life into old pieces of furniture in an environmentally friendly way.

4. What makes your business unique?

Every piece I transform is unique. Every customer’s home and style is different and they get a new love for their old furniture and they can help design the new look with me, making their piece completely unique to them and their home. It doesn’t have to be furniture either, Frames, Candle holders, basically anything wooden can be upcycled in this style.

5. What type of businesses would you like to see brought to your town?

An Art & Crafts Centre/Marketplace to showcase designers in Surrey would be a great space. There is a lot of design and craft talent in Surrey.

6. How has your business changed since you started?

The style and trends change but the techniques stay the same, I have quickly learnt that when you think you have seen every style of furniture, something surprises you.

In the future I am looking into holding workshops, people can come and have a go at doing the techniques themselves and leave the day with something they are proud of.

7. What's the best thing about owning your own business?

The creative freedom and the customer relationships I make along the way. I work with people to create/restore something they imagined for their homes and I get to meet some great people doing it.

8. How has your business been affected by the recession?

Times are hard for all businesses but if anything it has benefitted, it’s a lot more cost effective to reinvent a coffee table than to buy a new one.

9. How is the business likely to evolve over the next decade?

In the future there will be less quality pieces to work with because of a trend for easy to put together furniture. But trends change and the great thing about reinventing furniture is you can do it again and again.

10. Why have you chosen to base your business in Hersham, Surrey?

It’s as simple as this is where I live, It’s close to London and near lots of inspiration.

11. What's the strangest customer request you have had to deal with?

No strange requests but the most unique piece I have worked on is an Antique Hostess Trolley that was used as a computer table. It looked great.

12. What has been your proudest moment in business?

Getting my first customer. Building a business is hard work and it’s nice when you start to see it coming together.

13. Are critical reviews important or is word of mouth better?

Word of mouth is better but I recognise the importance of both. As I work with people for their homes I hope when they are happy with their piece, they spread the word.

14. What do you think makes your business stand out from your competitors?

The personal touch. Customers get involved with the restoration of their furniture, we discuss their ideas over a cup of tea.

15. Who is your role model in business?

Holly Tucker and Sophie Cornish of NotOnTheHighStreet.com They have achieved something very unique, the perfect online market place for crafters. Reading their book is a great motivational booster.

Promo Shot for Surrey Newspaper

This a promo shot by Darren Pepe for a Surrey newspaper interview that is coming out next week.
Feat. Painted Cabinet, Candle Sticks and a Picture Frame by Sara Prebble Design
The Picture frame featured is currently for sale in my Etsy Shop for 12.99 buy it here

Do you have an idea for a peice of furniture that needs a new look? Perhaps some candle sticks or photo frames? For a quote visit our commissions page. 

Interesting Insights - Interview with Hannah Martin, a London Florist

Browsing the Medicine Garden in Cobham one wednesday morning lead me to the leaflet of Hannah Martin Floristry. Show me some great photography and gorgeous flowers and you have my attention. Based in the Surrey area, Hannah Martin provides flowers for events, weddings and homes. Hannah describes her style of floristry as 'classic contemporary using flowers, foliage and styling within their seasons'. 

Sara Prebble: I imaging working with flowers to be very calming and enjoyable, what is a typical work day for the life as a florist?

Hannah Martin: This is exactly what I thought before I joined the industry eight years ago, however the reality is far from calm! I absolutely love being a florist and working with flowers is both enjoyable and very satisfying, however working with thorns, cold water and standing on your feet all day can be quite exhausting. Having said this, I wouldn’t change my job for the world! My day starts early, visiting New Covent Market to collect my flowers and any other bits and bobs I may need. Then it’s back to the workshop, via my favourite coffee shop for an americano and an almond croissant, to make up any orders I have for that day. I work a lot in London, for big venues, five-star hotels, banks, law firms and luxury brands such as Mulberry and Victoria’s Secret so my work is very varied and for a whole heap of different purposes, but I love providing flowers for weddings, corporate events and product launches as no day is ever the same.

Sara Prebble: I see you do workshops at MakeMe Workshops at The Medicine Gardens, what things can people learn at one of your classes?

Hannah Martin: Working with Melissa at MakeMe Workshops is great fun and we work within the seasons to create workshops that appeal to everyone’s needs. Everyone can attend as no prior knowledge or experience is required, just a desire to be creative and have a laugh whilst working with beautiful flowers to create lovely different table centres, bouquets or arrangements.

Sara Prebble: Do you think the recession has effected the flower industry?

Hannah Martin: I think if you run your florist from a high street shop, then yes you’re bound to have been affected as people are spending less and there’s lots of competition from supermarkets and having to fully stock your shop is very costly and could lead to a lot of expensive wastage should the customers be thin on the ground. As I mainly work with the events industry I’m less affected by these factors, and as I’m based from a small workshop I don’t have expensive rents to pay. There are still customers out there requiring flowers, and who are (more importantly!) still wanting to pay from them so establishing a reputation and working with the right people is very important. The big banks, insurance companies, brands and hotels have got to look at their annual flower budgets and justify the costs a lot more than before, so being competitively priced is essential.

Sara Prebble: What are the most popular flowers for weddings?

Hannah Martin: No two weddings are the same, and people’s tastes vary greatly, however a there are some flowers that always pop up during the wedding season – hydrangea, roses and peonies. Their availability obviously depends heavily on the date of the wedding, but the wedding season tends to run from May to September and these flowers can be found during this time (peonies will be more expensive after July as their season ends in July).





To find out more about Hannah Martin visit her website www.hannahmartin.net
For on the go updates follow her on twitter @hannahjmartin

Furntiure Painting using Stensils

Small Nordic Table. Distressed using Truffel & Linen Paints with a compass stencil in Truffle with a Jacobean Finnish.

We offer a bespoke design service for our stencils. Get in touch with your idea for a furniture stencil and we'll give you a quote. Visit our commissions page for more information.

Social Media Frenzy

We have gone social media crazy here, follow, like and Fan us in the following places... Facebook
Pinterest and Twitter :)

An old Piece...

....turned into a new piece

For a quote for a piece of your own furniture to be restyled visit our commissions page.

Get Reading!

This is a list Blogs my morning coffee wouldn't be the same without.

Passion of Pattern

Penelope Dullaghan

Apartment Therapy

Poppy Talk

A little place I call home

I want to start this blog off by telling you about my childhood home. Afterall this is where my passion for interior design and painting furniure came from. My mother once travelled to London to go on a painting course with Jocasta Innes, a then very popular furniture & home stylist. After that there was no stopping her, every piece of wood in our house got a visit from the paint brush and she perfected the art in no time. She took a stall in a local craft and gift centre to display and sell her pieces which took off and she gained quite a few commissions,it was a small town and the trend in London takes along time to dwindle its way to a small market town in the north west....if ever. My main memory of my mum from my childhood hood is with a paint brush in her hand and as a result, a family home that I just adore. Going there to visit is like a break away to the only other person who has a house like mine, or actually, I have a house like theres. I learnt from the best.

And now 28 years later I find myself, after living in London for 5 years, now living on the outskirts in a small village with a husband and a little baby. In a lovely house that is a great project to flex my painting skills on.

Keep checking back to see where my paint brush takes me.