sarah louise dix upholstery
Surrey
Sarah Louise Dix Upholstery was formed in 2005 by Sarah Dix. The business
comprises of the Couture Label, the Pink Label, SLD Upholstery Services and
upholstery courses & workshops. The Couture Label evolved from fusion ideas and
specialises in the design and upholstery of quality vintage furniture inspired
by the construction and form of clothing. The label’s designs are part artwork
part furniture creating highly individual finished pieces. Some designs
physically incorporate a vintage garment creating a surreal air while others
have structural elements such as corsetry, the Corset Chair, or tailoring.
Sarah’s furniture was shown at the London menswear show Stitch in February 2010
on the Blaqua menswear stand and were stocked at their shops in Newburg Street
W1 and Kings Road SW3. In November 2013 Sarah bought an antique chaise longue
from Katherine Higgins on BBC Put your Money Where your Mouth Is and
reupholstered it in red velvet and faux fur with a corset back. Then in February
2014 She sold the Corset Chaise to Jeff Salmon on the Channel 4 TV programme
Four Rooms for £1200. 2010 saw the launch of the Pink Label. The Pink Label is
the diffusion range and produces the Corset Chair at a more affordable price.
The original Corset Chair design has been simplified, the frames are new exact
copies of the original Victorian shape and are upholstered using modern
materials. Sarah also sold the chairs at Follet in Petworth, Sussex in 2012. The
Upholstery Courses were introduced in January 2012 and run for ten weeks. The
first teaching venue was at The National Trust property the Barge Building Shed.
Dapdune Wharf. Guildford. Sarah had a residency there and courses run throughout
the year in stunning surroundings, on the banks of the River Wey. She also
launched courses in the studio space at The Art Works in East Horsley. This was
a unique space selling contemporary arts and crafts. Other course locations were
in Farnham, Grayshott and Cranleigh Arts Centre. Once Sarah was able to take on
her own space in Godalming, the courses ran inhouse from then on. The spaces
include Studio 22 and Bargate House and the current property in Farncombe. The
courses are very popular and often over subscribed. Sarah also runs Beginners
Footstool day workshops once a month on a Saturday. The workshops give a great
introduction to upholstery and helpful when considering undertaking a ten week
course. SLD Upholstery Services offers a full reupholstery service for clients.
This service has been running alongside the design side and courses from the
beginning. The workroom now has four professional upholsterers working on
various pieces of furniture for customers. This can range from a cushion cover
to a three piece suit. The company has undertaken work from a variety of people
such as titled Ladies, artists to royalty, Pop Stars (a pink latex bed for Nicki
Minaj’s world tour 2018), partners in top London banks and Mrs Judge from around
the corner. She gets to visit the most amazing houses including one once owned
by Chris Evans and Mary Wondrausch's unique home crammed with her pottery. Sarah
continues to expand the shop and fabric accounts with fabrics available from
fabric houses such as Designers Guild, Romo, Osbourne & Little, Christian
Lacroix.
