INTERIORS

A Bespoke AFFAIR

One owner talks us through the refurbishment of her Southsea-based salon

“I’ve never been keen on the ultra-modern, minimalistic look.”

While Sarah Butler is not a hairdresser, she has extensive experience in the industry; having worked as an Account Manager for ghd for over 15 years. She has travelled across the south coast visiting clients’ salons – getting a feel for the dos and don’ts of running a salon business. However, when the opportunity to purchase a salon presented itself back in 2018, she jumped at the chance – and says she has never looked back.

During Covid-19, Sarah worked with a smaller budget to make some minor upgrades to the salon – including updated signage, along with new styling and backwash chairs. Fast-forward to 2026, and Sarah has now carried out a full salon renovation herself, updating the space to feel more homely, cosy and inviting. “I’ve never been keen on the ultra-modern, minimalistic look,” she notes. In fact, with two large glass windows wrapping around the front of the salon, another one of Sarah’s aims was to make sure the space didn’t feel exposed. “I love natural wood, as it brings warmth to a room, so I used it throughout the salon and paired it with a sage green paint – and lots of plants,” she explains.

Much of the furniture in the salon – including the reception desk, retail shelving and styling stations – were made bespoke by Meridian Heights using reclaimed rustic scaffold boards. All the wood was treated by hand, so each station has a unique appearance. Aesthetics aside, the furniture also needed to be practical, so Sarah applied a tough protective varnish to prevent staining and coffee cup marks.

The salon features six styling stations, incorporating the black chairs Sarah purchased when she previously updated the space. To tie these into the new design, she added black velvet lampshades in the reception area, along with black macrame plant hangers. The salon also boasts two backwashes, which are located at the rear of the salon. “Having their hair washed is what some clients enjoy most, and many like that they are not on view when sitting back and relaxing during this expereince,” Sarah explains. However, in hindsight, Sarah admits that she wishes she had incorporated more wood in this area, to better match the design in the front of the salon. “This may be another pending project,” she notes.

Another much-needed update was the lighting, which Sarah had changed from daylight panelling to a warmer hue. “It was originally so bright and clinical,” she recalls. “I was a bit concerned that the new lighting would have a negative effect on clients’ colour, however we have enough natural light to compensate, so it works well,” she adds.

When refurbishing the space, Sarah also decided to add a feature wall, highlighting the salon’s logo while also acting as an aesthetic backdrop for client photos. However ultimately, her favourite part of the refurbishment was the decision to get bespoke furniture made. “It fits the space perfectly and we’d had so many compliments on it – the clients love it,” she enthuses.