Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Camden · London
Alcove Units in Agar Town
Alcove units in Agar Town: cupboards and shelves built into the alcoves beside a chimney breast. We visit to measure and talk through the design, make the furniture in our workshop and fit it.
- Shelving for books and records
- Tired cupboards in the alcoves
- Alcoves that are wasted space
Alcove units designed for your room
Alcove units in Agar Town: what you get
A capped or blocked chimney should still be ventilated to help stop damp. Units are planned so any vent stays clear, rather than boxing it in. If there are signs of damp on the chimney breast or in the alcoves, they’re best sorted before fitting. If you’re living with somewhere to keep books and records and furniture that doesn’t fit the alcove, alcove units made from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, finished by spray or by hand can solve it.
Purpose-built flats are home to most households around Agar Town, so living rooms often double as dining rooms or home offices. A single run of alcove units can hold the TV, books and the things you’d rather keep out of sight, keeping the floor clear. Walls in flats can be brick, concrete, block or plasterboard, so fixings are chosen for each one.
The furniture is made at our workshop after you have had the quote and decided to go ahead. The quote sets out the agreed design, materials and finish, so every detail can be checked first.
- Where
- Agar Town (NW1W, NW1, N1)
- Borough
- Camden
- Prices
- Quoted for your room
- First step
- A design visit: we measure and talk it through
- Made
- Made in our workshop and fitted on site
- Boards and paint
- MDF and birch plywood, painted
- Working days
- Monday to Friday; Saturdays by prior arrangement
- Enquiries
- Our contact form
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
What happens on fitting day
However carefully a piece is made in the workshop, it still has to meet the room, and that happens on fitting day. Walls in older homes are rarely flat or square, so we scribe the edges by hand to follow the wall, closing the gaps a standard unit would leave. How long the fitting itself takes depends on the size of the alcoves and what goes in them, and the fitting days are set out in your quote. In a block of flats, the stairs, landings, lift and doors matter as much as the room: alcove units are made in sections sized for each of them. Mansion block lifts can be small, and some blocks have no lift at all, which the design allows for.
- You get in touch and describe the alcoves you want to fill.
- At the design visit we measure each alcove at several heights, because period walls are rarely flat or square, then talk through the design with you.
- We send the design, materials and finish in a quote in writing.
- The units are built in our workshop from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, leaving a scribing allowance where they meet the walls.
- On fitting day we level the units and scribe the edges so they follow the line of the plaster. Spray-painted units arrive finished; hand-painted ones are painted once fitted.
Before we arrive
- Let us know where the boiler and meters are
- Arrange any electrical changes with your electrician in advance
- Let us know if your street is in a controlled parking zone
Starting with a design visit
You don’t need exact measurements to get started. Everything is measured properly when we visit, including how level the floor and ceiling are. To get started, message us from the contact page with some details about the room. You receive a quote in writing after the visit.
Related advice
Bespoke or off-the-shelf?
In fairness, standalone furniture comes with you when you move. Fitted alcove units stay with the house and remain when you move on. It depends on how long you expect to stay. Large ready-made pieces can be hard to get up the stairs or into the lift, while fitted furniture arrives in sections sized for the route. It’s then put together in the room.
The price comes in a written quote, worked out from the measurements and the design you choose. A larger piece means more material and more time, so size is the starting point. After that, the number of doors and drawers, the internal fittings and the finish all play a part.
Why choose us
- Built in our workshop and fitted in your home
- We visit, measure and discuss the design before we quote
- Every London borough and the City of London covered
- 300+ projects completed
See bespoke vs off-the-shelf or what a quote should include.
Places near Agar Town
What else we make in Agar Town
Caring for painted furniture
People planning alcove units often ask about these. They’re worth knowing whatever the room:
- Decide whether the units stop at the picture rail or run to the ceiling
- Let us know about stairs, parking and access early
- Clear the alcoves before the design visit if you can
- Make a rough list of what the cupboards need to hold
Keep a record of the colour so any touch-ups match. Small marks on a hand-painted finish are easy to touch up, and it’s useful to keep a little of the paint.
Put the heaviest books and objects low down and spread the weight. Most sagging comes from shelves carrying more than they were planned for, so tell us during the design visit if a shelf will hold something heavy.
FAQs: alcove units in Agar Town
Can you make alcove units for a home in Agar Town?
Yes, we work across Camden, Agar Town included, and across the rest of London. You can send us a few details through our contact form to arrange a design visit.
Will a conservation area stop me having alcove units fitted in Agar Town?
Not normally. Conservation area controls are mainly about the outside of buildings, so fitted furniture inside a house doesn’t normally need planning permission. If your home is listed, internal works that affect its character may need listed building consent, so check with the council first. If you are unsure, the council can confirm.
Can I send pictures before the visit?
Yes, they help. Photos of the whole wall or room, including the floor and ceiling, give us a good idea of the space, especially with rough measurements. To send them, get in touch through our contact form.
What paint finish can I have on alcove units?
Either a spray-painted or a hand-painted finish. Spray painting gives a smooth, factory-like finish; a hand-painted one is easy to touch up later. We’ll help you choose at the design visit.
What if the wall is cold or damp?
It can be done with some care: ventilation behind and inside the furniture helps avoid condensation and mould. Damp treatment isn’t something we do, so any damp needs sorting first.
Do I need to be in when you fit?
We need access, so someone has to let us in. After that, you don’t need to stay in the room, but it’s useful to be around at the end.
What affects the price in Agar Town
The price for your room depends on:
- How big the furniture is
- What goes inside: rails, shelves, drawers and dividers
- Parking near your home
- How many doors and drawers there are
How it’s painted is part of the price: spray painting is done in the workshop, while hand painting can be done on site. The written quote reflects your choice, along with the size and fittings.
Helping us understand the room
When you contact us, these help most:
- Approximate measurements of the space
- Where you live, with the postcode
- Whether it’s a house or a flat, and if there are stairs or a lift
- How you want to use the space
The quote is built from the design visit. We measure the room properly, check how the walls and floors run and talk through the design with you. Afterwards, we send a quote in writing, so you can take your time with it. To arrange the visit, use our contact form.
Is it time for alcove units?
A chimney breast without its fireplace can leave a wall that feels unfinished. A pair of alcove units frames it and gives the wall a sense of order, whether or not the fireplace is used.
Requests we hear often include:
- Walls too uneven for standard furniture
- Toys and paperwork with no proper home
- Tired cupboards in the alcoves
- Empty alcoves either side of the chimney breast
Near listed buildings like All Saints Greek Orthodox Church, under half a mile west of the centre of Agar Town, older homes may keep original joinery that alcove units can be designed around. For a listed home, fixing into original features may need listed building consent.
Before you hire any carpenter
- Who does any electrics, plumbing or gas work
- Whether you will get a quote in writing, not just a figure
- How parking will work on your street
- Whether the quote follows a visit to your home
Built-in living-room furniture in Agar Town
Homes built before 1919 make up about 36% of the housing in the neighbourhood around Agar Town, with about 24% built since 2000, in the VOA’s 2025 council tax stock figures. Each era brings its own kind of wall, ceiling height and floor, so it shapes the design from the first measurement. 15 conservation areas have at least part of their area within a mile of central Agar Town. Historic England says England has around 10,000, and the controls mainly cover the outside of buildings. The Ultra Low Emission Zone has covered all of London since it reached the outer boroughs on 29 August 2023. That includes the vans that bring and fit furniture in Agar Town. How the van gets to your door is planned at the design visit.
If your children go to Abacus Belsize Primary School or a school nearby, shelving with deep cupboards below keeps books, games and school things in one place. Close to Lewis Cubitt Park? Shelving that stops short of the window keeps the view of the green.
Agar Town is about 1 mile south-east of St Pancras, part of the London Borough of Camden. We work across all London boroughs and the City of London, and Agar Town is part of that. We list Agar Town among 28 places we cover in Camden.
In NW1W, NW1 and N1, the process is the same as anywhere else in London. Our area takes in homes on streets like Water Lane, Maiden Lane and Camden Road, along with the roads around them, whether you want alcove units or another piece made for the room. The A400 and A5200 run close to Agar Town, so if your home is on a main road, mention it when you get in touch. We also cover the places around Agar Town: Camden Town (1 mile west), Somers Town (1 mile south), Kings Cross (1 mile south-east), Kentish Town (1 mile north-west) and Barnsbury (1 mile north-east). We also make alcove units in nearby places like Hampstead (2 miles north-west), West End (2 miles south), St Giles (2 miles south), Seven Dials (2 miles south), West Hampstead (3 miles north-west) and Holborn (2 miles south-east).
What’s near Agar Town
We fit furniture in homes around North Bridge House School, Golden Lion pub and Regent High School and the streets around them. Agar Town has its own railway station: Camden Road station. Other landmarks nearby include Brunswick Centre (1.1 miles south) and St Pancras Hospital (a few minutes’ walk south). Not far away are Barnsbury Wood and Primrose Hill.