Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Hackney · London
Hackney Central Alcove Units
Cupboards and shelves built into the alcoves beside a chimney breast, for homes in Hackney Central. We make each piece in our workshop and fit it in your home.
- Alcoves that are not square
- Worn or badly fitted alcove units
- Units that sit well with original features
Alcove units designed for your room
DIY, flat-pack or bespoke
Shop-bought shelves can sag over a long span. How much a shelf bends depends on its span, depth and load, and long runs need a thicker shelf, a lip along the front or a support. We design shelves with that in mind.
Flat-pack and off-the-shelf furniture has its place. If the walls are straight and the space suits standard sizes, it often does the job, and it is quick to buy.
Alcove units for homes in Hackney Central
Even a chimney that is been blocked or capped needs some ventilation to help keep damp out of the breast. 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, as cupboards fitted over damp walls can suffer. Typical reasons to get in touch are old alcove cupboards that have seen better days and a desk that tucks into an alcove; the furniture is made from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, spray-painted or hand-painted.
Purpose-built flats are home to most households around Hackney Central, from mansion blocks to modern developments. A mansion block flat often keeps its chimney breast, alcoves and high ceilings, whereas a modern flat tends to have plasterboard walls and an open-plan layout. Alcove units are designed for whichever you have.
You get the quote in writing, so you can read it at your own pace and share it with anyone else involved. It records the design, the materials and the finish we discussed.
- Where
- Hackney Central (E8, E9, E2)
- Area
- Hackney
- Price
- Quoted for your room
- First step
- We visit, measure, then quote
- Where it’s made
- Workshop-made, then fitted
- Made from
- MDF and birch plywood, painted
- When we fit
- Weekdays (Saturdays if arranged)
- Get in touch
- Our contact form
- Page updated
- 27 October 2026
Also near Hackney Central
What else we make in Hackney Central
From workshop to your room
There is not much for you to do on fitting day. We need someone to let us in at the start, and it is useful to have the room cleared beforehand, as agreed at the design visit. After that, it’s over to us: the floors are covered, the sections come in and the fitting begins. How long fitting takes depends on how many alcoves there are and how tall the units go, and your quote sets out the fitting days. With little room to spare in a flat, pieces come in as they’re needed. Floors are covered and dust is kept down. Fixings are chosen for each wall, solid or plasterboard.
- You get in touch about alcove units and the room they’re for.
- We visit to measure the alcoves and go through the design, including the paint finish.
- A quote in writing follows, with the finish written in alongside the design and materials.
- We make the units in our workshop from moisture-resistant MDF, which takes paint well, and birch plywood.
- We fit the units in your home and scribe them to the walls; a hand-painted finish is done on site after fitting and is easy to touch up later.
- New paintwork takes a while to cure fully, so treat the surfaces gently at first.
Before we arrive
- Let us know if your street is in a controlled parking zone
- Have your electrician move any sockets or switches beforehand
- Move furniture and belongings away from the wall
Arranging a design visit
Every piece is quoted for your room after the design visit. Because every room is different, the quote comes after the design visit, once the room is measured and the design talked through. To arrange a visit, get in touch through our contact form.
Related advice
Where other trades come in
We are carpenters, so some jobs belong to other trades. These are worth knowing before you plan:
- Any structural work on the chimney breast
- Painting the walls, ceiling and woodwork around the units
- New sockets or wiring (your electrician handles those)
If in doubt, you can get in touch through our contact form and describe the room. How it works.
Materials and parts
- Spray-painted finish
- Hand-painted finish
- Birch plywood
- Adjustable shelves
- Moisture-resistant MDF
- Scribed side panels
- Panelled or flat doors
Caring for painted furniture
New paint needs time to cure fully, so treat it gently at first. After that, a few simple habits help:
- Decide whether the units stop at the picture rail or run to the ceiling
- Book your electrician first if sockets need moving
- Check whether there is a vent in the chimney breast
- Bring the sizes of anything that has to fit in the cupboards
Once the cupboards are filled and in daily use, a door may settle slightly. Most hinges can be adjusted to line the doors up again, which deals with a door that starts to catch.
Every so often, check that hinges and handles haven’t worked loose, and adjust any door that starts to catch.
Bespoke alcove units or ready-made?
With bought furniture you are limited to the maker’s finishes. Ours are painted in a colour agreed with you, either spray painted in the workshop or hand painted. You can match the walls or choose a contrast. Off-the-shelf furniture is sized for an average room, and flats are rarely average, leaving gaps or crowding a door or radiator. Fitted furniture is planned around those.
How it is 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.
Why choose Bespoke Carpentry in Hackney Central
- Made for your room, not a standard size
- Moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood
- Built in our workshop and fitted in your home
- Fitted tight to walls that are not straight
Read how bespoke compares with ready-made or what to look for in a quote.
Hackney Central homes and alcove units
In the area around Hackney Central, the largest groups of homes date from before 1919 (about 33%) and between 1945 and 1972 (about 24%), going by the Valuation Office Agency’s 2025 council tax figures. Each era brings its own kind of wall, ceiling height and floor, so it shapes the design from the first measurement. Within a mile of the centre of Hackney Central, 23 conservation areas are recorded by Historic England. Historic England says England has around 10,000, and the controls mainly cover the outside of buildings. Controlled parking zones cover much of inner London, and each borough runs its own. That normally means a van in Hackney Central needs a visitor permit, a paid bay or a bay suspension through the council. Let us know about parking near your home at the design visit.
The wider area includes historic houses like Sutton House, about 0.5 miles north-east. For a period home anywhere nearby, walls that bow and floors that slope are why alcove units are scribed to fit rather than pushed into place. Close to Haggerston Park? A room that looks out on trees deserves a design that leaves the window alone. If your home is one of the older houses near Church of St Michael and All Angels, the alcoves beside a chimney breast are the natural place for alcove units.
Hackney Central is about 1 mile south-west of Shoreditch, in the London Borough of Hackney. We design and make alcove units for homes in Hackney Central, as part of our work in every London borough. We list Hackney Central among 20 places we cover in Hackney.
Design visits and fitting in E8, E9 and E2 work the same way as everywhere else we cover. You will find streets here such as Brett Road, Tudor Road and Forest Road, and homes on each of them are within our area for alcove units. The A107 and A1207 runs close to Hackney Central; on busy main roads, unloading alcove units takes a little planning. We also cover London Fields (1 mile south), Dalston (1 mile west), Hackney (1 mile east), Cambridge Heath (1 mile south) and Kingsland (1 mile west). We also make alcove units in nearby places such as Stoke Newington (2 miles north-west), Stamford Hill (2 miles north), Upper Clapton (2 miles north), Manor House (3 miles north-west) and Hackney Marshes (2 miles north-east).
Landmarks near Hackney Central
Around Hackney Central, we cover homes near The Urswick School, The Urswick School - A Church of England Secondary School and Bishopsgate Institute Special Collections and Archives. There’s a railway station in Hackney Central itself: London Fields station. Nearby you’ll also find Hackney Walk (0.5 miles north-east) and German Hospital (close by, under half a mile north-west).
Your questions about alcove units in Hackney Central
Can you fit furniture in a home close to London Fields station?
Yes, homes across Hackney and the rest of London are within the area we cover. You can use our contact form to arrange a design visit.
Is parking a problem for fitting in Hackney Central?
It can be: much of inner London is covered by controlled parking zones. Depending on the street, a visitor permit, a paid bay or a bay suspension through the council may be needed, and suspensions often need notice. It’s useful to let us know about parking at the measuring visit, and we’ll plan around it.
Can the fitting be on a Saturday?
Yes, Saturdays are possible by arrangement. Just mention it when you get in touch.
How do I get started?
The first step is to send us a few details through our contact form. We then arrange a design visit, measure up and send a quote in writing.
Will alcove units block the chimney vent?
Any vent is kept clear in the design. Air moving through a capped chimney helps stop damp, which protects the units as well as the wall. Any existing damp should be dealt with before the units go in.
Can you fit a desk into an alcove?
Yes. You can have a desk in one alcove and cupboards in the other if you want the two sides to differ. The desk is planned around the way you work.