Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Redbridge · London
Alcove units in Ilford, Redbridge
Planning alcove units for a home in Ilford? It starts with a design visit to measure and talk through ideas, then a written quote.
- A place for a small desk
- Empty alcoves either side of the chimney breast
- Storage that suits a period room
Alcove units designed for your room
Alcove units in Ilford
Period alcoves are rarely square. Walls bow, corners wander and floors slope. Each unit is made in our workshop to our measurements and scribed to the walls when we fit it, so the edges follow the plaster instead of leaving a gap. Adjustable feet or a plinth set it level. We make alcove units from birch ply and moisture-resistant MDF, painted by hand or sprayed, and the things people most often want solved are bare alcoves beside the fireplace and a place for a small desk.
Older houses tend to come with picture rails, tall skirtings and cornices, and they set the lines that alcove units have to meet. A large share of the housing around Ilford went up before 1919, so those details are worth looking at closely at the design visit. The top of the furniture can stop at the picture rail or carry on to the cornice, whichever suits the room.
A quote in writing is the clearest record of what we have agreed. It describes the alcove unit we’ve designed for the room, its materials and its finish.
- Location
- Ilford (IG1, IG3, IG2, E12)
- Area
- Redbridge
- Price
- Quoted for your room
- First step
- We visit, measure, then quote
- Making
- In our workshop, then fitted in your home
- Made from
- Painted MDF and birch ply
- Working days
- Weekdays; Saturdays on request
- Enquiries
- Send us a message
- Page updated
- 27 October 2026
Tips worth knowing
Painted fitted furniture is easy to look after. These habits help most:
- Deal with any damp on the chimney breast first
- Decide whether the units stop at the picture rail or run to the ceiling
- Talk to your electrician early if you want new sockets
- Measure anything large that must fit inside, like a record player
To clean painted units, a soft cloth that’s barely damp is enough. Avoid abrasive pads and strong cleaning sprays, as they can mark the finish. Dry the surface afterwards.
Now and then, check handles and hinges are still tight and adjust a door before a small rub becomes a mark.
FAQs: alcove units in Ilford
My house in Ilford is Victorian. Can you deal with uneven walls?
Yes. Walls in older houses are rarely flat or square, and floors are often out of level, so each piece is scribed to follow the wall and set level on a plinth or adjustable feet. We also work around skirting boards, picture rails and cornices. Fixings are chosen for the wall, whether solid brick or lath and plaster.
Do you make alcove units for homes in Ilford?
Yes, we work across Redbridge, Ilford included, and across the rest of London. You can send us a few details through our contact form to arrange a design visit.
Can I send photos before the visit?
Yes, they help. A few pictures of the room, from floor to ceiling, tell us a lot, especially with rough sizes. To send them, send us a few details through our contact form.
Do alcove units affect the chimney’s ventilation?
We plan alcove units so any chimney vent stays clear. Even a blocked chimney needs some ventilation to help keep damp away.
How long does it take to fit alcove units?
The fitting depends on the size and number of units, and the fitting days are set out in your quote. We will explain what to expect before we arrive.
Can you come on a Saturday?
Yes, Saturdays are possible by arrangement. Just mention it when you get in touch, and we will see what we can do.
Bespoke or off-the-shelf?
Flat-pack and off-the-shelf furniture has its place. In a room with square walls and standard sizes, it can work well.
The real difference is in the fit: edges scribed to the wall, a level base on a sloping floor and a neat line where the furniture meets the ceiling. In an older room, standard units rarely manage that.
Places near Ilford
Other services in Ilford
Living-room storage in Ilford
Homes built before 1919 make up about 58% of the housing in the area around Ilford, with about 20% built since 2000, on the Valuation Office Agency’s council tax figures for 2025. For carpentry, the era of a house is a useful clue to how square its rooms are and what its walls are made of. The National Heritage List records 9 entries within half a mile of the centre of Ilford. Being near listed buildings doesn’t make a home listed, and you can check any address on Historic England’s list. Parking controls in London are set borough by borough, so Redbridge has its own. Depending on your street in Ilford, a visitor permit, a paid bay or a council bay suspension may be needed. It is useful to let us know about parking at the design visit.
Close to South Park? Alcove units can be planned to frame a window with a view rather than block it. For a family home near Winston Way Academy, low doors that small hands can open, with books and ornaments higher up, suit a busy family room.
Ilford is about 4 miles north-west of Woodford, within the London Borough of Redbridge. Our work covers every London borough and the City of London, Ilford included. Our Redbridge coverage includes Ilford and the places around it.
We cover every part of the IG1, IG3, IG2 and E12 postcode area. If your home is on a street like Station Road, Axon Place and Hainault Street, or close by, we can arrange a design visit for alcove units. Ilford is near the A118, so if your home is on a main road, mention it when you contact us. We also cover the places around Ilford: Cranbrook (1 mile north-west), Loxford (1 mile south), Seven Kings (1 mile north-east), Manor Park (1 mile south-west) and Little Ilford (1 mile south-west). Other parts of Redbridge we cover include Woodford (4 miles north-west), Wanstead (2 miles north-west), South Woodford (3 miles north-west), Redbridge (2 miles north-west), Goodmayes (2 miles east) and Woodford Wells (4 miles north-west). As one of the bigger places in Redbridge, Ilford is covered for alcove units and everything else we make.
Landmarks near Ilford
Around Ilford, we cover homes near The Ursuline Academy Ilford and Great Spoon of Ilford pub and the streets around them. There’s a railway station in Ilford itself: Ilford station. Other landmarks nearby include Redbridge Museum (within half a mile south-west) and Barking Community Hospital (1.8 miles south-east).
What happens on fitting day
Before anything is fixed, we set the furniture level. Floors are often out of level, so adjustable feet or a plinth take up the difference, which keeps the lines straight. Only then is it fixed to the wall, with fixings chosen to suit brick, lath and plaster or plasterboard. In a period home, the furniture is fitted to walls that aren’t straight, so there’s some trimming and adjusting on site. We protect the floors and keep dust to a minimum. It’s useful to tell us about parking at the design visit, as terraced streets are often busy.
- It starts with a short message from you about the alcoves.
- We visit to measure the alcoves and discuss the design, including the paint finish.
- A written quote 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. If you chose spray painting, that’s done in the workshop too, for a smooth, even surface.
- We fit the units in your home and scribe them to the walls.
- Paint needs time to cure, so go gently with the new units at first.
Getting ready for fitting day
- Take anything hanging off the wall we’re fitting to
- Let us know where the boiler and meters are
- Move anything in the hall or on the stairs out of the way
Arranging a design visit
Every quote follows a design visit. At the visit, we measure, look at the walls and floors and talk through the design with you, and the written quote comes after. Every piece is quoted for your room after the design visit. To book a design visit, fill in our short enquiry form.
Related advice
Flats, blocks and rented homes
For flats on red routes or busy main roads, unloading takes some planning. Red routes are run by TfL and have strict stopping rules, so tell us about it at the measuring visit.
For a rented home, access for the design visit and fitting day has to be agreed with the tenants, at times that suit them. A letting agent can arrange this on a landlord’s behalf.
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.
Here are some of the needs we’re asked about most:
- Clutter with nowhere to go
- Alcoves that are wasted space
- Alcoves that are not square
- Storage that suits a period room
If your home is one of the older houses near St Alban's Church, the alcoves beside a chimney breast are the natural place for alcove units.
Questions to ask before you hire anyone
- How the doors are hung and adjusted
- Who does any electrics, plumbing or gas work
- How the furniture will be finished, and where
- Do they scribe the furniture to the walls?