Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Richmond upon Thames · London
Alcove Units in Kew
Alcove units in Kew: cupboards and shelves built into the alcoves beside a chimney breast. Each piece is designed at a visit to your home, made at our workshop and fitted by us.
- Empty alcoves either side of the chimney breast
- Standard units leaving gaps at the sides
- Room to work in an alcove
Alcove units for your home in Kew
About our alcove units in Kew
Few alcoves in older houses are truly square. Walls bow, corners wander and floors slope, often all at once. Each unit is built in our workshop to our measurements and scribed to the walls when we fit it, so the sides meet the wall closely rather than showing a dark line. Adjustable feet or a plinth set it level. Typical reasons to get in touch are space for a growing book collection and bowed walls and sloping floors; the furniture is made from birch plywood and moisture-resistant MDF with a spray-painted or hand-painted finish.
Ceilings in homes built before 1919 are often taller than in later houses, and a large share of the homes around Kew date from then. That gives full-height alcove units room to reach the picture rail or the cornice, with the top line set to match the room’s own mouldings. Where a fireplace has been blocked up, the chimney still needs ventilating, and any damp is sorted before units go in.
A written quote follows the design visit. It sets out the design we have talked through, the materials and the finish, so it’s clear what’s included.
- Place
- Kew (W4, TW9, TW8)
- Area
- Richmond upon Thames
- Cost
- Quoted for your room
- How it starts
- We visit, measure, then quote
- Where it is made
- In our workshop, then fitted in your home
- Materials and finish
- Painted MDF and birch ply
- Fitting days
- Weekdays; Saturdays on request
- Contact
- Send us a message
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
What prompts alcove units in Kew
A move into an older home is a common reason. People who have just moved in want storage that suits the age of the house, and the alcoves are an obvious place to start. It is easier to do before the room fills with boxes.
Alcove units can help with:
- A desk that tucks into an alcove
- Everyday clutter left on show
- Furniture that does not fit the alcove
- Units that sit well with original features
Close to Kew Green? Alcove units can be planned to frame a window with a view rather than block it.
Before you choose who makes it
- Will other trades be needed, and who arranges them?
- How the doors are hung and adjusted
- Can you see real work of theirs?
- How they handle walls that aren’t straight
Living-room storage in Kew
About 48% of the homes in the area around Kew went up before 1919, and about 15% between 1919 and 1939, based on the Valuation Office Agency’s 2025 council tax data. We take that into account during the design visit, since older and newer walls take different fixings. There are 73 entries on the National Heritage List within half a mile of the centre of Kew. Original fireplaces, shutters and panelling are worth keeping where they survive, and alcove units can be designed to work around them. Controlled parking zones are common across London, and Richmond upon Thames sets its own rules. If your street in Kew is in a controlled parking zone, a visitor permit, a paid bay or a parking bay suspension through the council may be needed. Parking near your home is worth mentioning at the design visit.
If your children go to Grove Park Primary School or a school nearby, shelving with deep cupboards below keeps books, games and school things in one place. If your home is one of the older houses near St Paul's Church, picture rails and cornices give alcove units a line to finish at.
Kew is about 4 miles south-west of Twickenham, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Anywhere in Kew, the process is the same: a design visit, a quote in writing, furniture built in our workshop and fitting in your home. We list Kew among 19 places we cover in Richmond upon Thames.
Postcode districts we cover here for alcove units: W4, TW9 and TW8. Streets in the area include Kew Road, Maze Road and Kent Road, and we cover homes on all of them for alcove units. Main roads around Kew include the A3000. If your home is on one of them, tell us at the measuring visit, as some main roads have strict stopping rules. Other places close to Kew include Strand-on-the-Green (1 mile north), Grove Park (1 mile east), North Sheen (1 mile south), Gunnersbury (1 mile north) and Turnham Green (1 mile east). Other parts of Richmond upon Thames we cover include Twickenham (4 miles south-west), Richmond (2 miles south-west), Richmond upon Thames (2 miles south-west), Teddington (5 miles south-west), Hampton (6 miles south-west) and Barnes (2 miles south-east).
Landmarks near Kew
Around Kew, we cover homes near Library for Iranian Studies, Chiswick School and Bull's Head pub, among other places. For rail, the closest station is Chiswick station, roughly 0.5 miles south-east of the centre. A little further out are Barnes Hospital (1.5 miles south-east) and Museum No. 2. Monocotyledons and Cryptogams (0.6 miles west). Open spaces near Kew include Kew Gardens Lake and Duke's Hollow.
Bespoke or off-the-shelf?
Off-the-shelf units can work in an alcove, and they typically cost less to buy. The trouble is normally the gaps: standard widths rarely match the recess, and uneven walls make every gap obvious. A bespoke alcove unit is made to your measurements and scribed to the plaster. Recesses in older houses come in every size except the standard ones, so ready-made units rarely fill them properly. Made for the space, the furniture uses the full width and height.
Prices are quoted for your room, once we’ve measured and talked through the design. A larger piece means more material and more time, so size comes first. Doors, drawers, internal fittings and the finish make up most of the rest.
Why us?
- Fitted tight to walls that aren’t straight
- Built from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood
- Built around your room
- We visit, measure and go through the design before we quote
Read how bespoke compares with ready-made or what a quote should include.
When you need someone else
Not everything around alcove units is carpentry, from an electrician to a plumber or an engineer on the Gas Safe Register. Here is what to bear in mind:
- Curing damp, which needs the right specialist
- Moving sockets or switches, which needs an electrician
- Making good damaged walls before fitting
If you’re not sure what’s possible in your room, you can tell us about the room on our contact form and we will give you a straight answer. Our process from visit to fitting.
What it is made from
- Moisture-resistant MDF
- Hand-painted finish
- Scribed side panels
- Birch plywood
- Panelled or flat doors
- Spray-painted finish
- Adjustable shelves
Nearby places to Kew
More for homes in Kew
Your questions about alcove units in Kew
I live near Chiswick station. Is that in your area?
Yes. We cover all of Richmond upon Thames and the rest of London. You can get in touch through our contact form to arrange a design visit, and tell us about parking and access at the same time.
I live in a flat in Kew. How will the furniture get up the stairs?
We measure the route in along with the room itself: the stairs, landings, lift and doors. Alcove units are built in our workshop in sections sized to fit that route, then assembled in your flat. It’s useful to check any building rules and your lease before fitting day.
What do you do at the measuring visit?
We measure the room, check how level the walls and floors are and talk through the design with you. Access and parking are worth talking about too, and afterwards we send a written quote.
How do I get started?
Just fill in our short enquiry form. Rough sizes and a few pictures help, and we’ll arrange a design visit.
Do alcove units need to reach the ceiling?
It’s up to you. Full-height units give the most storage, while others stop them at the picture rail or leave open shelves above a low cupboard. We talk through the options at the measuring visit.
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.
From workshop to your room
With the carcasses fixed and level, we hang any doors and fit any drawers or lids. Each one is adjusted until the gaps are even and it closes cleanly, and then we check it all again. The time the fitting takes depends on how many alcoves there are and how tall the units go, and we confirm the fitting days in your quote. Original hallway tiles and old floorboards are worth protecting, so they’re covered before anything comes in. Drilling into lath and plaster is done with care, so the plaster around stays sound. Any decorating around the new pieces is for your decorator.
- You get in touch to say you’d like alcove units.
- A design visit follows, where we measure up and agree the layout with you. If one alcove needs a desk or a TV space, this is when we plan it.
- We put the design, materials and finish into a quote in writing, ready for you to check.
- The units are made at our workshop from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood. A spray-painted finish is applied there too, if that’s what you chose.
- The units are fitted in your home, ready to fill.
Before fitting day
- Mention any parking restrictions on your street
- Move anything in the hall or on the stairs out of the way
- Tell us about any meters, fuse boards or boilers in the area
How to get a quote
For a quote for alcove units in Kew, message us from the contact page. Let us know the room and the rough idea, plus any rough measurements. We will arrange a design visit, then send a quote in writing.
Advice
Bespoke or off-the-shelf?
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. Off-the-shelf furniture cannot typically do that in an older room.
Standard units come in set widths and heights, so there is typically a gap left over at the top or at one end. Furniture we make is built to the room’s own sizes, so it can use the full height and width.