Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Lewisham · London
New Cross Alcove Units
In New Cross, we design alcove units around the room you actually have. We design your alcove unit at a visit to your home, make it in our workshop and fit it.
- Storage that suits a period room
- A desk that tucks into an alcove
- Walls too uneven for standard furniture
Alcove units in New Cross
Alcove units in New Cross: what you get
In a tall room, a full-height alcove cupboard holds a great deal. In a bedroom, it can become a small wardrobe or a linen cupboard. At the design visit we ask what you plan to keep there, and set out the shelves and rails around it. People usually come to us about furniture that doesn’t fit the alcove and a place for a small desk; the furniture is made from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, spray-painted or hand-painted.
Wherever your home in New Cross sits in London’s mix of housing, the furniture is designed around your room rather than a standard size. Period rooms bring sloping floors and mouldings; newer rooms bring stud walls and service boxing. We measure for whichever you have, and the pieces are made to suit.
The quote names the materials: moisture-resistant MDF, birch plywood or both, depending on the design. It also says how the furniture will be finished: spray painted or hand painted.
- Place
- New Cross (SE8, SE14, SE4)
- Borough
- Lewisham
- Prices
- Quoted for your room
- How it starts
- We visit, measure, then quote
- Made
- Workshop-made, then fitted
- Materials and finish
- MDF and plywood, painted to order
- When we fit
- Weekdays; Saturdays on request
- Enquiries
- Send us a message
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
What prompts alcove units in New Cross
A bedroom’s alcoves are often the best place for a wardrobe. A fitted alcove cupboard holds clothes without filling the floor, which helps in a small bedroom.
A few of the things people ask us to solve include:
- A desk that tucks into an alcove
- Space for a growing book collection
- Cupboards in keeping with an older house
- Worn or badly fitted alcove units
If you live near Fordham Park, shelving that stops short of the window keeps the view of the green.
Before you choose who makes it
- Will they visit to measure before quoting?
- A written quote that sets out the job
- Whether they can show you real projects they’ve done
- Whether the finish is set out in the quote
Questions from New Cross
Do I need permission for fitted furniture in a conservation area?
Not normally. Conservation area controls are mainly about the outside of buildings, so fitted furniture inside a house does not normally need planning permission. Listed buildings are different, as works inside that affect their character can need listed building consent from the council. The council’s planning or conservation team can tell you if in doubt.
Can parking be tricky on fitting day in New Cross?
It can be, as controlled parking zones cover much of inner London. 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 is useful to tell us about parking during the design visit.
Which finishes are there for alcove units?
We offer spray painting in the workshop and hand painting on site. A sprayed finish is very smooth and even. We talk through both at the design visit.
How tall should alcove units be?
That’s your choice. Some people take the units right to the ceiling for the most storage, while others stop them at the picture rail or leave open shelves above a low cupboard. We’ll go through what suits your room when we visit.
Can an alcove unit include a desk?
Yes. You can have a desk in one alcove and cupboards in the other, or matching desks in both. The desk is planned around the way you work.
What happens during the design visit?
We take full measurements, look at the walls and floors and work through the design together. Access and parking are worth talking about too, and afterwards we send a written quote.
What affects the price in New Cross
Not every room costs the same, for these reasons:
- How square the room is
- The finish: spray painted or hand painted
- The width and height of the space
- Hanging rails, shelves, drawers and other fittings inside
How it’s painted is part of the price: spray painting happens in the workshop, and hand painting can be done in your home. Your choice, along with the size and the fittings, is reflected in the written quote.
Helping us understand the room
These details help when you contact us:
- Where you live, with the postcode
- Photos of the whole wall or room, including the floor and ceiling
- Anything in the way, like radiators, sockets, switches, a boiler or meters
- The type of home and how the room is reached
Getting a quote starts with some details: the room, rough measurements and some pictures if you have them. When you are ready, send us a few details through our contact form. After that, we arrange a visit to measure and go through the design, then send a written quote.
Living-room carpentry in New Cross: local notes
About 43% of the homes in the area around New Cross went up before 1919, and about 19% since 2000, based on the Valuation Office Agency’s 2025 council tax data. Knowing roughly when a home was built helps, because walls and fixings change from one era to the next. Near the centre of New Cross, Historic England’s list includes Public Library (Grade II), under half a mile east, and Goldsmiths College Chapel (Grade II), under half a mile north-west. Listing covers the inside of a building as well as the outside, so works that affect a listed home’s character, like removing original joinery, can require listed building consent. The council’s conservation officer is the person to ask before work starts. Flats in converted or shared houses account for about 24% of households in the streets around New Cross, going by Census 2021 figures from the ONS. Conversions often leave rooms in unusual shapes, with partition walls, boxed-in pipes and chimney breasts in odd places, and the route in may go through a shared hall and stairs. A lease can require consent for alterations, so it’s worth checking yours first.
If your home is one of the older houses near St James's Church, picture rails and cornices give alcove units a line to finish at. If you live in a flat close to New Cross station, the route in is measured as well as the room, and the sections are sized to fit it.
New Cross is in the London Borough of Lewisham. Homes in New Cross are part of the area we cover for alcove units, as part of our work in every London borough. In Lewisham, New Cross is one of the places we cover.
Postcode districts we cover here for alcove units: SE8, SE14 and SE4. If your home is on a street such as Ivy Road, Mona Road and Avon Road, or close by, we can arrange a design visit for alcove units. New Cross sits close to the A2209 and A2210. If your home is on one of them, tell us during the design visit, as some main roads have strict stopping rules. We also cover the places around New Cross: St Johns (1 mile east), Telegraph Hill (1 mile south-west), Deptford (1 mile north-east), Nunhead (1 mile south-west) and Lewisham (1 mile south-east). Other parts of Lewisham we cover include Catford (2 miles south), Sydenham (3 miles south), Hither Green (2 miles south-east), Perry Vale (3 miles south), Bell Green (3 miles south) and Lee (2 miles south-east). New Cross is one of the larger places we cover in Lewisham.
What’s near New Cross
Around New Cross, we cover homes near St. Paul's, Wickham Arms and Addey and Stanhope School, among other places. New Cross has its own railway station: New Cross station. Other landmarks nearby include Lewisham Shopping Centre (1.1 miles south-east) and Miller General Hospital (0.6 miles north-east). Green spaces nearby include New Cross Gate Cutting.
What else we make in New Cross
Flats, conversions and leaseholders
If the property is let, we’ll need access agreed with the tenants. A letting agent can arrange this on a landlord’s behalf, and the written quote can go to whoever needs it.
Mansion blocks and purpose-built blocks often have house rules about lifts, entry systems and when trades can come in. Let us know about them at the design visit, and we will plan the fitting around them.
Before and after fitting day
Painted fitted furniture is easy to look after. A few things help it stay looking good:
- Think about how the units meet the picture rail and cornice
- Look for a chimney vent that needs to stay clear
- Decide what goes behind doors and what goes on show
- Deal with any damp on the chimney breast first
Keep any chimney vent clear once the units are in, even when the cupboards fill up. Ventilation helps keep the chimney breast dry.
Put coasters or mats under anything that holds water, since standing water can mark painted shelves. Wipe up spills straight away.
How fitting day works
Getting everything level comes first. Where the floor slopes, we bring the furniture up to level on adjustable feet or a plinth. After that, it is fixed to the wall using fixings that suit the wall, whether that is solid brick, lath and plaster or plasterboard. If you live in a block, check any rules on lifts, deliveries and working hours; for a house, steps, paths and parking are the things to mention. We plan the details of the day at the design visit. Saturdays can be arranged.
- It starts with a short message from you about the alcoves.
- At the design visit we measure up, agree the layout and talk about colour and finish.
- The written quote then sets out the design, the materials and the finish you’ve picked.
- The units are built in our workshop from moisture-resistant MDF 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.
- Paint needs time to cure, so go gently with the new units at first.
Preparing the room
- Clear the area where the furniture is going
- Take down pictures, mirrors and shelves from the wall
- Get any new sockets or wiring done by your electrician before fitting day
Starting with a design visit
It helps to see the room before we come. Pictures of the whole wall, the corners and the ceiling line give us a good feel for the space. To share them, send us a few details through our contact form, and we will arrange a design visit.