Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Ealing · London
Alcove Units in Northfields
In Northfields, we design alcove units around the room you actually have. Your alcove unit is designed at a visit to your home and made in our workshop.
- Toys and paperwork with no proper home
- Alcoves that are wasted space
- Somewhere to keep books and records
Alcove units for your home in Northfields
When you need someone else
Damp treatment and building work are for other specialists, so these points are worth knowing:
- Any structural work on the chimney breast
- Making good damaged walls before fitting
- Redecorating, which is for your decorator
If in doubt, you can use our contact form and describe the room. Our process from visit to fitting.
What it is made from
- Adjustable shelves
- Hand-painted finish
- Spray-painted finish
- Panelled or flat doors
- Moisture-resistant MDF
- Scribed side panels
- Birch plywood
Alcove units in Northfields
One alcove can be given over to a desk, with shelves above and a drawer or cupboard below. It gives you a place to work without turning a room into an office. We plan the desk height and depth with you. If you are living with everyday clutter left on show and cupboards in keeping with an older house, alcove units made from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, finished by spray or by hand can solve it.
Ceilings in homes built before 1919 are often taller than in later houses, and a large share of the homes around Northfields date from then. That gives full-height alcove units room to reach the picture rail or the cornice, so the furniture looks as if it belongs to the house. Blocked fireplaces are common too, and a capped chimney should still be ventilated before anything is built against it.
You get the quote in writing, so you can read it at your own pace. It records the design, the materials and the finish we discussed.
- Place
- Northfields (W5, W13, TW8)
- Borough
- Ealing
- Cost
- Quoted for your room
- First step
- We visit, measure, then quote
- Where it is made
- Workshop-made, then fitted
- Materials and finish
- MDF and birch plywood, painted
- When we fit
- Weekdays (Saturdays if arranged)
- Enquiries
- The contact form
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
Also near Northfields
More for homes in Northfields
What happens on fitting day
Getting everything level comes first. Where the floor slopes, we bring the furniture up to level on adjustable feet or a plinth, and that keeps the doors and shelves true. Only then is it fixed to the wall, with fixings chosen to suit brick, lath and plaster or plasterboard. Parking on terraced streets can be tight, especially in a controlled parking zone, so it helps to tell us at the design visit what’s outside. The van is unloaded quickly, with the sections carried straight in. Saturdays are possible by prior arrangement.
- You get in touch about alcove units and the room they’re for.
- At the design visit we measure up, agree the layout and talk about colour and finish. You can choose a spray-painted finish from our workshop or a hand-painted one done in your home.
- The written quote then sets out the design, the materials and the finish you’ve picked.
- We make the units in our workshop from moisture-resistant MDF, which takes paint well, and birch plywood. If you chose spray painting, that is 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.
How to prepare
- Clear the walls of pictures and shelves
- Mention any parking restrictions on your street
- Check the building’s rules for trades and lift bookings
How to get a quote
Because every job is different, the cost is set out in a written quote after the visit. Because every room is different, the quote comes after the design visit, when we have measured up and talked through the design. To arrange a visit, fill in our short enquiry form.
Read more
Alcove units for homes in Northfields
About 63% of the homes in the streets around Northfields went up before 1919, and about 19% between 1919 and 1939, based on the Valuation Office Agency’s 2025 council tax data. For carpentry, the era of a house is a useful clue to how square its rooms are and what its walls are made of. There are 13 entries on the National Heritage List within half a mile of the centre of Northfields. Being near listed buildings doesn’t make a home listed, and you can check any address on Historic England’s list. Around Northfields, about 63% of homes date from before 1919, well above the figure for Ealing as a whole, about 28%, on the Valuation Office Agency’s council tax figures for 2025. So older-house details are more likely to come into the design of alcove units.
Living in a block of flats near Brentford station? Then the lift, the stair turns and the front door all set the largest piece that can come in. Close to Lammas Park? A room that looks out on trees deserves a design that leaves the window alone. Boston Manor, about 0.5 miles south, is one of the historic houses in the wider area. If your own home is a period one, the alcoves beside a chimney breast are the natural place for alcove units.
Northfields is in the London Borough of Ealing, about 1 mile north of Ealing. We work across all London boroughs and the City of London, and Northfields is part of that. Our Ealing coverage includes Northfields and the places around it.
Every address in W5, W13 and TW8 is covered for alcove units. You’ll find streets here like Burns Road, South Road and Elers Road, and homes on each of them are within our area for alcove units. Northfields sits close to the A3002. If your home is on one of them, tell us during the design visit, as some main roads have strict stopping rules. Other places close to Northfields include Brentford (1 mile south-east), Gillette Corner (1 mile south-west), Brentford End (1 mile south), Osterley (2 miles south-west) and Spring Grove (2 miles south-west). Other parts of Ealing we cover include Acton (2 miles east), Southall (3 miles west), Greenford (3 miles north-west), Northolt (4 miles north-west), Acton Green (2 miles east) and Bedford Park (2 miles east).
Around Northfields
We fit furniture in homes around Ealing Park Tavern, Library for Iranian Studies and Great Ealing School and the streets around them. For rail, the closest station is Brentford station, roughly 0.8 miles south. A little further out are Ealing Hospital (1.4 miles west) and Gunnersbury Park House - Large Mansion (1.2 miles east). Green spaces nearby include Castlebar Hill and Long Wood.
Made for the room, or bought in a box?
Bespoke furniture is not instant: it needs a design visit, a quote and time in the workshop. What you get is a unit planned for your alcove, not the nearest catalogue size. Off-the-shelf furniture is made for flat walls and level floors, which older houses rarely have, so you end up with gaps, wobbles and units that don’t meet the skirting. Fitted furniture is scribed to the wall instead.
The finish affects the cost: spray painting happens in the workshop, and hand painting can be done in your home. The written quote reflects your choice, along with the size and fittings.
Why choose us
- Made for your room, not a standard size
- Finished by spray or by hand
- Scribed to uneven walls
- Work across the whole of London
Take a look at bespoke vs off-the-shelf or what a quote should include.
Before and after fitting day
A few practical points help before and after fitting day. These are worth keeping in mind:
- Note any vent or air brick on the chimney breast
- Bring the sizes of anything that has to fit in the cupboards
- Think about what you will store before we meet
- Sort out damp patches before fitting
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. Wipe it dry when you’ve finished.
Use a mat under plants, vases and drinks, since standing water can mark painted shelves. Dry any spills quickly.
FAQs: alcove units in Northfields
Can you fit furniture in a home close to Brentford station?
Yes, homes across Ealing and the rest of London are within the area we cover. You can send us a few details through our contact form to arrange a design visit.
My house in Northfields is Victorian. Can you deal with uneven walls?
Yes, that is normal in older houses: each piece is scribed to the wall and levelled at the base. We also work around skirting boards, picture rails and cornices. Older walls can be solid brick or lath and plaster, and the fixings are chosen to suit.
Can the two alcove units be different?
That is your choice. A matching pair balances the chimney breast, but you might want a desk on one side and cupboards on the other. Shared details, like the plinth and paint colour, keep them looking related.
Can you add sockets inside the units?
Electrical work isn’t something we do. New or moved sockets are a job for your electrician, ideally before fitting, and some electrical work in homes is covered by Part P of the Building Regulations. We can plan cut-outs and cable routes in the units around them.
Can an alcove unit include a desk?
Yes. Many people use one alcove for a desk and the other for cupboards, or matching desks in both. The desk is planned around the way you work.
What paint finish can I have on alcove units?
We offer spray painting in the workshop and hand painting on site. A sprayed finish is very smooth and even. We will help you choose at the measuring visit.
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.
Where bespoke earns its keep is in rooms that aren’t square. In period homes, walls lean, floors slope and the alcoves on each side are often different widths, which leaves standard units with gaps at the sides and top.