Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Bromley · London
Alcove units in Petts Wood, Bromley
We make alcove units in moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood for homes in Petts Wood. The finish is spray painted or hand painted, in a colour agreed with you.
- Cupboards in keeping with an older house
- Alcoves that are wasted space
- Walls too uneven for standard furniture
Ask about alcove units in Petts Wood
Before and after fitting day
Painted fitted furniture is easy to look after with a little care. A few things help it stay looking good:
- Make the alcoves easy to reach for measuring
- Plan any new sockets with your electrician before fitting
- Check whether there’s a vent in the chimney breast
- Think about how the units meet the picture rail and cornice
Keep a record of the colour for future touch-ups. Hand-painted finishes are the easiest to touch up in place.
Every so often, check that hinges and handles haven’t worked loose and adjust a door before a small rub becomes a mark.
How we make alcove units for Petts Wood
We fit alcove units across Bromley and the rest of London. It starts with a design visit, where we measure the alcoves and go through the design. Then you receive a quote; the units are then made at our workshop and fitted in your home. Typical reasons to get in touch are shop-bought shelving that doesn’t fill the recess and units that sit well with original features; the furniture is made from moisture-resistant MDF and strong birch plywood, with a painted finish.
If you live in one of the interwar houses or semis around Petts Wood, the main room is often well proportioned, with a bay, a chimney breast and not many other recesses. That leaves room for alcove units in the alcoves, along a full wall or around the chimney breast, depending on how you use the room. The carcasses are made from moisture-resistant MDF or birch plywood, painted in a colour agreed with you.
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.
- Location
- Petts Wood (BR5, BR6, BR2)
- Area
- Bromley
- Cost
- Quoted for your room
- How it starts
- We visit, measure, then quote
- Making
- In our workshop, then fitted in your home
- Made from
- Painted MDF and birch ply
- Fitting days
- Weekdays, and Saturdays by prior arrangement
- Enquiries
- Our contact form
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
Built-in living-room furniture in Petts Wood
The biggest shares of homes in the area around Petts Wood were built between 1919 and 1939 (about 71%) and between 1945 and 1972 (about 21%), going by the Valuation Office Agency’s 2025 council tax figures. It is a good starting point, though every room is still measured, as two homes of the same age rarely match. Entries on the National Heritage List near the centre of Petts Wood include The Daylight Inn (Grade II), under half a mile north-west, and Crofton Farmhouse (Grade II), about 0.6 miles south-east. Where a home is listed, listed building consent can be needed for inside works that affect its character, such as fixing into original panelling. It is worth speaking to the council’s conservation officer before the design is final. Detached and semi-detached houses are home to about 87% of households in the area around Petts Wood, going by Census 2021 figures from the ONS. In a semi or detached house, a driveway, where there is one, can make unloading easier.
If you live near Jubilee Country Park, alcove units can be arranged to keep the window and the light clear. For families living near Crofton Junior School, shelving with deep cupboards below keeps books, games and school things in one place. For an older house near St Francis Church, the alcoves beside a chimney breast are the natural place for alcove units.
Petts Wood is within the London Borough of Bromley, about 1 mile east of Orpington. From period terraces to newer flats in Petts Wood, the furniture is designed around the room as we find it. We cover places right across Bromley.
Design visits and fitting in BR5, BR6 and BR2 work the same way as everywhere else we cover. Our area takes in homes on streets such as Tent Peg Lane, Ryecroft Road and Beaumont Road, whether you want alcove units or another piece made for the room. Close by, we also work in Crofton (1 mile south), Broom Hill (1 mile south-east), Southborough (1 mile west), Locksbottom (1 mile south-west) and Bromley Common (2 miles west). Elsewhere in Bromley, we also cover Bromley (3 miles west), Beckenham (5 miles west), Chislehurst (2 miles north), Penge (6 miles west), Anerley (6 miles west) and Crystal Palace (7 miles west).
Landmarks near Petts Wood
The streets we cover here include those near Daylight Inn and Bromley High School and the streets around them. There’s a railway station in Petts Wood itself: Petts Wood station. Well-known places in the area include Bridgeways Day Hospital (1.5 miles west) and Crofton Roman Villa (1.2 miles south-east). For a walk, there’s Summer Hill.
Is bespoke worth it?
The depth of an alcove is set by the chimney breast. Standard cabinets can stand proud of the breast or sit too far back. We set the depth to suit the room. Doors, windows and radiators rarely leave a gap that matches a standard width, which leaves ready-made pieces sitting awkwardly. Fitted furniture is designed around them.
Access to the room makes a difference too. Narrow halls, tight stairs or a small lift may mean the furniture is made in more sections, which the quote allows for. There’s no price list: each design is priced in writing after we’ve seen the space.
What you get with us
- Scribed to uneven walls
- Over 300 projects completed
- Finished by spray or by hand
- We work across all London boroughs
See how bespoke compares with ready-made and what to look for in a quote.
Places near Petts Wood
Also in Petts Wood
FAQs: alcove units in Petts Wood
Is parking a problem for fitting in Petts Wood?
It can be, depending on whether your street is in a controlled parking zone. 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. Let us know what parking is near you during the design visit, and we’ll plan around it.
Do you cover homes near Petts Wood station?
Yes, homes across Bromley and the rest of London are within the area we cover. You can message us from the contact page to arrange a design visit.
Do photos help?
Yes, they help. Pictures of the whole wall or room, including the floor and ceiling, give us a good idea of the space, especially with rough measurements. You can send them when you fill in our short enquiry form.
Will alcove units block the chimney vent?
We design around any vent so it stays open. Air moving through a capped chimney helps stop damp. If there is damp on the breast already, it’s best sorted before fitting.
How long does it take to fit alcove units?
The time on site depends on the size and number of units, and we confirm the fitting days in your quote. Most of the making happens in our workshop.
Can an alcove unit include a desk?
Yes. Many people use one alcove for a desk and the other for cupboards. The desk is planned around the way you work.
What affects the cost of alcove units
Each piece is designed for one room, so each price is too. What affects it comes down to:
- Spray painting or hand painting
- How many doors and drawers there are
- How square the room is
- The width and height of the space
Awkward rooms take more time: walls that lean, floors that slope and sloping ceilings all mean more scribing and cutting. That is reflected in the quote, which we write after seeing the room.
What to send when you contact us
When you contact us, these help most:
- Rough measurements: width, height and depth
- Anything in the way, like radiators, sockets, switches, a boiler or meters
- A few photos of the space, taken from the doorway and from each corner
- Examples of the look you’re after
Every quote follows a design visit. We measure the space, check the walls and floors and discuss what you’d like, then send a quote in writing. We quote each job for the room it’s going into, after the design visit. To arrange a visit, drop us a line using the contact form.
What happens on fitting day
There is not much for you to do on fitting day. We need someone to let us in at the start, and the room should already be cleared, as agreed during the design visit. From there, we protect the floors, bring the furniture in and get on with the fitting. 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. Clearing the room and the way in beforehand helps the day run well. Fitting day starts with protecting the floors and setting out the pieces. The pieces are levelled, fitted to the walls and fixed back.
- You contact us about the alcoves you want to fill, with a note of the room they’re in.
- We come to measure and talk through cupboards, shelves, heights and doors.
- A quote in writing follows, with the finish set out, ready for you to check.
- The units are made in our workshop from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood.
- We bring them to your home and fit them in place. Any scribing to the walls is done on the day.
Preparing the room
- Clear the walls of pictures and shelves
- Keep pets out of the room and the hallway
- Clear the hallway and stairs so the sections can come through
Starting with a design visit
It helps to see the room before we come. A few pictures showing the walls, the corners and where the ceiling meets them give us a good feel for the space, along with rough sizes. To share them, use our contact form, and we’ll arrange a design visit.
Advice
Materials and finishes
Hand-painted finish
A hand-painted finish often suits alcove units in older houses. You choose the colour, and it is easy to refresh in years to come.
Birch plywood
Birch plywood is also good for drawer boxes because it stands up to daily use. It’s painted to match the rest of the unit, or the edge is left as a detail.